The driveway method, start to finish

This is the sequence. Do it in this order every time and the result is consistent whether it is your first driveway or your thousandth.

## 1. Walk and photograph Before anything comes off the ute. Photograph existing cracks, oil stains, lifted edges, damaged render at the garage, and the neighbour's car. Two minutes now settles any argument later.

## 2. Move and protect Cars, bins, pots, door mats, kids' toys. Close windows on the wash side. Note where the downpipes and drains run.

## 3. Set up containment Drain mat or sandbags. Decide now where the water is going — landscaping if it is a plain wash, contained if there is oil or degreaser.

## 4. Pre-treat Apply a mild sodium hypochlorite mix (2–3%) across the surface with the black nozzle if there is any organic growth — green, black spotting or lichen. Ten minutes of dwell removes what twenty minutes of blasting cannot. Spot-treat oil with a degreaser now so it has the same dwell time.

## 5. Pre-rinse Knock off the loose material with a fan tip. Keeps grit out of the surface cleaner and stops it dragging.

## 6. Surface clean in overlapping passes Half the head's width of overlap on every pass, and keep the speed constant. Zebra striping comes from two things: inconsistent speed and insufficient overlap. Move at a walking pace, not a stroll and not a march.

## 7. Edge and detail The surface cleaner cannot reach edges, corners, expansion joints or against the garage. Do these with a 25° tip, working with the direction of the pass so the finish matches.

## 8. Post-treat A light SH mist after cleaning kills spores in the concrete and buys the customer another 6–12 months before regrowth. This is a genuine differentiator and it takes four minutes.

## 9. Final rinse and photograph Rinse everything, including the walls you overspray and the path to the letterbox. Photograph from the identical position and angle as the "before". Same spot, same height, same framing — that is what makes an impressive pair.