Pressure washing in Delaware County, PA: older homes, storm drains and complaints
Updated · KeystoneProGuide editorial team
What should Delaware County homeowners know before a pressure wash?
Delaware County's housing is old by suburban standards, and every one of its 49 municipalities is under the state's storm sewer program. The Census Bureau estimates that 22.1 percent of the county's 229,715 housing units were first built in 1939 or earlier, close to the state's 25.0 percent, and that only 3.5 percent have been built since 2010. Those two facts point at the two questions to settle first: lead paint on older painted surfaces, and where the wash water goes.
Why does the age of the housing matter for washing?
Because of a federal rule tied to 1978. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires anyone paid to disturb painted surfaces on a home built before that year to be certified in lead-safe work practices. Every pre-1940 home is covered, and so are many of the houses that went up later.
The county's own history shows where much of that housing came from. Delaware County says considerable residential development followed the First World War in Upper Darby, Drexel Hill, Havertown and Springfield, and continued after the Second World War. On a house of that period with original painted trim, porches or siding, the EPA's advice is to have the paint tested or to assume it contains lead. Its archived answer on washing says the firm must contain the work so that no dust or debris, including what is in the waste water, leaves the work area.
Brick and stone from those decades call for care of another kind. The National Park Service says some historic masonry can be easily damaged even at low pressures, and recommends 100-400 psi with a test patch first.
Where does the wash water go?
Into the storm sewers that each municipality has to police. The Delaware County Conservation District says every municipality in Delaware County meets the federal criteria for small storm sewer systems and is therefore required to hold a permit, issued by the state Department of Environmental Protection on a five-year cycle. One of the measures each permit requires is illicit discharge detection and elimination. Penn State Extension describes that as keeping anything other than stormwater out of storm inlets, and its examples of illicit substances include paint and automobile oil.
Those sewers drain to named creeks. The district lists stormwater plans for Ridley Creek, Chester Creek and Darby-Cobbs Creeks, with Crum Creek in progress. Ask the company where its water will go, and ask your municipality what is allowed on your street.
Does it matter that so many homes are rented?
For the lead rule, yes. The Census Bureau puts 30.4 percent of the county's 216,946 occupied homes as renter-occupied. The EPA says its rule applies to landlords who disturb paint in a pre-1978 rental, and to the contractors they hire, even though it generally does not apply to owners working on their own homes.
Where can you turn if a job goes wrong?
Delaware County has its own office. Its Office of Consumer Affairs offers voluntary mediation and takes complaints about home repair and remodeling, among other things, and sends suspected criminal or fraudulent cases to the District Attorney or the state Attorney General. It is in the Government Center Building, 201 West Front Street, Media, and its phone number is 610-891-4865.
For registration, the Attorney General's contractor search can be set to Delaware County and to the work type "Pressure Washing", though the page says the data for that field is still thin. What Pennsylvania requires explains how far registration reaches for washing. How to choose a pressure washing company covers the questions to ask about method and chemicals, and businesses serving the county are on the Delaware County pressure washing page.
Sources
- 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year Narrative Profile: Delaware County, Pennsylvania, U.S. Census Bureau
- 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year Narrative Profile: Pennsylvania, U.S. Census Bureau
- Your County at a Glance: History, Delaware County
- Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- How do RRP requirements apply to pressure washing? What containment and other preparation are required?, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (January 2025 archived copy)
- Lead-Safe Renovations for DIYers, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Stormwater Info, Delaware County Conservation District
- What is an MS4?, Penn State Extension
- Home Improvement Contractor Search, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General
- Consumer Affairs/Weights & Measures, Delaware County
- Preservation Matters: Maintenance - Graffiti Removal from Historic Features, National Park Service