What Does House Water Blasting Cost in San Diego?
House water blasting in San Diego runs $250 to $500 for a single-story stucco home under 1,500 sq ft, and $450 to $900 for two-story homes. It's the same job as pressure washing. Driveways run $150 to $300, and painted stucco gets a soft wash at 100 to 150 PSI instead of a hard blast.
Last updated: September 2026
We get calls asking for "water blasting" a few times a month, usually from someone who heard the term from a neighbor or read it on an old forum post. It is not a separate service. The confusion is understandable. Nobody agrees on what to call spraying water at a house under pressure, and the industry has at least four names for the same rig.
Water Blasting vs Pressure Washing vs Soft Washing
| Term | What it actually means | Typical PSI | Best surface |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water blasting | Slang for pressure washing, no technical difference | 3000+ | Concrete, brick |
| Pressure washing | Cold water, mechanical force | 3000 | Driveways, patios |
| Power washing | Hot water added for grease and oil | 3000 | Commercial pads, grease stains |
| Soft washing | Low pressure plus cleaning chemistry | 100-150 | Stucco, painted siding, roofs |
A crew that shows up and blasts your whole house at 3000 PSI without switching to a soft wash on the stucco is going to leave marks. We saw this on a job off Meade Avenue in Normal Heights last spring, where a previous contractor had etched visible lines into the painted siding trying to strip mildew at full pressure. Repainting that section cost the homeowner more than three soft washes would have.
How much does it cost to water blast a driveway in San Diego?
A standard 400 to 700 sq ft concrete driveway runs $150 to $300 and takes 45 to 90 minutes with a 20 inch surface cleaner at 3000 PSI and 4 GPM. Pavers cost more, usually $250 to $450, because we have to pull the joint sand during the rinse and re-sand afterward or the joints start shifting within a season.
Oil stains add $75 to $250 depending on how long they have sat. A carport stain that has baked in for a few years needs a degreaser dwell and hot water at 180 degrees, not more pressure.
What moves the price on a full house wash?
Two-story homes cost more because of ladder work and the extra hose needed to reach a second story roofline. Canyon-adjacent lots in Kensington and Golden Hill, where the truck cannot park within 100 feet of the house, add setup time even though the wash itself does not change.
Marine layer matters too. Homes within a mile or two of the coast build up a thin salt film between washes that dulls stucco color faster than inland neighborhoods see. We tell coastal clients to wash every 8 to 10 months instead of the usual 12.
Full pricing by surface is on our pressure washing page, and painted or stucco exteriors are covered under soft washing. If you want a number for your block, the service area list shows where we run standing routes.