If you're reading this, you're part of the resistance.
We're back! The doors are (conditionally) open from Tuesday the 28th of April.
The nature of what we do is outdoors by definition. That means we're not popping any bubbles or extended bubbles by being on site.
​In answer to a great many questions, yes, our cleaning solution will destroy Covid-19 capsids. We're not advertising as being a sanitation service but please be assured that our solutions are cleaning your property and more.

We're half way through autumn now and it'll be winter before we know it. The country is still dutifully observing the Covid-19 isolation and we remain hopeful of minimal harm and disruption to the people and the economy of New Zealand.
Just as soon as we're able, we'll be back on the road servicing the needs of our valued customers. 
​Hang in there everyone and keep yourselves safe and well.

These are some challenging times to say the very least. One could look at this in a global context but in many ways, the local circumstances are enough to contemplate just for now.
I'm seeing and hearing of an increasing number of organisations offering services that seem to me not be based on a great deal of specialist knowledge.
Trade services should be providing the required service that you'd expect in line with their advertised and reputationally recognised field of expertise. Exterior cleaners are not recognised as being equipped or trained in virus prevention and eradication.
Now is the time to be listening to specialists; virologists, epidemiologists, medical professionals. Please be cautious about placing faith in promises and practices that may not deliver the desired outcome. 

Of course, when the dust settles from this epidemic containment phase, we're very happy to wash your home to the highest industry standard. We promise to deliver a great job in line with our recognised skills and expertise.

​Stay safe everyone.

Always nice to wash neighbouring houses. And of course we offer a discount when we wash your neighbour's house on the same day!
It sure is dry out there but the rain looks set to make a cameo this week and then perhaps a little more next week.
We're most definitely still washing houses despite it all and we're continuing to be incredibly cautious with our water use. Per previous comms on the subject, we're rinsing lines back into tanks, being very old-school with brushing to avoid overuse of water, and we're making sure any valuable water remaining is going to gardens and lawns where it's needed.
So even if your home is looking a little like these guys out in the Mojave, we're around to wash (and hydrate) it anytime you're ready!

This is a really interesting pair of images. One image shows some really well developed lichen, while the second image shows what lies beneath.
Now, this building was soon to be painted anyway, so the damaged paint surface was really pretty immaterial but let that damage serve as a reminder of the kind of damage that lichen can cause to a surface if left to go about its business. 
This particular lichen accrual was probably about 15-20 years old but that kind of damage can be done to paint in half that time if the paint is already old and starting to pit.
The moral of this story is: don't let lichen get away on you!
Give us a call and we'll come and head the culprit off at the pass - long before it has a chance to cost you a paint job. Scaffold, edge railing, paint costs, don't go there!

Roof cleaning is a really important consideration going into the rainy months. Why? Because to clean a roof by the gentlest means possible (i.e., to treat it), means you need rain to compete the clean up action. 
By convention, to clean a roof you apply a treatment solution. There are a number of them available but we stand by ours and we insist it's the best available to market.
Once the roof has been treated, the lichen/moss/algae will die and then rain will take it all away. And that's why right now is a fantastic time to get the roof under control. A roof treated now will be clean for summer.
Most places around the world get lichen of one sort or another but the gardens of lichen we see in New Zealand are really something special. We have clean air (which lichen likes) and our farmers tend to top dress with phosphorus (which lichen loves) so we tend to see the most active lichen gardens in rural areas and urban areas bordering the country.
So if you want a clean roof, call us here at Green Agenda and find out how we can help.

Step on up Miss May!
Gutter cleaning, spouting clearing, gutter flushing, hydroponic gardening. Call it what you will, it's a job that just needs to be done.
This run of spouting is justifiably our poster pic of the month. This isn't just seasonal leaves, this is decomposition leading to grass growing in a soil medium. In fairness, and by way of disclosure, this was tucked behind a wisteria and the elderly concrete tiles had contributed a lot of sandy grit to the rotting leaves.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: clearing your spouting is the most cost effective piece of building maintenance there is. It costs so little to achieve so much.
Some spouting profiles (this was one) have a lower back edge. That means any overflow will naturally go over the back of the spouting. If you have an incomplete fascia for whatever reason (generally rot), water runs over the back, through the fascia, across the soffit and into the wall. I've seen time and again and it's so easy to avoid. Just keep the spouting clear, let the water run where it's supposed to run and you'll have no problems at all.
At this time of year we're cleaning gutters, clearing spouting, flushing gutters literally by the kilometre. Give us a call and we'll take care of yours for you along with all the rest!

...but very often it is!
Architects currently LOVE black houses - fact.
There's a good reason for that; black and white houses look great. The contrast of black and white, or black and stone creates a real impact.
Unfortunately, black creates impact in another way - it shows every speck of dirt, spider silk, algae, or anything else that comes along and sticks to the exterior of your otherwise beautiful black house.
And it gets more challenging yet; a matt black linear clad home is about the toughest propositions when it comes to washing a house. Anyone can have a go at it but not anyone can do it well. 
Which is where we come in. The image above is of a house we washed recently that had been liberally coated in thick clay dust. It was hard work but the house responded really well to our tender care. And tender is the operative word here. While the challenge looked like it needed a firm hand, it in fact needed the utmost caution because matt black linear will lose its finish straight away if an unskilled operator gets anywhere near it. Less is most definitely more in this instance.
So if you have a black house and you're worried about the paint being marred; or if you're an architect and you've specified a black finish, give us a call here at Green Agenda and we'll take care of the finish better than the rest.

If you have cockroaches at home (or anywhere else), you are most certainly not alone. Cockroaches and spiders have had a bumper summer and they're not showing and signs of slowing down so far this autumn.
At this point, it's worth introducing a short educational note. In the image above you will see two different species of cockroach. The top guy is Drymaplaneta Semivitta, otherwise known as the Gisborne cockroach; the woodroach (forestry term); or more commonly as the "aaagghhh there's an enormous cockroach in the bedroom/kitchen/bathroom". While they can be disturbing for some people to encounter unexpectedly at close quarters, this roach is absolutely harmless. People don't like them but they're solitary and they have no bad habits in terms of infesting food, carrying disease etc. If you have them inside, it generally means they want to get out of the rain. We at Green Agenda quietly admire them as being a high order bug, right up amongst the praying mantises, cicadas and dragonflies. 
The other guy is Blattella Germanica, better known as the German cockroach and also "those horrible little brown ones that scuttle around behind the fridge" - he's potentially more of a problem. These guys do actively seek food to infest and they can carry disease in the right circumstances. If you have them inside, you ought to act decisively to eradicate them from your home.
If you have cockroaches of any variety, just give us a call, and we'll move them along quickly and quietly, and using the right technique to match the species.