Every Ontario winter leaves its mark. Five months of freeze-thaw cycles, road salt spray, heavy snow loads, ice, and wind have been working on your home's exterior since November. When spring finally arrives in Kitchener-Waterloo — typically late March through April — it's time for a thorough assessment and action plan. Here's where to start and what to prioritize.
Assessing Winter Damage: The Spring Walkthrough
Before booking any services or starting any repairs, spend an hour doing a methodical walkthrough of your property exterior in early April. The goal is to identify damage and prioritize — some issues are urgent and time-sensitive, others can be scheduled for later in the season.
Do your walkthrough after a dry spell of a few days so surfaces are reasonably dry and visible, and ideally after the last frost has passed. Bring a notepad or use your phone to photograph every issue you find. Specific things to look for:
- Gutters: Look for sagging sections, separated joints, damage from ice loads, and sections that have pulled away from the fascia.
- Fascia and soffit: Look for staining (brown water marks), soft spots (indicating rot), paint peeling or bubbling, and sections where soffit panels have been displaced by ice.
- Siding: Check for cracked, warped, or missing panels on vinyl siding; check brick for efflorescence or crumbling mortar; check wood siding for soft rot, swelling, or paint failure.
- Windows: Look for condensation or fogging between panes (failed seals), cracked or missing caulk around frames, and paint or stain peeling on wood frames.
- Driveway and walkways: Note every crack, low spot, heaved section, and area of surface spalling that appeared or worsened over winter.
- Foundation: Look for new cracks, horizontal cracking (more serious than vertical), efflorescence on exposed concrete, and water staining low on the foundation wall.
- Roof: From the ground with binoculars, look for missing shingles, lifted flashing, and ice dam damage visible at the eaves.
Prioritize your findings: structural issues (foundation, roof, major rot) go to the top; cosmetic issues (paint, minor caulk gaps) can wait until later in spring or early summer.
Pro Tip: Do your spring walkthrough assessment in early April, but wait until late April or May before booking most exterior cleaning services. The ground needs to be fully thawed and spring mud season finished before pressure washing and exterior work produces clean, lasting results.
Gutter and Eavestrough Inspection: Checking for Ice Damage
Gutters are the most commonly damaged exterior system in Ontario winters. The weight of ice combined with the expansion forces of freezing water regularly causes hangers to pull free from fascia, joints to separate, and gutters to sag or detach. A spring inspection should be thorough.
Signs of ice damage in gutters:
- Sections of gutter visibly pulling away from the fascia board
- Gutters that are no longer level — they've been pushed downward by ice loads
- Seams that have opened up — look for daylight through the joint or rust streaking below it
- Dents and warping in aluminum gutters from ice expansion
- Loose or missing gutter spikes or hanger straps
A spring gutter cleaning in April or May is also essential. Even if you cleaned gutters properly in November, winter deposits debris in gutters: shingle granules wash down from the roof, helicopter seeds from maples accumulate, and any remaining leaves from late-dropping trees have composted into a wet paste that needs to be flushed out.
Spring is also when you'll discover whether your downspout extensions survived the winter. Rigid downspout extensions placed on the ground can be lifted, pushed aside, or buried by snow plowing and ice. Check that each downspout is still terminating at least 4-6 feet from the foundation and that the extension is in good condition.
If your gutters suffered significant ice damage this past winter, spring is the right time to consider gutter guard installation — preventing leaf accumulation that contributes to ice dam formation in future winters. It's also the time to consider whether an aging gutter system should be replaced entirely.
Window Cleaning After Winter: The Impact of Salt and Grime
Ontario roads are salted heavily from November through March. Every vehicle that passes your home sprays a fine mist of salt water onto the surrounding surfaces — including your windows. By spring, the lower windows of most homes have a cloudy white film of salt residue and road grime that rain alone won't remove.
Spring window cleaning is transformative. The combination of salt removal, winter grime, and the first natural light of the season makes a clean window feel dramatically brighter than a cloudy one. Many homeowners are surprised at how dark their home feels through winter — most of that effect is the dirty glass.
Timing: wait until late April or May for spring window cleaning. Cleaning before pollen season begins in earnest just means you'll need to clean again. Late May, after the worst pollen has dropped, is the ideal first window cleaning of the year.
Spring window cleaning is also an opportunity to assess window seal integrity. Double-pane windows that failed their gas seal over winter will show foggy or condensation-filled panes — a sure sign that the insulating gas has escaped and the window's insulation value is compromised. Replacing failed sealed units (just the glass unit, not the whole window frame) before next winter saves significantly on heating costs.
Our spring window cleaning service covers all interior and exterior glass, screens, and tracks. We use pure water technology that removes salt and mineral deposits without leaving residue.
Pressure Washing Priorities in Spring
Spring pressure washing has a specific priority order for Ontario homes. Start with the surfaces that have the most winter contamination and the most impact on your home's structural health, not just appearance.
Priority 1: Foundation walls and window wells. The base of your home accumulates road salt, sand, and organic debris through winter. Washing these surfaces in spring prevents ongoing salt corrosion on exposed concrete and clears drainage pathways before spring rains arrive in earnest.
Priority 2: Walkways, steps, and driveway. Winter sand and salt need to be removed to assess the underlying surface for new cracks and damage. A clean driveway can be properly inspected for crack filling needs before the driveway sealing season opens in May-June.
Priority 3: Siding and exterior walls. North and west-facing surfaces (which receive the most winter wind and precipitation) typically accumulate the most algae and mildew over winter. A spring soft wash removes organic growth that, left untreated, degrades paint and siding through the season.
Priority 4: Decks and patios. Wood decks need to be cleaned before assessing whether they need re-staining. Concrete and interlocking patios can be washed for the outdoor entertaining season.
When is it safe to pressure wash in spring? Wait until temperatures are consistently above 5°C and there's no frost forecast for 24 hours. Pressure washing surfaces that freeze overnight can drive moisture into freshly opened pores, doing more harm than good. In Kitchener-Waterloo, reliable pressure washing conditions typically begin in mid-April.
Driveway Inspection and Early Spring Repair
Driveways are among the most freeze-thaw-damaged surfaces on any Ontario property. After snow clears in March and April, take the time to map every crack, low spot, and heaved section of your driveway and walkways. Photograph them — you'll want a record of what existed before any contractor works on the property, and to track how quickly damage progresses season to season.
Crack assessment categories:
- Hairline cracks (under 1/8 inch): Monitor these. They don't require immediate treatment but should be sealed before next winter to prevent expansion.
- Medium cracks (1/8 to 1/2 inch): Fill with asphalt crack filler when temperatures are above 10°C. These are actively admitting water and will worsen each winter if not treated.
- Large cracks and alligator cracking (network of cracks over an area): May indicate failing base material underneath. Patching alone won't solve the problem — the base may need to be addressed. Get a professional assessment before spending money on a surface seal.
- Heaved sections: Caused by frost heave in the subbase. These need to settle and stabilize before assessment — wait until mid-May when the ground has fully thawed and re-settled.
Driveway sealing cannot be done in spring until temperatures are consistently above 10°C and the pavement is dry and warm. In Kitchener-Waterloo, the practical sealing window opens in mid-to-late May. There's no rush — sealing in June produces better results than rushing it in cool May conditions. Learn more about our professional driveway sealing service.
Foundation and Drainage Check: Spring's Most Important Assessment
Spring is when foundation and drainage problems reveal themselves most clearly. The combination of snowmelt, spring rains, and a water table that's been elevated by winter precipitation creates maximum water pressure around your foundation. Any drainage weakness shows up as wet basement walls, water staining, or efflorescence in spring.
Walk your property perimeter after the first heavy spring rain (in April or May) specifically to observe where water goes. What you're looking for:
- Water pooling within 10 feet of the foundation for more than an hour after rain stops
- Downspout discharge pointing toward the foundation or pooling near it
- Erosion channels that indicate concentrated water flow from roof runoff
- Settled soil creating a bowl effect against the foundation wall
- Window wells filling with water rather than draining
Many of these issues can be addressed with relatively simple interventions: downspout extensions, topsoil grading, and window well drain cleaning. More serious drainage problems — a water table that pressures basement walls, or foundation cracks that admit water — require professional assessment and potentially waterproofing solutions.
Do not wait if you see water entering your basement through walls or floor. Spring is exactly the period when ongoing slow infiltration causes the most damage, as moisture cycles continue through April and May.
Scheduling Professional Services Early: The March-April Advantage
Here is a practical reality about exterior home services in Kitchener-Waterloo: every homeowner thinks about scheduling exterior work in May and June. By the time May arrives, quality service companies are often booking 3-6 weeks out. Homeowners who call in March or early April get their preferred dates, the best scheduling flexibility, and often benefit from early-season pricing.
The services to book early in spring:
- Window cleaning: High demand in May and June; book in March for May availability
- Pressure washing: Book in April for May service
- Eavestrough repair or replacement: Spring is when ice damage repairs are discovered; the best installers book up fast
- Driveway sealing: June-July slots fill quickly; book in April or May
- Gutter cleaning: Spring cleaning appointments (April-May) fill up as homeowners discover winter damage
| Spring Task | When to Do It | When to Book Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Damage assessment walkthrough | Early April | N/A (DIY) |
| Gutter inspection and cleaning | April–May | March |
| Foundation drainage check | After first heavy rain | N/A (DIY) |
| Pressure wash walkways | Mid-April onward | March–April |
| Pressure wash siding | Late April–May | March–April |
| Window cleaning | Late May (post-pollen) | March |
| Driveway crack inspection | Late April | N/A (DIY) |
| Driveway sealing | Late May–June | April |
Spring Exterior Maintenance — Key Takeaways
- ✓ Start with a thorough walkthrough: Photograph and prioritize all winter damage before spending money on repairs.
- ✓ Gutters need spring attention too: Shingle granules, maple seeds, and ice damage all need to be cleared after winter.
- ✓ Window cleaning waits until late May: Post-pollen (late May) is the ideal timing for the first major window cleaning of the year.
- ✓ Check drainage after a heavy spring rain: Water pooling near the foundation in spring reveals problems that need addressing before next winter.
- ✓ Book professionals in March-April: Quality companies fill up fast once warm weather hits — early booking gets you the best dates and pricing.
