Service Areas
Maryland, MD
Virginia, VA
Washington, DC
Montgomery County
Frederick County
Prince Georges County
Ashton
Beallsville
Bethesda
Boyds
Brinklow
Brookeville
Burtonsville
Cabin John
Chevy Chase
Clarksburg
Colesville
Damascus
Darnestown
Derwood
Dumfries
Fairfax
Frederick
Gaithersburg
Germantown
Glen Echo
Hyattsville
Ijamsville
Kensington
Laytonsville
Montgomery Village
Mount Airy
New Market
North Bethesda
North Potomac
Olney
Poolesville
Potomac
Rockville
Sandy Spring
Silver Spring
Takoma Park
Washington Grove
West Bethesda
West Friendship
Wheaton
Woodbine
Time For Pressure Washing?
Click For Our TV Commercial!
Testimonial
"I am very satisfied with the service of Henry's housework. They quality and level of service is exceptional and I sincerely appreciate their prompt response to my request to replace roof tiles. In today's society, I find the level of work ethics and customer service has declined in a variety of professions. Henry's Housework is the exception to the rule. Please accept my appreciation Henry, and to Nichole of your staff for a quality job."
Evelyn Lee, Silver Spring MD
The Environmental Protection Agency made some changes in the pressure treating process of lumber. Here are some quotes from their website.
"On February 12, 2002, EPA announced a voluntary decision by industry to move consumer use of treated lumber products away from a variety of pressure-treated wood that contains arsenic."
To read all the information on this announcement see the EPA website.
One of their recommendations to help prevent exposure to CCA is to apply a coating product to pressure-treated wood on a regular basis. They state that some studies suggest that this can reduce the amount of CCA that leaches from treated wood.
What types of coatings are most effective?
We do not recommend surface film forming stain agents or painting of decks. Most of these paint and stain agents have a tendency to wear or peel off and these particles may have CCA on them. For the best protection of your wood surface from the elements and CCA, see our staining page.
Introduction to the Clean Water Act
The Clean Water Act (CWA) is the cornerstone of surface water quality protection in the United States. (The Act does not deal directly with ground water nor with water quantity issues.) The statute employs a variety of regulatory and nonregulatory tools to sharply reduce direct pollutant discharges into waterways, finance municipal wastewater treatment facilities, and manage polluted runoff. These tools are employed to achieve the broader goal of restoring and maintaining the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters so that they can support "the protection and propagation of fish, shellfish, and wildlife and recreation in and on the water."
For many years following the passage of CWA in 1972, EPA, states, and Indian tribes focused mainly on the chemical aspects of the "integrity" goal. During the last decade, however, more attention has been given to physical and biological integrity. Also, in the early decades of the Act's implementation, efforts focused on regulating discharges from traditional "point source" facilities, such as municipal sewage plants and industrial facilities, with little attention paid to runoff from streets, construction sites, farms, and other "wet-weather" sources.
Starting in the late 1980s, efforts to address polluted runoff have increased significantly. For "nonpoint" runoff, voluntary programs, including cost-sharing with landowners are the key tool. For "wet weather point sources" like urban storm sewer systems and construction sites, a regulatory approach is being employed.
Evolution of CWA programs over the last decade has also included something of a shift from a program-by-program, source-by-source, pollutant-by-pollutant approach to more holistic watershed-based strategies. Under the watershed approach equal emphasis is placed on protecting healthy waters and restoring impaired ones. A full array of issues are addressed, not just those subject to CWA regulatory authority. Involvement of stakeholder groups in the development and implementation of strategies for achieving and maintaining state water quality and other environmental goals is another hallmark of this approach.