Drone Building & Facade Cleaning in Delaware
We clean facades, windows, roofs, solar arrays and parking structures with tethered cleaning drones and, where flight is not the right tool, water-fed poles and ground crews. Crews and equipment mobilize to Delaware with travel built into a fixed quote after a free site survey.
Quick facts
- Coverage
- Statewide, nationwide service
- Season
- The practical exterior washing window runs from about mid-April to late October, between Wilmington's average last spring frost and first fall frost.
- Reach
- Up to 200 ft per staging position
- Insurance
- FAA Part 107 · $2M liability
Where we work in Delaware
Wilmington
The 1980s arrival of national banks and financial institutions spurred office construction along the Christina River waterfront, where firms including Barclays and Capital One 360 now hold large, prominent office locations.
Dover
As Delaware's capital, downtown Dover is anchored by Legislative Hall, the Delaware Supreme Court, and the Kent County Courthouse, giving the city a concentration of government office buildings.
Newark
Home to the University of Delaware, with Main Street serving as the commercial core adjacent to the campus.
Middletown
Delaware's fastest-growing town, with population up 22.9 percent from 2010 to 2020 and new national retail and warehouse construction, including an Amazon fulfillment center, along the US 301 corridor.
Season and scheduling
The practical exterior washing window runs from about mid-April to late October, between Wilmington's average last spring frost and first fall frost.
Wilmington's average first freeze is late October, and the average last freeze is mid-April.
Water-based washing pauses in freezing weather, and recurring clients are booked at the start of the window.
How we operate in Delaware
These are the rules that shape a job here; we plan around them at the survey, not on site.
Delaware Code Title 11 section 1334(e) reserves all authority to prohibit, restrict, or regulate UAS testing or operation to the state, superseding local ordinances in Wilmington, Dover, and every other municipality.
11 Del. C. section 1334 bars flying a drone over critical infrastructure such as refineries, chemical facilities, power plants, military installations, ports, water treatment plants, correctional facilities, and government buildings.
The same statute prohibits drone flights over events with 1,500 or more attendees and over active first-responder scenes, and bars use that would harass or invade privacy on private property.
11 Del. C. section 1335 is Delaware's general privacy statute, prohibiting surveillance of private places and unauthorized recording, and it applies to drone-mounted cameras.
Wilmington: Wilmington and Dover have no local drone ordinance of their own because Delaware law preempts municipal regulation of UAS testing or operation; only Bethany Beach retains a grandfathered ordinance from before preemption took effect.
New Castle Airport (ILG) near Wilmington sits in Class D airspace, and Dover Air Force Base carries its own restricted airspace, so commercial drone flights near either field need ATC or LAANC authorization.
Delaware's Division of Professional Regulation licenses 37 trades and occupations, including electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and elevator work, but pressure washing, soft washing, and exterior building cleaning are not among the licensed trades.
Wilmington adopted Ordinance 15-007 in 2015, prohibiting illicit discharges and connections to its storm sewer system and setting out enforcement measures.
Building stock
Wilmington's tallest building, 1201 North Market Street, rises 360 feet (110 meters) over 23 floors, and the city has 15 buildings exceeding 200 feet, most built as office towers.
What to expect in Delaware: two documented projects
We have not yet published a documented project in Delaware. Until we do, the two jobs below are the reference for scope, duration and price. Both were delivered in Florida, where we operate as Vista Drone Cleaning, with the same equipment, method, insurance and price sheet that crews bring to Delaware.
Reference project: Belmont Village
Belmont Village Senior Living · Coral Gables, FL, a 130,000+ sq ft luxury senior living high-rise. Delivered in Florida, where we operate as Vista Drone Cleaning.
Belmont Village needed its entire exterior - facade, windows and floor surfaces - cleaned without closing a single entrance or moving a resident. Lifts, scaffolding, swing stages and rope access were all off the table.
Before
After- 130,000+
- sq ft of exterior cleaned
- 7 days
- start to finish
- Zero
- lifts, scaffolding or closures
- 2×/year
- asked back on a semi-annual schedule
Delivered at $0.20 / sq ft, all in, across the full scope. That is a real project price, not the advertised rate, and it does not move when the published range moves.
Reference project: Miramar Centre II
Workspace Property Trust · Miramar, FL, a four-story Class A office building in Miramar Centre Corporate Park. Delivered in Florida, where we operate as Vista Drone Cleaning.
A prospective tenant walkthrough was booked for Thursday and the job was only confirmed on Monday afternoon. Lifts and scaffolding could not clean the building in the time available, and nothing could block the entrances or take over the parking lot.
Before
After- 48 hours
- to complete the entire building
- ~29%
- below traditional pricing for the same scope
- Zero
- lifts or scaffolding on site
- Minimal
- disruption to tenants and daily operations
Services offered in Delaware
- Facade and building cleaningStucco, EIFS, brick, painted concrete and metal panel, cleaned from the air without lifts or scaffolding.
- Window cleaningPure-water drone glass cleaning for high-rise and commercial buildings, no swing stage.
- Roof cleaningSoft-wash for tile, metal, shingle and flat roofs with no foot traffic on the membrane.
- Solar panel cleaningPure-water rinse for rooftop and ground-mount arrays, priced per panel.
- Parking garage cleaningDecks, drive lanes, walls and stairwells at a flat per-square-foot rate.
Pricing in Delaware
We publish our prices. The commercial rate of $0.12–$0.25 per square foot, fixed after a free site survey, is our published national rate, and every job in Delaware is a fixed price after a free site survey. There is no minimum charge on any job, and a maintenance contract runs 20–30% below the one-off price per visit. The full model is on how we price.
Delaware questions
Have you completed a project in Delaware yet?
Not a documented one yet. Our reference projects are two jobs delivered in Florida: Belmont Village in Coral Gables, FL (130,000+ sq ft of exterior cleaned, 7 days start to finish, Zero lifts, scaffolding or closures, 2×/year asked back on a semi-annual schedule) and Miramar Centre II in Miramar, FL (48 hours to complete the entire building, ~29% below traditional pricing for the same scope, Zero lifts or scaffolding on site, Minimal disruption to tenants and daily operations). Work in Delaware uses the same equipment, method, insurance and price sheet, and the first documented Delaware project will be published here when it is delivered.
Do you really serve Delaware?
Yes. Crews and equipment mobilize anywhere in the United States, with travel built into a fixed quote after a free site survey. In Florida we operate as Vista Drone Cleaning. The first documented Delaware project will be published on this page when it is delivered.
When is the washing season in Delaware?
The practical exterior washing window runs from about mid-April to late October, between Wilmington's average last spring frost and first fall frost.
Can you fly a cleaning drone in Delaware?
Delaware Code Title 11 section 1334(e) reserves all authority to prohibit, restrict, or regulate UAS testing or operation to the state, superseding local ordinances in Wilmington, Dover, and every other municipality. New Castle Airport (ILG) near Wilmington sits in Class D airspace, and Dover Air Force Base carries its own restricted airspace, so commercial drone flights near either field need ATC or LAANC authorization.
Do you need a licence to pressure wash in Delaware?
Delaware's Division of Professional Regulation licenses 37 trades and occupations, including electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and elevator work, but pressure washing, soft washing, and exterior building cleaning are not among the licensed trades.
How is pricing set?
Commercial work is quoted per square foot, fixed after a free site survey. $0.12–$0.25 per sq ft is our published national rate, and bigger jobs get lower rates. Crews and equipment mobilize anywhere in the United States, with travel built into a fixed quote after a free site survey.
More general answers are on the national FAQ. See every state on the states directory.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilmington,_Delaware
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dover,_Delaware
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newark,_Delaware
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middletown,_Delaware
- https://www.almanac.com/gardening/frostdates/DE/Wilmington
- https://www.dronelaws.us/delaware
- https://www.flyusi.org/guides/drone-laws/delaware
- https://dpr.delaware.gov/boards/
- https://www.wilmingtondewater.gov/DocumentCenter/View/272
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Wilmington,_Delaware
Our core services
- Facade & building cleaningStucco, EIFS, painted concrete, glass and metal panel, cleaned from the air.
- Roof cleaningSoft-wash for tile, metal, shingle and flat roofs with no foot traffic.
- Window cleaningPure-water drone glass cleaning for high-rise and commercial buildings.
- Parking garage cleaningDecks, drive lanes, walls and stairwells at a flat per-square-foot rate.
Get a free site survey in Delaware
Tell us the property. We survey it for free and send a fixed price.