Drone building cleaning in Portland, Maine
The buildings we quote most often in Portland are office towers, hospitals and medical campuses, university and school campuses, hotels and resorts, condominium and HOA buildings and apartment communities. The Portland office market totals about 6.8 million square feet, of which roughly 2.7 million square feet is Class A and about 3.1 million square feet sits in buildings of 100,000 to 500,000 square feet.
Tethered drones flown by FAA Part 107 pilots, water-fed poles and ground crews where flight is not the right tool, no scaffolding or boom lift, and a fixed price at our published national rate after a free site survey.
Documented project · Florida
Belmont Village, 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
Quick facts
- Coverage
- Portland and Cumberland County
- Season
- early May to early October
- Reach
- Up to 200 ft per staging position
- Insurance
- FAA Part 107 · $2M liability · $1M umbrella
Fully Insured
$2M liability · $1M umbrella
FAA Compliant
Part 107 Certified
Commercial Projects
Up to 200 ft by drone
Where we work in Portland
Crews and equipment mobilize anywhere in the United States, with travel built into a fixed quote after a free site survey. The buildings we quote most often in Portland are office towers, hospitals and medical campuses, university and school campuses, hotels and resorts, condominium and HOA buildings and apartment communities.
Old Port
The Old Port is built out in 19th century brick warehouses, and much of it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Portland Waterfront Historic District.
Downtown
The Downtown Portland office submarket holds about 4 million square feet of office space, roughly 1.6 million square feet of it Class A.
Bramhall and the Western Promenade
Maine Medical Center occupies the Bramhall Street campus in the Western Promenade neighborhood and is licensed for 929 beds.
Oakdale
The University of Southern Maine's Portland campus sits in the Oakdale neighborhood and opened the 210,000 square foot, 580 bed Portland Commons residence hall in August 2023.
Portland building stock
Portland is the most populous city in Maine with 68,408 residents at the 2020 census, inside a metropolitan area of about 556,893 people.
The Portland office market totals about 6.8 million square feet, of which roughly 2.7 million square feet is Class A and about 3.1 million square feet sits in buildings of 100,000 to 500,000 square feet.
Portland holds 8 of the 20 tallest buildings in Maine, led by the 204.5 foot Casco tower, the 175 foot Franklin Towers and the 172 foot Back Bay Tower.
Maine Medical Center is licensed for 929 beds, employs more than 6,000 staff and handles roughly 500,000 outpatient visits a year on its Portland campus.
A tethered drone reaches up to 200 ft, about 18 stories, from one staging position; taller towers are worked from podiums, setbacks or the roof. Height is a planning question at the survey, not a limit.
Climate, soiling and season in Portland
Portland has a humid continental climate on a peninsula in Casco Bay, averaging about 47 inches of precipitation and 69 inches of snow a year, so exteriors cycle through freezing and thawing and collect winter grit and salt.
Water-based washing pauses in freezing weather; the freeze dates shown are averages and the survey confirms the window for your building. Recurring clients are booked at the start of the window.
Flying and washing in Portland
These are the rules that shape a job here; we plan around them at the survey, not on site.
Controlled airspace here needs FAA authorization before launch; LAANC grants it in advance and it is filed as part of scheduling.
Portland International Jetport is Class C airspace and its rings cover much of the metro area, so LAANC authorization is required before launching inside them.
Portland restricts launching and landing drones in its parks, with Deering Oaks and the Eastern Promenade among the locations commonly cited.
Portland Code of Ordinances Section 32-18 bars any non-stormwater discharge to the storm drainage system, and residual street wash water is allowed only where detergents are not used and no spill has occurred.
Portland Code of Ordinances Section 25-26 requires a street and sidewalk occupancy permit before anything is placed in, on or suspended over a street, way or public place, so sidewalk hose runs and truck setups downtown are permitted ahead of the work.
Flights stage from the client's own property with the owner's written consent; public parks and rights of way are not used as launch sites without a permit.
Rinse water is contained and recovered wherever the local storm-drain rule requires it, and the containment method is written into the proposal.
Any sidewalk or lane closure is permitted with the city before the job and its lead time is part of the schedule.
State-level drone law, licensing and the statewide season are on the Maine page. See also where drones need permits.
Pricing in Portland
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 Portland is a fixed price after a free site survey. Bigger jobs get lower rates: from 40,000 sq ft the quotable range is $0.12–$0.20 per square foot.
- 10,000 sq ft facade
- $1,200–$2,375
- 40,000 sq ft facade
- $4,800–$8,000
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, with what moves the rate, is on how we price.
What to expect in Portland: a documented project
Our two documented projects were delivered in Florida, where we operate as Vista Drone Cleaning; the first documented Portland project will be published when it is delivered. Until then, the job below is the reference for scope, duration and price, with the same equipment, method, insurance and price sheet.
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
Drone facade, window, roof, solar and garage cleaning in Portland
- 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.
Portland questions
What does drone building cleaning cost in Portland?
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: a 10,000 sq ft facade runs $1,200–$2,375 and a 40,000 sq ft facade runs $4,800–$8,000. There is no minimum charge, and a maintenance contract runs 20–30% below the one-off price per visit.
Can you fly a cleaning drone in Portland?
Controlled airspace here needs FAA authorization before launch; LAANC grants it in advance and it is filed as part of scheduling. Portland International Jetport is Class C airspace and its rings cover much of the metro area, so LAANC authorization is required before launching inside them. Portland restricts launching and landing drones in its parks, with Deering Oaks and the Eastern Promenade among the locations commonly cited. Flights stage from the client's own property with the owner's written consent; public parks and rights of way are not used as launch sites without a permit.
Where does the wash water go, and do you need a permit in Portland?
Portland Code of Ordinances Section 32-18 bars any non-stormwater discharge to the storm drainage system, and residual street wash water is allowed only where detergents are not used and no spill has occurred. Portland Code of Ordinances Section 25-26 requires a street and sidewalk occupancy permit before anything is placed in, on or suspended over a street, way or public place, so sidewalk hose runs and truck setups downtown are permitted ahead of the work. Rinse water is contained and recovered wherever the local storm-drain rule requires it, and the containment method is written into the proposal. Any sidewalk or lane closure is permitted with the city before the job and its lead time is part of the schedule.
When is the washing season in Portland?
Portland has a humid continental climate on a peninsula in Casco Bay, averaging about 47 inches of precipitation and 69 inches of snow a year, so exteriors cycle through freezing and thawing and collect winter grit and salt. Water-based washing pauses in freezing weather; the freeze dates shown are averages and the survey confirms the window for your building. The state page lists the average freeze dates.
Do you really serve Portland, Maine?
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.
Have you completed a project in Portland 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 Portland uses the same equipment, method, insurance and price sheet, and the first documented Portland project will be published here when it is delivered.
More general answers are on the national FAQ. See every state on the states directory.
More cities in Maine
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portland,_Maine
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Port_of_Portland,_Maine
- https://www.commercialcafe.com/office/us/me/portland/downtown-portland/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maine_Medical_Center
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Southern_Maine
- https://www.commercialcafe.com/office/us/me/portland/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Maine
- https://www.flyusi.org/guides/drone-laws/maine
- https://content.civicplus.com/api/assets/me-portland/941ee8f5-ba77-429f-a7e4-5a91e7373eea?cache=1800
- https://content.civicplus.com/api/assets/9c2d9e05-2466-4b31-8240-fc82c04f114b
Get a free site survey in Portland
Tell us the property. We survey it for free and send a fixed price.