Whats Wrong With Diy Roof Cleaning
As roof washing is vital for keeping a home in good repair, you might be tempted to buy pressure washing equipment and try to tackle this job yourself. While owning power washing equipment allows you to clean a homes roof at your convenience, this job is often more difficult and even dangerous than homeowners realize!
One mistake homeowners often make with DIY roof washing is assuming that added pressure is the best choice for removing moss and thick layers of dirt and grime. Too much pressure can easily loosen or split shingles and tiles while also creating messy splatter. Added pressure might also be ineffective at removing all that dirt and moss!
Instead, moss and other growth including mold and algae are best addressed by specialty chemicals designed to kill growing roots and spores. Surfactants or detergents meant for roofs also dissolve thick dirt and grime, loosening storm debris and caked-on mud. This allows you to use low-pressure rinsing for a complete yet safe clean!
Homeowners also might mistakenly use chlorine bleach on their homes roof, which dries out and damages tiles and shingles. Oxygenated bleach helps kill mold and algae without the same risk of damage of chlorine bleach.
Myth: Roof Cleaning Is An Easy Diy Project
While you can rent a pressure washer and buy what you need to do the job, you are better leaving it to the professionals. Cleaning a roof on your own, aside from the risks which come from climbing ladders and being on a wet, possibly slippery or weak roof , can result in additional damage. Pressure washing done incorrectly can damage tiles, flashing, chimneys, and gutters. Incorrect application of chemicals and retardants wont eliminate all of the moss or algae growth or will lead to future growth sooner than later. Improper cleaning can also void your manufacturers warranty.
While you can do it yourself. The risk, time, and cost involved are not worth the outcome.
Is Your Roof Due For A Cleaning
If you think your roof needs to be cleaned, or if youre not sure, Northwest Roof Maintenance can help! Our friendly and professional consultants will take a look at your roof and recommend only the services we know will benefit you and your roof. We never suggest unnecessary repairs or maintenance.
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How Do You Get Rid Of Moss
Our moss removal procedure involves a few different steps.
What Is The Best Way To Clean A Metal Roof
This question is a very important one, but of course with every roof job and all the different variables that can be involved, every roof cleaning can be different! We typically create a CUSTOMER PLAN OF ACTION from preparation, protection, cleaning, clean-up & post-cleaning. This next paragraph will explain determining whether your roof is coated or un-coated.
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Myth: Roof Cleaning Is Expensive
Expensive is a relative term. Your home is your single largest investment. Your roof is arguably the most important part of your home and one of the most expensive to replace. Proper care will maintain the value of your investment and the life expectancy of your roof.
As an added thought, given the potential future damage moss, lichen, and algae can cost, some insurance providers could cancel or increase the cost of your policy for failing to keep your roof clean.
Getting Quotes For Roof Cleaning Prices
If you want your roof cleaned to a high standard then the first step is to get a few quotes. You can get roof cleaning prices easily enough at a reputable quotes site such as Bark and Quotatis.
The more quotes that you get, the more likely you are to get one that suits your budget. It is generally recommended that you try for at least 3 different quotes for comparison purposes.
Be sure to give the company all of the information needed to get start with, although they may also want to go out and see your house before finalising a quote.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Up To 40%:
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There Are Two Main Ways To Clean A Roof And Each Are Viable For Different Reasons
The two main methods for roof cleaning are:
- Pressure Washing – in which highly pressurized water is sprayed on the roof to remove any mold, algae, dirt, or grime, and
- Chemical Cleaning – sometimes called Soft Washing, in which chemicals are the main thing that are removing those harmful things from your roof.
Each of these methods has their strengths and their own shortcomings.
Pressure washing is very effective, but may be best for metal or concrete roofs. There is a chance that the pressurized water could damage your shingles.
Of course, some chemicals can harm your roof as well, and the runoff could cause problems with your landscape or parts of your home. But if the contractor knows what they’re working with, they should be able to find the right balance of effectiveness without harming any parts of your property.
As was the case with choosing your own DIY cleaning products, be selective about the professional that you hire. Make sure that they’re ready to adequately clean your roof and can guarantee no damage will be done to your property!
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How To Avoid Bad Tradesmen
Of course, you will want to make sure that you only ever employ experience and professional tradesmen for jobs like this. Worryingly, a quarter of Brits say that they have been ripped off by tradesmen at some point.
If you make a bad choice then you could end up with someone who cant do the job properly, over-charges you or even tries to take your money without doing anything.
To make a smart decision, you should take the following pieces of advice into consideration.
Comparing Quotes Could Save You Up To 40%:
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Why Are There Black Stains On My Roof
Asphalt shingles used to be asphalt. To cut costs in manufacturing shingles, at some point in the late 70s, asphalt shingle manufacturers started adding limestone in the manufacturing process as a cheap filler and stabilizer. Over the years and as petroleum costs have risen, more and more limestone is being added while theres less asphalt.
Black streaks are Gloeocapsa Magma and eventually turn into green algae and lichens which hold mosture, feed off the shingles and shorten the life of your roof.
Limestone just happens to be the favorite food of this bacteria/algae. It actually feeds off the organic limestone material within your shingle.
Your roof eventually becomes an all-you-can-eat smorgasbord for this bacteria literally feeding off the limestone in your shingles.
It can often take many years for the black streaks to appear but once they do, they spread rapidly. Temperature changes, heat, and moisture greatly accelerate optimal growing conditions and eventually moss and lichens will start to appear, causing even more damage to your roof.
These black streaks on your roof, the bacteria and algae start out as a spore and can be easily carried from roof to roof by wind, trees, small animals, and nature. If you have black streaks, chances are youre not the only one in your neighborhood.
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Pressure Washing A Dirty Surface Can Be Satisfying To Watch But That Doesn’t Mean It’s Good For Your Roof
Pressure washers are a versatile tool in any homeowners arsenal. They can be used to prep home exteriors for painting, clean driveways and sidewalks, and even peel potatoes. But if youre looking up at a dirty roof and wondering if you can just blast the grime away with your handy pressure washer, be warned thats probably not a good idea.
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How Much Does It Cost To Clean A Standard Roof On A Semi Detached House
So again, depending on the cleaning method, and the accessibility, the price for this can range anywhere from £950 to £1500 pounds. And the price for a detached house, a larger detached house, for a full roof clean as in a transformation to restore the roof, can start from £1500 pounds and go upwards depending on the size, the access, etc.
Cost Of Roof Cleaning By Location
While the chemicals and equipment needed to clean a roof will cost about the same no matter where you live, labor costs of different roof cleaning companies can vary by a lot.
What this means: The total amount you pay for roof cleaning could be different from our cost estimates, which are based on national averages.
In general, you can expect lower labor costs if you live in a small town with a low cost of living. On the other hand, homeowners in metropolitan areas shouldnt be surprised if they end up paying more than we estimated.
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Time And Effort Savings
When you have your roof cleaned, you are also saving yourself time and effort. You dont have to worry about your HOA contacting you with complaints about the dirty roof. You dont have to worry about neighbors scoffing or criticizing your maintenance efforts, either. Plus, when your roof is clean, your siding stays cleaner you wont have to spend as many weekends scrubbing streaks off the siding.
Having your roof cleaned by Kelly Roofing will save you time and money. Our certified roofers use a soft wash cleaning process and apply Roof Rain, a 100% natural algae prevention treatment. Contact us to schedule an appointment for your South Florida home.
When To Clean Your Homes Roof
While a light drizzle outside might not interfere with your roof cleaning, note that heavy rain will typically wash away your detergents before they can dissolve thick mud and dirt. A wet roof is also dangerous for walking! Wait for a clear day if needed, to ensure a safe and thorough clean.
If you have allergies, you might wait until after springtime allergy season has passed if you need to remove pollen from the homes roof. For homeowners who love to entertain outside, consider roof washing a good week or two before you open the patio or deck, so any detergent scents and odors have time to dissipate before you fire up the grill!
For homes prone to mold and moss, schedule cleaning at the end of fall, to remove any growth and help kill spores and roots before snow covers those shingles and tiles. Fall also typically means dropping humidity levels so moss and other growth are far less likely to return after an autumn roof cleaning.
A homeowner might also schedule roof washing if theyre thinking of putting their home up for sale. While a clean roof might not increase your overall property values, note that potential buyers are often turned off by dirty exterior surfaces, including roofs! Layers of untouched dirt and grime might also make potential buyers wonder if you maintained your home properly, so schedule roof cleaning and other power washing services before taking photos or putting that for sale sign out front.
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Proper Roof Power Washing Is Not A Diy Job
Never assume you can rent a pressure washer and manage roof washing on your own. There are many reasons why properly cleaning a home’s roof is not a DIY job note a few of those reasons here:
For all these reasons, it’s best to leave roof washing to a professional exterior house cleaning company or someone experienced in roof washing and cleaning.
Roof Tile Cleaning Cost
Roof tiles average $425 to clean. These materials can last much longer than asphalt, but take extra care to clean without damage. Tiles made of ceramic, clay or concrete were not meant to support human weight. Hire an experienced pro to help make sure that your project doesnt turn into a repair job.
Ceramic Tile
Ceramic tile may be the only type that can handle pressure-washing, due to its dense composition. Most pros still don’t recommend it. To avoid damage, its usually better to soft-wash it with a roof cleaning product.
Clay Tile
Clay tile is a lot like ceramic, so the cleaning methods are similar. Clay is more porous, so it cant take pressure-washing. Instead, you can use a garden sprayer with a product like Roof Wash.
Concrete Tile Roof Cleaning
Concrete tiles are popular in temperate climates with wet weather. Moss buildup is typically the biggest problem for this material.
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Reasons To Clean Your Roof
Your roof is one of the most important structures on a home, protecting your loved ones and belongings from environmental elements day-in, day out. Over time, this takes a toll on the roof, causing damage, leaks, and mold that can compromise the integrity of the entire home. Every year people choose to replace their roof when they could have simply had it cleaned, saving thousands of dollars in costs. Consider having your roof professionally cleaned in Los Angeles and protect the investment that you have made in your home.
Heres seven reasons to you should get your roof cleaned:
Cleaning A Galvalume Roof
Metal roofing manufacturers produce all kinds of metal roofing materials and some have coatings and some do not have coatings. Once you determine whether your roof has a Kynar coating or a painted coating, or if your roof is exposed Galvalume with not much of a coating and very porous. Most grey metal roofs contain a very light thin coat over the top of the metal to protect from the elements and surface rust, but dont be fooled, exposed Galvalume can be damaged faster than any other metal roofing surface due its very porous nature and can have the tendency to oxidize quickly and damage your roof if not cleaned correctly. Painted metal roofing surfaces can withstand much more chemical than exposed Galvalume as that paint is baked into the pores of the Galvalume and protects the metal very well from all of the elements and of course from an inexperienced roof cleaner! There are many different variables which affect roof cleaning as well such as the ambient temperature outside, sunlight, pitch of roof, and all variables alike. Landscapes such as shrubs, flowers, and trees are also another huge variable in roof cleaning as were killing the organic growth on your roof, it can also have the probability to kill the organic growth on the ground if not properly prepared and protected prior to beginning the evolution.
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Myth: Those Black Stains Are Caused By Pollution
The stains are caused by Gloeocapsa Magma, a hardy type of algae which thrives in our damp environment and on the limestone filler in shingles .
Failing to remove it allows the condition to worsen each year. The eventual build up can affect interior temperatures, decrease property values, and will lead to replacing your roof sooner than expected.
What Are Some Other Problems A Roof Cleaning Can Tackle
While algae stains are one of the biggest problems in the Mid-Atlantic, a professional roof cleaning can also address:
- grime and soot that has built up over the winter
- mold, which is usually a bigger problem than algae because of potential health hazards if it gets into your drywall.
- moss on the roof, which holds moisture and can lead to rot.
- lichen, a mold/fungus combo thats usually light green and can damage shingles if left untreated.
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Roof Cleaning & Repair In Kent Ny & The Surrounding Areas
Is your roof showing unsightly signs of mold, fungus, or staining? Roof top organisms such as mildew, algae, molds, bacteria, lichens, and mosses are common culprits behind decomposing roofs and ultimately compromise the integrity of your roofing system.
History: What causes the stains on my roof?
Shingles contain limestone. The manufacturers started using limestone as filler in their shingles to help offset the rising cost of asphalt. If you have done any gardening or fertilizing, you know that lime is used to help feed, nourish and grow things like grass and other vegetation. Well, the shingles have a UV protective coating on them when they come from the manufacturer,but once that coating starts to wear off, the limestone is exposed and now the mold spores that are in the air start implanting on the roof and feeding off the limestone. You are actually fertilizing the mold on your roof and youre watching that mold deteriorate, decompose and decay right in front of you. Other organisms that grow and stain your roof besides mold include: moss, algae, lichen and bacteria.
If these organisms have proliferated on your roof, they may now be visible to the human eye. The good news is that the Carmel roofers at Honey-Do-Men Gutters & Roofers can safely and effectively remove this unsightly rooftop menace!
Whats Growing on Your Roof Can Be Wearing it Down
