Articles By Syndicated Columnist
Dan Thomas
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Improvement Inside And Out
Cleaning
Your Roof
Reasons for cleaning your roof include aesthetics, property values, energy
efficiency, and increased longevity of the roof.
Q: Why has my roof turned black?
A: The black is really an algae.3M scientists say the most common for is
Gloeocapsa magma. The wind carries the algae spores and that is why once one
place has it the rest are sure to follow. This algae has become hardier and
use to be only found in humid environments but now you can also find it in
less humid spots.
Q: How can I clean my roof?
A: You can either pressure wash it or use a chemical solution containing
either Sodium Hydroxide or Chlorine bleach. These cleaning methods should
clean your roof with minimal adverse impact but this is only temporary and
will have to be redone every 6 - 18 months to maintain the appearance of the
roof..
Q: Can you tell me what is the best method for cleaning the roof ?
A: Chlorine and water is known to be toxic to people and plants so you will
want to take precautions to protect employees and surrounding property from
the over spray and run off.. If you know your neighbors you may want to let
them know you are going to clean your roof so they can protect themselves.
This is a much faster cleaning process and you have a lot less rinsing to do
compared to other methods. You end up with less wear and tear on your roof.
A Sodium Hydroxide cleaner claims to be safer on the landscaping but
remember sodium hydroxide is caustic and is know as a toxin. This can cause
damage to asphalt shingles. This product requires much more rinsing and if you
do not rinse properly it can cause damage to your roof.. You should not need
more than 100 psi to be effective when rinsing an asphalt shingle roof but
even with 100 psi you should expect some granule loss.
Pressure cleaning your roof does not require chemicals but should only be
used on barrel tile, metal roofs or concrete. It costs less and does not hurt
the landscape or environment. Repeated pressure cleaning can wear away the
surface of some tiles that are covered by a thin layer of coloring.
None of the above cleaning methods are long term solutions. There are a lot
of natural forces such as cold, heat, rain wind just too mention a few that
will cause erosion and weaken a roof to the point where annual inspections and
minor repairs are necessary if you wish to prevent significant repair costs.
Now add to those the cleaning with high pressure or chemicals and you have
just accelerated the aging of the roof. When you are repeatedly cleaning your
roof the tiles are more likely to slip or shift and breakage is more likely to
happen as the shingles become brittle and crack. At this point just walking on
your roof can cause problems.
A light spray of chlorine and water or an algae prevention product will
help prevent the recurrence of the algae growth on your roof.
This spraying of quality algaecides should last for 6 - 12 months. The
longer the better for minimizing any unnecessary damage to the roof.
