Cleaning your roof is a daunting task, even for professionals. You're always learning new things and always on high alert.
Many people wonder, what's the best way to clean your roof and if there is a 'best way' why is there so much variation?
In this blog post, we aim to answer that question for professionals and homeowners alike.
Table of contents
What's the best Method to clean your roof?
The best way is always the safest way, and that's soft washing. This method is the safest way because it doesn't rely on high pressure water or even particularly harsh chemicals to get the job done. There are some drawbacks though, but before exploring them, let's take a look at soft washing.
Soft washing a roof
We have answered this question in detail as well as all the equipment needed in our 'how to soft wash a roof' guide.
Here's an overview of how to do it:
Protect your gardens and plants
Set up roof access with ladders or scissor lifts/cherry pickers depending on your budget and preference
Manually remove the moss from your roof
Apply the soft washing chemical
Clean up the area
Why use any other method if its the safest? Well, it may be the safest, but soft washing a roof isn't always possible or practical.
Before soft washing a roof, you need to take certain factors into account first:
Rainfall: Is it due to rain heavily over the coming days? If so, the soft washing method may become ineffective since the chemical needs time to sit on the roof to work properly
Roof type: if the roof being cleaned is a metal one then soft washing is not a great method for cleaning. You are better off pressure washing metal
Time constraints: Do you or your client need a clean roof fast? Soft washing can take up to 3 months to fully remove the stains off roofs. This is because killing fungus, algae and lichen takes time
Other methods for roof cleaning
If you need your roof cleaning faster than what the soft washing service can provide, there are other ways.
Cleaning a roof has been around a lot longer than soft washing, and there are plenty of ways to get the job done right.
Each method has it's drawbacks, but the best method will depend heavily on where you live and at what time of the year it is.
Manual Scraping
Manually removing moss from your roof is the cheapest way to clean a roof. If simply removing the moss is your main concern, there are companies that will do this for you solely.
This method is safe for your roof and will slightly improve the look of your roof. But, is it good enough to protect your roof from damage?
There are many drawbacks to removing the moss from your roof solely, let's take a look:
The Disadvantages Of Manual Scraping:
Moss Will Grow Back Fast: The main drawback of manually scraping the moss from your roof alone is that the moss will simply regrow a lot faster. This is because you haven't dealt with the source of the moss growth which too small to simply scrape away!
Doesn't remove algae/lichen: Using this method won't deal with the rest of the bacteria growing on your roof. They will still be living on your tiles, slowly eating away at them until they cause more permanent damage.
Roof Won't Look It's Best: Your roof will still look pretty dirty and stained if you just remove the moss alone. For many, this is fine, but for others it won't be. A clean roof not only looks great, it also means that anything damaging your roof is gone too.
Pressure Washing
If speed is important to you then pressure washing is the fastest way to clean your roof. The whole process can be done in just a couple of short hours, and if done right this can be a real benefit.
However, there are many drawbacks from using this method, especially when done by an uninsured roof cleaner.
The disadvantages of pressure washing a roof:
Potential for damage: the most obvious risk is the increased likelihood that you will damage your roof tiles. They can easily be chipped or completely removed by using too much pressure.
Over wetting: its very possible that you might wet the inside of your roof with water using a pressure washer. Getting the interior wet can cause a lot of problems for your home including damp, mould and bad odours
Clearcoat damaged: your roof tiles are protected with a clear coat which is an extra layer of protection added onto your roof. High pressure can damage this which will in turn reduce your roofs lifespan
Roof steam cleaning
This is a great way to clean your roof as it removes the need for high power pressure washing and you won't need to use any chemicals either...At least in theory.
Sounds great, but are there any drawback to the steam cleaning method?
Disadvantages of roof steam cleaning:
Sometimes not effective: the steam cleaner Sometimes isn't strong enough to kill some of the stronger bacteria found on a roof. For that reason, many people finish off with a gentle biocide clean after just in case.
Slowest option: steam cleaning your roof is a slow process. You need to remove the moss manually just like in the soft wash, but then you have to go over with a steam cleaner too which takes up time. For this reason, it isn't as cost effective for the customer as other options
More cumbersome for the technician: If you are offering steam cleaning as a service yourself and are considering steam roof cleaning, there are some things you should know. It's not easy. You need to be thorough and go over the roof a few times, slowly to make sure that all of the contaminants have been killed off.
Conclusion
These are the 4 methods used by professionals to clean your roof. Each have the pros and cons but overall, soft washing is best.
Steam cleaning is great if you need immediate results without the drawbacks of pressure washing but it's more expensive.
Whatever method you choose, always pick a professional to carry out the job for you. Using an uninsured or untrained contractor can end up costing you thousands.
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