Particularly observant homeowners may notice unexplainable black sludge on their property's roof. In most cases, this sludge results from mold, mildew, and other types of dirt and grime that make their way onto the roof as a result of wind and rain. Oftentimes, homeowners don’t notice that their roofs are dirty until someone else points it out, or until it’s blatantly obvious to the point that it’s changing the color of your shingles or other roofing material. As with any other task that involves an individual getting on the roof, cleaning a roof can be dangerous. In this post from the Cloud Roofing blog, we’ll give you some tips on how to clean a roof safely and efficiently.
Why Should I Clean My Roof?
There are a couple of reasons why you should clean your roof. First, while mold may not damage your roof, moss can, and it’s pretty difficult to tell the difference. Moss can make the edges of shingles curl up, making them more susceptible to blowing off on a particularly windy day. Additionally, for roofs with reflective or cooling properties, moss and mold growth can negate these attributes. While cleaning your roof isn’t something that needs to be done each year, it’s something you should consider doing when your roof starts to look excessively dirty.
How To Clean A Roof
The main purpose of cleaning a roof is to remove potentially dangerous or performance-reducing algae or moss growth. Standard bleach, like the kind you use for white laundry or to scrub the toilet, is enough to kill and remove spores of algae and moss. According to the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association (ARMA), using a 1:1 ratio of bleach and water is ideal when cleaning a roof. Additionally, ARMA recommends not using a pressure washer on asphalt shingles, as the high-pressure water can damage them.
Pour or spray the bleach mixture on your roof, and let it sit for 20 minutes. Then, rinse away the bleach solution using standard clean water. If your rinsing doesn’t get all of the grime off of the roof, don’t worry; the next couple of rain showers will likely finish the job for you.
Safety Considerations When Cleaning A Roof
According to the National Roofing Contractors Association, you should never do any sort of roofing job yourself if you are not an experienced roofing professional. This includes cleaning your roof. There are several reasons why an inexperienced individual should avoid doing any sort of roofing task, but the main reason is that roofing is dangerous. In 2020, there were over 100 deaths in the US as a result of people falling from a roof. Several of these individuals were professional roofers. Professional roofers typically take several safety precautions to ensure that they can do their job safely, including harnesses, as well as working with multiple individuals on the roof at once in a “buddy system” of sorts.
Another big reason that you should avoid cleaning a roof is that it’s fairly easy to damage a roof if you don’t know the proper ways to navigate around a roof. From cracking shingles to accidentally stepping on a weak spot and finding yourself halfway through the attic, damaging a roof is easier than you may think.
It’s for these reasons that Cloud Roofing highly advises against cleaning the roof yourself. Contact a professional exterior cleaning company for your roof cleaning needs, and avoid damaging your roof or yourself.
Stay Safe By Choosing Cloud Roofing For Your Next Project
Roofing is dangerous work, no matter what you’re doing. Getting on your roof in any capacity can put you in danger of hurting yourself or damaging your roof, and it’s just not worth it. That’s why leaving roofing to professionals will be the recommendation of any experienced roofing contractor. The next time you need your roof repaired or if you’ve been considering roof replacement in San Antonio, Cloud Roofing is here for you. To learn more or to get a free consultation, contact us online or give us a call today.