Safe Roof Cleaning
Our quality roof washing service will rid your roof of organic growth, most commonly gloeocapsa magma, AKA blue-green algae. This cyanobacteria is an airborne bacteria that bounces from roof to roof and can easily take over a neighborhood before you know it.
Before you move forward with a contractor for your roof cleaning needs, let’s look at the most frequently asked questions (FAQs):
1.) What’s the safest way to clean an asphalt shingled roof?
The Asphalt Roofing Manufacturer’s Association (ARMA) has ONLY ONE recommendation for proper cleaning of asphalt shingle roofs: the use of concentrated sodium hypochlorite paired with extremely low pressure (this is what Pine State does).
2.) Will cleaning the roof void the warranty?
Most roof installers adhere to the ARMA standards. As such, cleaning the shingles in any method other than what the specific shingle manufacturer recommends will almost certainly void the warranty. Power washing will void the warranty. Proper softwashing will not (this is what Pine State does).
3.) What happens if you power wash a roof?
Medium to high pressure cleaning of shingles is cheap, easy, and it looks clean. But the pressure actually forces the granules of the shingles off the tarpaper, and this will drastically reduce the effectiveness, and thus the lifespan, of your shingles. For this reason, you should NEVER let a contractor power wash roof, despite the “look” of clean.
4.) What about the moss on my roof? How do you get it off?
Heavy lichen and/or moss growth is a common issue with neglected shingles that receive little to no sunlight. The moss/lichen attaches its roots to the granules of your shingles and often tucks itself underneath the shingle edge. Forcing the growth off with pressure will most assuredly lift the granules off with the roots of the moss/lichen. The proper method for moss/lichen removal is to kill the plant with the roof cleaning detergents and wait for the plant to die. Once the plant dies, the roots will become brittle and fall off naturally and safely, leaving the shingles safe and clean (this is what Pine State does).
Pine State follows all of the required safety guidelines for proper roof washing! Call us at 919.500.8207 for scheduling your free estimate!
