If you noticed that your shingles have moldy and streaky strains, then it’s time to schedule a thorough Lakeland roof cleaning. Want to do it on your own? While it is possible, you need to remember quite a few things first before you dive into this task head first.
Required Tools
Do you have all the things you need to clean these moldy stains? Go to your local hardware store and make sure you have all these before you begin to clean your roof: full-body safety harness, garden hose, garden spray nozzle, lye or other non-toxic chemicals, non-corrosive roof cleaner, and supplemental water pump. Once you have all these, you can then start planning when to clean your roof.
Why Do You Need To Clean Your Roof?
Well, you don’t actually have to do it by yourself. We hope you call a professional so they can handle things for you. But if you are adamant about doing it yourself, you also need to understand why this is important.
Newer shingles are treated with algicide to keep the algae growth at bay for about 10 years. But once the 10 years have elapsed, the algicide will wear off and algae spores will eat into your roof shingles. Once this happens, the algae will eat away at the limestone, dig into the asphalt layer, and dislodge the granules. That will require a thorough repair and replacement of your roof.
Choose The Right Chemicals
If you do an online search, you’ll see many recommendations about how a power washer and bleach can solve your algae problems. This is not true. A power washer may further damage the shingles because of the pressure.
The chlorine bleach, on the other hand, is a corrosive agent that can seriously damage flashings, downpour, and gutters. Its runoff can also harm plants. It may also lighten the color of your roof and “bleach” anything that it can come in contact with.
Although bleach is effective in killing algae and lightening the stains on the roof, it doesn’t kill the underlying algae. After a few days, the algae colony will come back.
What you can do is find lye (sodium hydroxide) products. It works better than bleach and is less harmful to vegetation. But since lye is also corrosive, you must wear full protective gear. Choose a Lakeland roof cleaning product that is safe for the environment and that has a long-lasting effect on the presence of algae on your roof.
