How to Clean Roof Shingles: Best Methods to Protect Your Roof

Posted by seoteam on with 26 Comments
how to clean roof shingles

Roof shingles aren’t all the same. Different types of roof shingles are made with a variety of materials. However, when it comes to cleaning your roof shingles, the cleaning methods you use will be similar regardless of what material your shingles are made from. It’s important to know how to clean roof shingles the right way. Even if you plan on hiring a roof cleaning service, learning about proper roof cleaning techniques will help you choose the right people for the job.

What Are Roof Shingles?

Not all homeowners are familiar with different roofing materials. Perhaps you aren’t even sure whether you have a shingle roof. Luckily shingle roofs are easy to spot.

Shingles are used as a roofing material for sloped roofs, so if your roof is flat, you can already know it’s not made with shingles.

Although shingle roofing is the most common choice of material in the U.S, sloped roofs can also be built with other materials. Other popular materials for sloped roofing include:

  • Corrugated metal
  • Thatching
  • Roof tiles

Corrugated metal and thatching are easy to distinguish from shingles. Metal roofs don’t consist of individual tiles or shingles. Instead, each section of the roof will consist of one large sheet of metal. Thatching is also easy to tell apart, as thatched roofs are made from straw or reeds.

roof tiles look similar to shingles, but they're not entirely the sameThe only roofing material that can be a bit tricky to distinguish from shingles is tiles. With both shingles and roofing tiles, the roof will have a tiled appearance. The roof will consist of various tiles or shingles that overlap at the edges. Because of this, many people consider roof tiles to be a form of shingle. What distinguishes roof tiles from regular shingles is the material they’re made from.

In America, most roof shingles are made from asphalt. Occasionally, shingles can also be made from slate or even wood. Roof tiles are specifically made from clay. It’s easy to see the difference between asphalt shingles and clay tiles if you know what to look for.

Clay roof tiles are normally much thicker than shingles, creating a more textured look where the tiles overlap. Shingles are normally much thinner than clay tiles, so the areas where asphalt shingles overlap isn’t always as noticeable.

Luckily maintenance and cleaning are similar for clay tile and asphalt shingle roofs.

Should You Pressure Wash Your Roof?

One of the most popular and widely used methods for cleaning roofs is pressure washing. There are some advantages to pressure washing, seeing as it’s a quick way to clean a roof. The powerful pressure washer beams also deep clean the roof surface, getting rid of a lot of algae spores and tough stains.

Unfortunately, there are also some disadvantages to cleaning a roof with a pressure cleaner. Although roof shingles are made to withstand extreme weather conditions and powerful gusts of wind, they aren’t necessarily made to withstand pressure washing.

The beams from most pressure washers are powerful enough to cause injury – any beam that powerful can certainly damage your roof as well. Many people claim that pressure washing blasts away roof shingle granules, stripping away the longevity of your roof one wash at a time.

Another problem with pressure washing is your roofing warranty. If your roof is new, pressure washing could possibly cause you to lose the warranty on your shingles. Check with the supplier where you bought your shingles before having your roof pressure washed.

Is Pressure Washing a Roof Bad?

While the disadvantages of pressure washing seem disastrous, pressure washing a roof might not be all bad. Many homeowner’s insurance companies will require you to pressure clean your roof regularly if you want to claim for any roof damage. This is because removing moss and algae from your roof increases its lifespan and prevents leaks.

As a homeowner, it’s your responsibility to decide what’s best for your home. While not everyone agrees that pressure washing is a good way to clean a roof, many people who oppose pressure washing advise not cleaning a roof altogether, insisting that moss and algae growths are simply a cosmetic problem. Others suggest washing roofs with lower pressure, such as with a garden hose or garden sprayer.

How to Clean Roof Shingles without Damaging Your Roof

The safest way to clean your roof is to clean it at a low pressure. Many roof cleaning services focus on cleaning roofs at low pressures. They do this either by using special pressure washing equipment, or by foregoing power cleaning altogether in favor of using a garden hose or sprayer.

To avoid damaging your roof during cleaning, it’s best to hire a roof cleaning expert. There are several benefits to hiring a professional roof cleaning service:

  • You’ll stay safe and prevent serious injury from falling
  • Experts are trained and equipped to stay safe on the job
  • Trained professionals deliver impeccable results while protecting the integrity of your roofing system
  • A reputable company will have the necessary insurance to protect your best interests

Keeping safe and staying out of harm’s way is one of the most important reasons to hire professionals. Walking on a sloped roof that’s wet and possibly even slippery with soap can easily lead to a fall.

According to statistics released by The Center for Construction Research and Training in 2013, falls from roofs accounted for one-third of the fall fatalities in the construction industry between 1992-2009. That’s a significant amount, considering that constructors are legally required to adhere to safety standards that aim at preventing such deaths.

Considering how many deaths occur in the professional sector, it should be clear to see why cleaning your own roof is a risky undertaking.

That said, when hiring a professional, you still want assurance that they’ll do the job the right way. There are some things you can ask to ensure you’re getting a good service.

Questions to Ask Your Roof Cleaning Service

The best way to ensure your roof cleaning service will clean your roof properly is to ask the right questions. Knowing what questions to ask will help you choose a company that will clean your roof in a way that’s safe and effective. Some of the questions you should ask include:

  • What insurance does your company have? In most states, contractors such as roof cleaners are required to have at least some insurance. Ideally, you want to work with a company that has both worker’s compensation cover and general or professional liability insurance. At the very least, a company should have worker’s compensation cover, as it’s a legal requirement in most states.
  • What roof cleaning methods do you use? Simply ask the question without mentioning any concerns you have with pressure washing. A good company will mention that they use soft cleaning methods that aren’t damaging to your roof when answering this question.
  • What cleaning detergents do you use? Most companies will use bleach, as it kills of algae and moss. However, some detergents can be harmful to your garden, so ask what precautions they’ll take to protect your garden.
  • What safety precautions will you take? Even if a company has the necessary insurance, you don’t want someone to get injured while cleaning your roof. Safety precautions are an important part of professionalism in any industry.

Stay away from any company that doesn’t have insurance. Roof cleaning services are required to have insurance in most states, so companies without insurance usually operate illegally. As a result, you might be held accountable if an incident occurs and one of the workers get injured on the job. Additionally, an uninsured cleaner won’t be able to compensate you for any damages to your property as a result of their negligence.

Cleaning your roof keeps it looking brand new. In most cases, getting your roof cleaned on a regular basis will also extend its lifespan. When it comes to how to clean roof shingles, it’s best to hire a professional to ensure your roof doesn’t get damaged during the cleaning process. Just be sure to hire a reputable company that will offer you a premium service at a competitive price.

26 thoughts on “How to Clean Roof Shingles: Best Methods to Protect Your Roof”

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