As a home is an important investment, every part of it, including the roof should be taken care of well. To keep the roof clean and maintain its good condition, some methods are used. Pressure washing a roof, perhaps, is the most popular among these cleaning methods. It comes with some benefits that eventually improve the value of your house. From the cleaning steps to the benefits, find everything you need to know about a pressure washer on the following page.
Pressure Roof Washing: What Is It?
Pressure washing the roof requires high-pressure water to be blasted on the rooftop. It is aimed to eliminate grime, algae, debris, mold, and other destructive organisms from the roof surface. Generally speaking, the cleaning task is a substantial part of roof maintenance. This is because the pressure washer can help you avoid roof decay. As a result, you won’t need to repair, or in many cases, replace it often. Not only that but pressure washing can also help you maintain the presentable look of the roof.
More Benefits of Pressure Roof Washing
Aside from cleaning destructive organisms from the rooftop, pressure wash a roof also comes with some other benefits.
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Roof Longevity
When pressure washing the roof surface, you also preserve its tiles or shingles. This will help you make sure that they will live long and in the end, you can save money. You need to keep in mind that debris, lichens, mold, mildew, and algae will build up slowly on your roof surface as years go by. This will result in discoloration on the materials used to make the roof.
Not only that but the formation of these destructive organisms will also interfere with and hamper water collection as well as water lines installed on the roof. These materials can lead to roof damage if you don’t check the roof and clean it regularly. It might also cost a lot of money if the damage also needs a roof replacement. Pressure washing the surface of the roof, also means that you protect your investment for the future.
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Avoid Infestations and Create a Healthy Home
Bear in mind that it is easy for mold and algae infestations on the roof to spread to the attic area of your house. This can lead to damage to the air conditioning system. As a result, your family will be more prone to allergies. Furthermore, the infestations can also cause the support system of the roof to rot. Not to mention the pile-up of materials like dust, dirt, twigs, and fallen leaves that usually attract small rodents and insects to enter your house. Hence, the roof shingles deteriorate.
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Save Energy
Do you know that roofs with poor conditions can increase your energy bills? Well, just say that the surface of your roof is completely covered with algae and rotten shingles are everywhere. This condition will not reflect the sun and cause the higher temperature in your house and attic. This will lead you to pay more for cooling energy bills.
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Improve the Aesthetic Appeal of Your Living Space
With the roof in good condition, the aesthetic appeal of your house can be improved significantly. This is, perhaps, one of the main reasons why people clean their roofs. The build-up materials like fallen leaves and twigs make your roof look dirty.
Not to mention the algae, mildew, and other destructive organisms as mentioned above can change the color of the roof, making it look unkempt and mossy. This pressure washing will make it possible for you to restore the roof’s curb appeal. In this way, the original pristine condition of the roof can be maintained, doubling up the economic value of your house.
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Homeowner Insurance
Most of the time, home insurance companies need to know if their clients take care of their property or not. These companies also tend to find information if you properly maintain the property to make sure that it survives some elements like heavy rains and high winds. You need to keep in mind that this cleaning method can help you detect hidden problems fast or if it requires instant repairs.
Step-by-Step Pressure Roof Washing
Pressure wash a roof usually requires the following steps:
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Preparation
Generally, most jobs that involve this cleaning method can be completed just within a day. However, this might need a longer time to complete if you want to clean black mold from the roof surface. This is because you need to use chemicals to soak it down for a whole day. Then, you should spray the chemicals off for the next day. This is important to provide you with a fast and effective cleaning solution. In this way, the growth of the black mold can be removed easier.
To prepare for this stage, make sure that you attach a 35-degree nozzle to the wand. This will allow the pressure washing to be spread easily over a wide area. In this way, you don’t need to blast the grit off the shingles’ surface.
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Climb Up the Roof and Start Blasting
Once you have prepared things well, you can climb up the roof of your house. You can use a ladder to help you climb it up without damaging the edge of the roof. In this step, make sure that you position yourself at the highest point of the ladder on the side. This is the furthest area of the roof from the ladder.
Before spraying the water, make sure that you face toward the gutters. Then, turn on the machine. Make sure that you hold the wand up high so that any residual pressure can go away. Then, you need to wash the roof in the same direction as the shingles. This will make it possible for the water to flow over the shingles as well as down the roof.
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Wash in Sections
You can move from top to bottom of the roof to wash it in sections. Keep in mind that you should do it in a steady side-to-side sweep as well. You can move the wand back and forth to help you make these sections the width that you can reach them comfortably. Then, you can use detergent and apply it to one area of the roof. Spray it clean after that.
Pressure Washing for Metal Roof
When it comes to pressure wash metal roof, you will need a hot-pressure washer. Keep in mind that you manage to keep it on a 40-degree tip during the cleaning process. Using a flat tip will make it possible for pressure washing to clean the roof faster. Not only that but it makes you can get rid of destructive organisms from the roof surfaces effectively.
Keep in mind that a high-pressure wash is not required when it comes to cleaning a metal roof. Using more pressure than is required will only result in roof damage. As for using hot instead of cold water, the warmer water will be more effective for breaking up grime as well as cleaning it.
