A Property Managers Guide to Roof Cleaning

If you've been in property management for more than a few years, chances are pretty good that you've dealt with roof cleaning issues. Roof cleaning can be very expensive, and cleaning after roof cleaning can also be very expensive. Repairing the damage that roof cleaners cause is never factored into the initial estimate because you don't expect damage, but it does happen most of the time, but by being aware of the potential destruction beforehand you can prevent it from happening, limit the cost, and Headaches and that's what real estate management is all about. 

There are many fungi that can grow on a roof that are both roof destructive and disgusting to look at. Moss, lichen, black algae (black mold), and green mold/algae make up the bulk of the matter and their removal has become a necessity. Roofs need to be cleaned for various reasons; to prevent destruction and premature replacement, control increased energy costs, and correct property depreciation. Get more here about this or similar articles.

Asphalt shingles, cedar, and tile roofs are the most commonly affected roofs, each being affected differently.

Asphalt roofs are destroyed faster than the others, fungi can grow under shingles lifting them until they crack and fall off. The mushroom tendrils or "roots" also burrow through the reflective grains, causing them to detach and fall off. This action causes the shingles to thin and shortens the expected lifespan of the shingles by years as they then curl and buckle.

Cedar roofs need to stay dry to last long, when a cedar roof is covered with fungus, the fungus traps moisture in the wood, causing rot, which invites wood-eating insects and quickly degrades the integrity of the wood.

Tiled roofs are most commonly found in the South, and although fungi cannot destroy bricks like asphalt or wood, bricks are destroyed when the weight of roof cleaners walk on the roof, bricks are fragile, especially after years of baking in the sun. The damage is not apparent at first, but when the cracks are washed out with rainwater, they loosen and fall off.

Aside from the destructive damage that the fungus can cause, the homeowner can expect an increase in energy bills. Mushrooms are generally dark in color, and dark colors absorb sunlight, increasing the heat in attics, crawl spaces, and second or top floors, causing air conditioners to work overtime to cool those spaces, resulting in higher than normal energy bills.

To top it off, most roof cleaning products on the market require that plants, bushes and any foliage around the home be either covered or constantly wet as the toxicity in the cleaning solution will kill them and be as careful as the roof cleaner can be that there is always the victim in the foliage.

With the negative effects of roof fungus mentioned above, the worst thing for a property manager is the fact that a house or apartment with an infected roof is an "eye sore", it makes a nice house look ugly, it makes an expensive development run down or unkempt not only does this reduce the value of the infected house, but also that of the house next door, these houses are treated like lepers, and the more houses that become infected, the more leper colonies form.

At this point, the property management usually intervenes and reminders are sent out demanding that the roofs be cleaned. Now you have disgruntled homeowners, forced to spend money, potentially damaging their homes, and a host of problems on the horizon.

Two solutions come to mind; The first is if you need a roof cleaned then specify that the roof cleaners use a solution that will not damage the foliage or change the look of the house and the second solution is called "preventive maintenance" by which I mean that Coating the roofs regularly with a solution that prevents fungus growth, no cleaning is required and subsequent rains will wash away the removed fungus. Proper roof maintenance is by far the most cost-effective way to keep roofs clean. Funds can be budgeted for regular roof treatments rather than shocking a homeowners association with a massive roof cleaning cost estimate. Maintenance spraying can be done from the gutter edge, avoiding workers having to walk across the roofs. A proper maintenance schedule means roofs will never get dirty again and the community's appearance will never be affected