1st attempt at a roof clean ....... And the last [emoji23]

[windowsurfer]

Good job, have thought about doing this, but would only be on a bungalow.  very messy job and if you break a tile that would be a pest..  A gardener had sprayed the roof of my customer with formeldehyde(check spelling, dont know if this would be approved by SEPA) after the advice from a neighbour who had done this, as he used it as a farmer and sprayed his own roof with it, that killed the moss and just wait for it to fall off, seems to have done a decent enough job, without having to scrape or blast roofs, just got to clean the gutters, which i had to do a few times so quids in for me,  I think he had charged her something crazy like £70, laughable.   

 

[Pjj]

The general opinion is that pressurewashing roofs removes the sandy top surface that can lead to the tiles becoming porous, don’t want to disagree with Darran but hypo will kill licken  and moss , it’s basicaly the same principle as softwashing  the stuff will die and over a period of weeks it will come off the roof , however a spray of bio is good as this will help slow down re growth , you can now buy softwash chemicals with bio in the mix so one mix will treat all scenarios sometimes you will need to re apply a further spray , the good thing cleaning this way is you don’t hsvd to go on the roof and you arnt removing the surface of the tile 

 

[Maund]

Are you able to just spray hypo on the roof, then rinse, job done?

 

[Green Pro Clean Ltd]

Throughout 2016 / 2017 we did over 60 roofs in and around the Midlands. Here's the facts learnt. 

Scraping or brushing (wire brushing) is NOT as damaging as using a power washer. 

All 'soft wash' products are either hypo based or bio (DDAC) type product. 

Pressure washing off Moss is the worst option. 

The sheer mess you're going to have to clean-up afterwards will add an age to any job. 

If you think you are going to turn up to a moss covered roof and simply 'chuck some hypo' on it or 'spray with bio' and job done then you are a disillusioned fool. 

Perhaps at 15% farm grade hypo may kill lichen but not at sensible 3% or 5% used to softwash. 

Softwashing is simply 'the least aggressive way possible of clean a surface'  (WFP using pure is a prime example of this) so power washing a surface first regardless of how much bio you toss on afterwards is NOT softwashing. 

Hypo (sodium hypochlorite) is just industrial grade bleach, usually 10 or 15% strengths. And most biocide products are based on DDAC 50 (Or similar) learning to make you own is beneficial as current sellers of ready made soft wash product are making 100s if not 1000s of percent mark up on you. 

A 3 bed ex council type semi that has a good carpet of moss will take a one man operator two days to do a proper bang up job without a power washer. 

Our 3 bed semi mentioned above should be charged at at least a minimum of £995

There is a massive market for roof cleaning in the UK to anyone that get's it set up right from the start.  

Now you all welcome to pick apart the above and come back with the 'well I've done this and...' or the classic 'my mates dads aunties son does....'  or a variation of and to be honest it does not bother me as all the above are based on facts and many hours spent on roofs cleaning roofs.  A side of the business we shut down as not enough profit in it.  

The biggest hurdle you're going to face is expectation. 

1: The customers.  You offered a clean roof, they expect it to look as new. 

2: Your's 'I'll crack that out in 3 or 4 hours'  yeah, times that by 3 and you're getting closer. 

All the above is based on one man operation. 

It's not written on a hypothetical 'what I would do... ' from my arm chair.. it's based on what we have done and learnt along the way. 

Want to know how well 'moss removal' biocides work?  Go spray a roof.  (Try not to be disappointed when you go back a few days later)  

 

[scottish cleaning service]

When I was softwashing moss, I remember that it removed all the colour from the moss. This meant it had no chloroform and just died.

 

[Green Pro Clean Ltd]

When I was softwashing moss, I remember that it removed all the colour from the moss. This meant it had no chloroform and just died.

It can't remove all colour otherwise it would be translucent. It turns the moss from greens to browns as it dies.  

Post some pictures of your moss softwashing please @scottish cleaning service

 

[scottish cleaning service]

It can't remove all colour otherwise it would be translucent. It turns the moss from greens to browns as it dies.  

Post some pictures of your moss softwashing please @scottish cleaning service

Bleach your hair and see what happens? :1f609:

will do it when the Softwashing season begins as I'm doing my roof.

 

[Mcsandlaly]

What products do you use to do this? Got any links to share please. Thanks  @Green Pro Clean Ltd

I tried power washing a steep bungalow roof, took hours and very difficult to do without causing damage to concrete tiles. Done lower roofs that could be walked on carefully but its a load of hassle getting set up with a power washer on a roofer and you really need two people on the job for safety. 

 

[Green Pro Clean Ltd]

What products do you use to do this? Got any links to share please. Thanks

This is going to sound rude, and perhaps it is, however I no longer share tips and advice on roof cleaning.  The simple reason is that working on roofs IS dangerous, the chemicals involved (Hypo and bios) are dangerous if not used in a controlled fashion.  I do not wan't to be responsible for dishing out advice on how to do something as dangerous as cleaning a roof.  Simple as that. 

For all those 'it's not dangerous' you're the reason it is dangerous.  Yes there are many precautions you can take to reduce risk but still dangerous.  

 

[Pjj]

Throughout 2016 / 2017 we did over 60 roofs in and around the Midlands. Here's the facts learnt. 

Scraping or brushing (wire brushing) is NOT as damaging as using a power washer. 

All 'soft wash' products are either hypo based or bio (DDAC) type product. 

Pressure washing off Moss is the worst option. 

The sheer mess you're going to have to clean-up afterwards will add an age to any job. 

If you think you are going to turn up to a moss covered roof and simply 'chuck some hypo' on it or 'spray with bio' and job done then you are a disillusioned fool. 

Perhaps at 15% farm grade hypo may kill lichen but not at sensible 3% or 5% used to softwash. 

Softwashing is simply 'the least aggressive way possible of clean a surface'  (WFP using pure is a prime example of this) so power washing a surface first regardless of how much bio you toss on afterwards is NOT softwashing. 

Hypo (sodium hypochlorite) is just industrial grade bleach, usually 10 or 15% strengths. And most biocide products are based on DDAC 50 (Or similar) learning to make you own is beneficial as current sellers of ready made soft wash product are making 100s if not 1000s of percent mark up on you. 

A 3 bed ex council type semi that has a good carpet of moss will take a one man operator two days to do a proper bang up job without a power washer. 

Our 3 bed semi mentioned above should be charged at at least a minimum of £995

There is a massive market for roof cleaning in the UK to anyone that get's it set up right from the start.  

Now you all welcome to pick apart the above and come back with the 'well I've done this and...' or the classic 'my mates dads aunties son does....'  or a variation of and to be honest it does not bother me as all the above are based on facts and many hours spent on roofs cleaning roofs.  A side of the business we shut down as not enough profit in it.  

The biggest hurdle you're going to face is expectation. 

1: The customers.  You offered a clean roof, they expect it to look as new. 

2: Your's 'I'll crack that out in 3 or 4 hours'  yeah, times that by 3 and you're getting closer. 

All the above is based on one man operation. 

It's not written on a hypothetical 'what I would do... ' from my arm chair.. it's based on what we have done and learnt along the way. 

Want to know how well 'moss removal' biocides work?  Go spray a roof.  (Try not to be disappointed when you go back a few days later)  

So if hypo at 3-5% won’t kill licken etc how do firms that turn over millions of pounds a year doing exactly this ? We don’t generaly do roofs as I totaly agree with what you say about time it takes etc but we do a lot of walls ,houses etc and never have a problem killing and removing , moss, licken, algy . I accept that licken and moss take time to die and come off where as algy is instantly removed , Scottish is right hypo turns moss white and that’s part of the dying process as hypo kills it the moss also gives off a very unpleasant smell , using hypo to remove both moss and licken isn’t an instant clean it takes time just as bio products do . 

We have recently done a couple of blocks of flats for a management company we did one block with a hypo mix and the other with bio , the hypo mix one is a faster clean to look at the overall colour of the building , we are monitoring both buildings over the next few months to see how long it takes for the bio to totaly remove and work then see which building gets re growth the fastest , when we have got some tangible proof what works best they want us to do a further 12 blocks for them , softwashing in this country is still in its infancy but over the next few years will developed into a huge industry just like it is in the states , there is good money to be earnt from it , I have several friends that have stopped window cleaning and just do softwashing as its far more profitable, I am at the stage of having to decide if we do the same , but we are well established in the window cleaning and there is very little risk with it , not sure if I want to take a leap of faith and change 

 

[Green Pro Clean Ltd]

So if hypo at 3-5% won’t kill licken etc how do firms that turn over millions of pounds a year doing exactly this ? We don’t generaly do roofs as I totaly agree with what you say about time it takes etc but we do a lot of walls ,houses etc and never have a problem killing and removing , moss, licken, algy . I accept that licken and moss take time to die and come off where as algy is instantly removed , Scottish is right hypo turns moss white and that’s part of the dying process as hypo kills it the moss also gives off a very unpleasant smell , using hypo to remove both moss and licken isn’t an instant clean it takes time just as bio products do . 

We have recently done a couple of blocks of flats for a management company we did one block with a hypo mix and the other with bio , the hypo mix one is a faster clean to look at the overall colour of the building , we are monitoring both buildings over the next few months to see how long it takes for the bio to totaly remove and work then see which building gets re growth the fastest , when we have got some tangible proof what works best they want us to do a further 12 blocks for them , softwashing in this country is still in its infancy but over the next few years will developed into a huge industry just like it is in the states , there is good money to be earnt from it , I have several friends that have stopped window cleaning and just do softwashing as its far more profitable, I am at the stage of having to decide if we do the same , but we are well established in the window cleaning and there is very little risk with it , not sure if I want to take a leap of faith and change 

No problems mate, I obviously have no clue what I am talking about so just pay no attention to anything I say.   :1f44d:

 

[CHWS]

I’ve used hypo to clean a small leaning roof once. Was covered in moss. I mixed hypo in a bucket of water and lashed it over it. There was quite a lot from what I remember. Before I left it was turning brown. The customer was already on her plane back to some Caribbean country she lived in. Year later she rings for the windows to be done as she’s back over and when I checked roof there wasn’t one bit of moss at all lol

 

[Mcsandlaly]

Thanks Green Pro Clean google it is then!!! Fully insured myself and not claimed for anything yet let alone myself but agree you must be exceptionally careful on roofs, got a pro roof ladder as used to do slating and roof work but rarely bother now, window cleaning much easier and safer particularly on the knees in my old age..........

This is going to sound rude, and perhaps it is, however I no longer share tips and advice on roof cleaning.  The simple reason is that working on roofs IS dangerous, the chemicals involved (Hypo and bios) are dangerous if not used in a controlled fashion.  I do not wan't to be responsible for dishing out advice on how to do something as dangerous as cleaning a roof.  Simple as that. 

For all those 'it's not dangerous' you're the reason it is dangerous.  Yes there are many precautions you can take to reduce risk but still dangerous.