So I’ve been told the best way to go about this is to use a pressure washing foamer (foam lance) to apply “roof wash” to the roof on a dry day, let it sit for a day or two and rinse it away. So if I could get any advice on what type/model foamer or point me in the right direction where to buy (local pressure washing supply store does not have any) and thoughts on “roof wash”?
I’m new to this so any advice would be much appreciated, there is a high demand for moss removal in washington but it sure is hard! anythinig to make it easier would be great, thanks in advance! (back to researching the forums)
Interesting, I’d be curious to learn more about this “foamer” and “roof wash” you speak of. How does your sister company up North deal with roof moss? I believe most roof cleaners use a mix with sodium hypochlorite, but you wouldn’t want to let that dwell too long before rinsing.
For roof cleaning, you want to simply apply an algaecide. This will kill the moss and it will come off the roof in a short amount of time. You need a way of applying the algaecide. Most use a 12v pump. Because the algaecide mixture is pretty corrosive, you need to have a special 12v pump that can handle the chemical.
Powerwash.com can hook you up with the pump that you’ll need. These pumps apply the solution at extremely low pressure - about the same amount of pressure as a garden hose or a moderate rain fall. This is completely safe for the roof, and is the only method approved of by the American Roofing Manufacturers Association (ARMA).
As to the roof cleaning mixture, that would be a ratio of 12.5% sodium hypochlorite and water. You’ll also want something to add to this as a surfactant, like Fresh Wash - also sold at Powerwash.com. Of course, there are many other surfactants that you can use that will work great too, like Roof Snot from Russ at Southside Equipment.
Usually a good place to start is 30% sodium hypochlorite and the rest water. So for a 50 gallon mix, you would need 15 gallons of 12.5% sodium hypochlorite. 50 gallons should be almost enough to cover a roof and a half if they houses are average size.
Depending on the kind of moss that you have up there in the Northeast, you may find it necessary to increase that ratio.
It’s important to understand that the moss will not come off the roof within hours. Thankfully, we don’t have that kind of moss around here often. I have cleaned some roofs with a slight amount of moss build up, and the moss was gone within a week after we had significant rain fall, and that’s without me rinsing the roof.
Along w/ our services, we’ve become heavily involved w/ non-pressured roof cleaning.
I do about 2-3 roofs a week, that may not seem like alot but at 6-8,000 sq feet it’s enough combined w/ windows.
There’s no moss issues to speak off, but I did have this to share …
Micah’s pretty much right on with what he told you.
I use Roof Snot as a surfactant, I tried others but I was really impressed w/ the way it holds the SH product on the roof.
I’m dealing w/ algae where I live, so that’s a whole another issue compared to moss.
As far as a 12V pump, I’m running a Delavan 5850.
Bought it from Bob @ Pressure Tek $135 bucks (tell 'em I sent ya) lol
[COLOR=#ff0000]VERY IMPORTANT … [/COLOR][COLOR=#ff0000]WASH YOUR PUMP w/ FRESH WATER for 5 minutes after EVERY USE! [/COLOR]Only if, you want it to last …
Good luck w/ your moss removal and remember to take BEFORE and AFTER photos to share w/ us.
Yeah when I saw algaecide I’m referring to a sodium hypochlorite mix. Saying algaecide around the customers is better then saying bleach, roof cleaning solution, or chemical.
