John
New Member
Posts: 15
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Roofs
Jan 14, 2008 9:59:55 GMT -6
Post by John on Jan 14, 2008 9:59:55 GMT -6
My sister has a problem of moss growing on her roof. It's just in small patch's. Any hits/tips/clues on removing it besides the commercial stuff thats probably sold to spray and scrap.
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Roofs
Jan 14, 2008 13:51:43 GMT -6
Post by Tumbleweed on Jan 14, 2008 13:51:43 GMT -6
John, I have that problem on the north side of my garage roof. Unfortunately, the neighbor behind me has a huge tree so that side of the roof never gets sun and the tree is so big the branches hang close enough that moisture probably is blown from the branches on my roof. Hence, the moss. The treatment all depends upon the severity of the moss. The first step is to clean out your gutters, brush any leaves or debris from your roof and cut any branches that are shading that part of the roof or dripping moisture on the roof. The key is to get some sun on the roof. If you can expose the roof to sun, the moss will die and no other steps may be needed. However, if the moss is very thick exposing it to sun may not do the trick as the moss will "hold" the moisture it needs to live. I don't know how tall/steep your sister's roof is John, so PLEASE be very careful if you plan to take this on yourself. If your roof slope is steeper than five inches of rise per horizontal foot, you will need either to hire a professional or use professional equipment. If your roof is a relatively safe slope one option is to just "wet sweep" the moss off. In my case, since I really can't ask the neighbor to cut down his big beautiful tree, I use the sweeping method. Just use your garden hose (no power spray!) and wet down the moss trying to angle the water so it shoots down the roof and not up. My garage roof is low so with an extension handle attached to my broom and a short ladder placed in different locations I can access all parts of my roof. It is important you brush from above the moss line in downward strokes for two reasons: 1. To prevent damage to your shingles 2. To keep the moss spores from spreading This method works well for me but you do have to do it every year whether it looks like it needs it or not and if it is an extremely wet year you may need to do it more often or it may get out of hand. I did a internet search years ago on this subject but since it was so long ago I needed to refresh my memory. There are many so- called "fixes" out there from throwing "Tide detergent" on the moss, to using a clorox/water (50/50 ratio) wash, to just standing on the ground with a power spray hose and blasting it off. Trying the tide or clorox method I guess could be worth a try but do not blast it off with your power spray. Power washing can very easily damage your roof and in fact may encourage moss growth if you do not know the correct "aiming" angle. If the angle is wrong the water will just embed itself under the shingles making it a wonderful place for moss to thrive. Additionally, you must know the condition of your roof in order to adjust power washing PSI to a safe level. Most of us can't determine this so I recommend hiring a very reputable professional. (Be sure to question them about angles and PSI just to see if they know what they are talking about) If you are determined to do this yourself and the moss is really bad you may have to actually bite the bullet and scrape it and a very last resort is purchasing a chemical to treat it which usually contains a zinc oxide. One last bit of info. If your moss problem is chronic and there is no way to fix it permanently you may want to consider installing zinc oxide strips to your roof usually installed on the roof ridge or as near as possible. Here are some step by step instruction on how to install zinc oxide strips. www.doityourself.com/stry/roofmaintenanceHope this helps.
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John
New Member
Posts: 15
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Roofs
Jan 14, 2008 17:58:32 GMT -6
Post by John on Jan 14, 2008 17:58:32 GMT -6
Thanks for all the idea's JJ
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Roofs
Jan 16, 2008 9:56:10 GMT -6
Post by Tumbleweed on Jan 16, 2008 9:56:10 GMT -6
Your welcome John. I wish there was an easy solution to this problem but unfortunately there isn't. By the way those industrial push brooms with stiff bristles work great - the ones that are intended for sweeping sidewalks.
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