Staying on top of your house maintenance ensures that your house retains its aesthetics and integrity year after year. One of the most prominent components of any house – also the most important – is the roof. While some homeowners neglect the roof and often end up having to bear the expense of extensive repairs and roof replacement, some homeowners clean their roofs themselves and still end up with expensive repairs on hand. Why? How can cleaning the roof damage it?
Well, that’s the thing. If you don’t use the correct roof cleaning techniques, you can end up with a damaged roof. For this very reason, we always recommend homeowners hire professional roofers for cleaning and maintenance work.
However, if you wish to clean your roof yourself, we’ve listed common roof cleaning mistakes that you should avoid to protect yourself from roof repair costs.
Overlooking Dirty Gutters
Most homeowners only focus on cleaning their roofs of the stains and debris that affect the overall aesthetics. However, they miss a very important part during their cleaning spree – the gutters. Clogged gutters won’t have an impact on the aesthetics because the debris inside won’t be visible. This is the reason why people often skip cleaning them. But if your gutters are clogged, the water won’t flow off the roof. It’ll keep standing on the roof and can cause serious damage to the shingles, which can get quite costly to repair. So, always make sure you’re cleaning the gutters are frequently as you’re cleaning the rest of the roof – may be more frequently.
Pressure Washing
Pressure washing the roof might seem like the quickest and the most effective way to get rid of all the dust and debris. But this technique isn’t recommended. When you pressure wash the roof, the pressure of the water can result in the granular coating over the shingles getting removed. The granular coating protects the shingles from weather elements. Without it, your roof is more likely to get damaged and give way sooner.
Using Harsh Chemicals
You’ll find plenty of roof cleaning products in the market, but not all products are suitable. These cleaning products include harsh chemicals that can do more harm to the roof than just clean it. These chemicals can cause early deterioration of the roofing components and cause discoloration of the roof. You may get rid of the moss and stains, but what will you do about the discoloration and deterioration? Well, there’s not much that can be done other than investing in a new roof.
Walking on the Roof Incorrectly
You should avoid walking on the steep roof of your house unnecessarily. These roofs aren’t meant to be walked on. Walking puts a load on the shingles that can crack. Once cracked, they’re no more strong enough to hold on for too long. Cracked shingles also make way for water to seep into the foundation of your roof and cause widespread, deep-rooted damage.
It’s best to hire professionals for roof cleaning. It may seem like an easy job, but in reality, even the smallest roof cleaning mistakes can have expensive consequences.
