ROOF SOFT WASHING

THOSE BLACK STREAKS ARE COSTING YOU SHINGLES

The dark streaks running down the shaded slopes of Kansas roofs are Gloeocapsa magma — a hardy algae that feeds on the limestone filler in asphalt shingles and holds moisture against the mat underneath. Moss and lichen follow it, rooting between the tabs and lifting shingle edges. Left alone, the colony darkens the roof, raises attic temperatures and shortens the service life of a roof you paid a great deal for.

A roof must never be pressure washed. Pressure blasts the protective granules off the shingle surface, drives water under the courses and into the decking, and in many cases voids the roofing warranty outright. Our roof work is a genuine soft wash: a cleaning solution applied at garden-hose pressure, given time to kill the organism, then gently rinsed and allowed to weather clean. Nothing mechanical ever contacts the shingle.

Protecting everything below the roofline is half the job. Gutters get flushed, downspout discharge points get watched, and all foundation plantings, shrubs and lawn along the drip line get pre-soaked and tarped before a drop of solution goes up. We work off ladders and from safe access points, keep runoff controlled, and rinse the siding, windows and walks beneath each treated slope when we are finished.

Results show immediately on the streaking and keep improving as the dead growth weathers off over the following weeks. Moss holds its structure for a while after it dies, so shaded north slopes clear more gradually — we set that expectation up front so nobody is surprised on day two.

We also treat detached garages, porch roofs, dormers and shaded north elevations, and we will tell you honestly whether your roof is a candidate for treatment at all. If your shingles are near the end of their service life, we would rather say so than take the job. For homeowners preparing to list, a roof soft wash paired with a house wash is the highest-return combination we offer.