I got a call this summer from a guy who was buying a foreclosed home and the roof was in rough shape. Normally when I have mossy roof, I spend the time to do a rinse for more of an instant result. I have tried in the past to spray and wait, but I got impatient and I believe the customers did as well. I decided on this one that I would try to spray and come back in 2 months to see how it was looking with hopes that a good portion of it rinsed away with the rain. Knowing that we had at least 4-5 good rain storms during the two months, I returned to see that most of the dead moss did come off, but there was still a good amount on the roof. I ended up spending about 3 hours rinsing the remaining portion off (front and back of roof). I did get $1000 for the job, but I would love to get to the point of being able to apply my solution and move to the next.
All sorts of different approaches (and opinions). It's all in how you sell the job. I tell them that it will take 2 to 6 months for the lichen and moss to fall off (this is in writing). I'm not having the crew sit there for hours rinsing moss and I think it can even lead to damage (if it's lichen). Either that or bid those jobs high enough that it all works out financially.
Western Mass Prowash said
Feb 2, 2018
Zach, with you being on the east side of the state, you must see a lot of roofs like this. From what I have seen, a lot of the guys are from the southern states and just deal with algae and not the moss and lichen we have. I guess my problem is, most people over here are uneducated about non-pressure or low-pressure roof washing. By the time I get the call to come out and clean the roof it's already loaded with moss and lichen. They wait until they can't stand the look anymore or the home is for sale. Most of them think the only way to clean it is with a pressure washer. I spend the time to explain the process and they say it sounds good and they wished they new about the service years ago. I have a couple of friends that I cleaned their roofs in late August with all three forms of growth and I didn't rinse. I am curious to see what they look like in the spring.
Zach Maynard said
Feb 2, 2018
In almost every case the "knowledge of the customer" is the same. No one really knows about roof washing regardless of where they live. It's all about educating, like you are doing. The biggest thing is them believing that you truly are the one with the right answers so that they go along with whatever you say. Which is hopefully what is best for them lol.
And yes, I rarely get to clean a roof that isn't covered in lichen and moss!
Patrick G said
Feb 2, 2018
I am glad you got away from rinsing your jobs, we all used to rinse at one point i'm sure. If you said you would return in two months then do so, but here is the answer if anything is left. Most of the time it is dead but not completely off....if it was heavy like a carpet it may not be totally dead....just the top layer came off. Respray the problem areas and tell them another two months...re spraying is quicker,easier and really finishes the job...you will be out of there in a heart beat and I assure you it will fall off. My favorite time here in the N/E is September. You tell them if anything there in March call me.....trust me nothing will be there. So this coming season if they call you and something is up there....re spray and go...it will be fine....Hey I guarantee it!
Brian C Jackson said
Feb 3, 2018
I always tell the customer that we do not remove moss or lichen. I tell then 3-4 times during the estimate and during my confirmation call that we will not force moss of lichen off the roof. Steve you did a great job on that roof and keep pricing the way you are and don't low ball. Great job all around..
Western Mass Prowash said
Feb 3, 2018
Thanks Brian. I am definitely not going to rinse this year and spend more time educating the customer. I will in the end have more time to do more jobs as well. By the way, I really like your's and John's (Roof Wizard) shirts. I am in the process of having my new shirts designed by FinPrint and saw both of them in the samples.
Brian C Jackson said
Feb 5, 2018
I actually used E3 sports originally. But my next order will be through fin print.. Kieth from KBX did the graphics
HHandywork said
Feb 6, 2018
Great tips here! Nice work Steve
Pinky said
Feb 7, 2018
I always rinse the moss off first then spray. I walk the peak using my roof pump. Most if not all just slide right off. I use the 0* tip when it is further down by the gutter to reach it. Takes about 15 minutes. Lichen you can't rinse off without using pressure. So I tell them it turns white when dead and then will rinse off in a couple weeks to a couple months with the rain.
Chris Mozick said
Feb 13, 2018
We always rinse the roofs. In my opinion if I get a $1000 roof job that I can clean then rinse in less than 4 hrs. I’m saving money because I don’t have to pay an employee to return again, plus gas, plus in like this case you still ended up rinsing. I believe it’s just better to do it right the first time and you don’t have to return.
Brian C Jackson said
Feb 13, 2018
Rinse or not to rinse is always a big subject. I think it is always a decision that we need to decide for ourselves. I don't think rinsing is wrong but I just don't do it. I also don't think that not rinsing is the right way to clean a roof for everyone. I just inform my customers of the reasons I don't rinse. Since 2010 I haven't had one roof not come clean. Some come clean in a few weeks and some can take the whole season. Depends on Mother nature and the weather
Eric Schnaible said
Feb 14, 2018
We rinse.
HHandywork said
Feb 14, 2018
I'm curious about those who rinse. Once all the moss growth is killed and turns white does the final rinsing process clean off all or most of the remaining moss that is on the roof?
BlueRidge said
Feb 14, 2018
As I read this post for maybe the third time I think we are talking about different rinsing here.
1. I rinse all the moss that comes off prior to cleaning then no more rinsing.
2. I rinse the moss, clean the roof and rinse again.
3. I rinse every roof we clean.
HHandywork said
Feb 14, 2018
Thanks Brett
Art O said
Feb 14, 2018
I have rinsed a roof one time the same day that I applied the solution. The moss doesn't clean off to easy and I will not be doing it again if I can help it.
Brian C Jackson said
Feb 14, 2018
I never ever Rinse..
Zach Maynard said
Feb 15, 2018
I never rinse.
I think each situation is different regarding location in the country and the type of growths that each area have. I know in my area we get lots of moss but even more so is lichen! I believe that if lichen is rinsed off forcefully that more damage will occur than if it were allowed to fall off after it decomposes.
Out of all the roofs we cleaned last year I would say that 90 percent of them had lichen on them, I only have 2 jobs where I need to swing by in Early April to see if the lichen fell off since the homeowners contacted us saying some bits were still up there. Going back to 2 jobs is much better than spending all that extra time ALL YEAR rinsing roofs. Just my experience.
Brian C Jackson said
Feb 15, 2018
I agree with you on that Zack. We both have roofing experience and I never ever force anything off a roof. I want to treat the customer right and give them a roof cleaning but I'm also going to do what is right for the roofing material.
Art O said
Feb 15, 2018
The one that I rinsed the house was going up for sale so the homeowner wanted it to look its best. Some times you have to do what you can to help it along.
BlueRidge said
Feb 15, 2018
As Zach stated, "each situation is different".
We tend to have as much moss as lichen. We never touch the lichen except to spray and wait. As to moss, the heavy carpet moss roll off with pretty much garden hose pressure, or a #40 in the pressure washer. This seems to work well leaving the small stuff behind.
In December we had some good weather, the customer was putting the house on the market in February. The crew neglected to remove the heavy moss so it sat there as a wet blanket. The garage was a lower pitch than the house and had way more. The moss on the house fell off with the light rains (we didn't have much rain last year). I had to send them back to drag the moss off as best they could without damage. It was 80% better. Another email and a worried customer, we went back after he signed off on probable damage to scrub and rinse on a 43 degree day. Had they followed protocol (for us) and gotten the heavy moss off I am sure we would not have had to go back. Removing the heavy moss has cut down the concerned calls and call backs in situations like this.
A side note... this customer was a referral from a real estate agent I have never met who sends us no less than three good jobs every year so it was worth sucking this up and doing it.
Steve Salley said
Feb 16, 2018
We have begun to rinse under overhangs that are low over the low roof sections in our markets because rain will never touch those areas. Some of the overhangs are 24" deep.
We also offer the service for houses listed for sale to give them the very best curb appeal now.
My experience with our roofs is if they have heavy lichen, moss etc there is bad "roof acne" already present. ( We use that term in our sales calls so we set reasonable expectations of what we will reveal and what will worsen if ignored.) This is one time when Ugly is not just skin deep.
We are Proactiv Teen Roof Acne specialists
Eric Schnaible said
Feb 17, 2018
I agree that knowing your market is hugely important. I have strong feelings about the way we go about Cleaning roofs. To me it’s a no brainer. Having said that, our weather patterns are different. What grows on the roofs in our neck of the woods is as well. We can go 5 months without rain in my service area. That changes things greatly compared to most of the rest of the country. That being the case, SH and the salt it leaves behind is a corrosive that I would never leave on any metal facets of the Roof or drainage for that long. Those are some of the reasons We rinse, but there are many other reasons that are just as important. Works for us. I can see myself seeing things differently under other circumstances.
BlueRidge said
Feb 17, 2018
What a great discussion concerning how we all do things the same with a little difference with it comes to certain portions of our work. This can not only help us understand the different areas we live in and what needs to be done differently. It also helps the new guys when they run into a situation such as moss, lichen and a pending home sale.
Brian C Jackson said
Feb 17, 2018
We're never to old to learn. No matter how long we have been in business or how many roofs we have cleaned there is always something to be learned.
Western Mass Prowash said
Feb 17, 2018
Chris Mozick wrote:
We always rinse the roofs. In my opinion if I get a $1000 roof job that I can clean then rinse in less than 4 hrs. I’m saving money because I don’t have to pay an employee to return again, plus gas, plus in like this case you still ended up rinsing. I believe it’s just better to do it right the first time and you don’t have to return.
Where was I wrong? My opinion was to apply the solution to kill the three forms of growth and allow for the moss and lichen to decompose and start to release from the roof. I was paid in full for this which took me about 45 mins. I didn't want to force this amount of moss and lichen away from the shingles causing more damage. I then returned (which was planned) after 2 months and rinsed the rest with a garden hose. It did take me about 3 hrs, but I am very particular and got almost 100% of what was left on the roof rinsed. I believed this was the "right" thing to do with this particular situation. I get what your saying about not having to return, but sometimes doing the right thing isn't the most convenient thing. In the end, I have learned from some of the guys that have been doing this for MANY years that I should have just allowed mother nature to continue her process and let it be.
BlueRidge said
Feb 18, 2018
You will have to figure out what works for you. I have found the calls, return trips and headaches have diminished greatly if we take anywhere from 15 mins. to 1/2 hr. to rinse off the heavy moss before we apply the mix. If the crew had followed our SOP there would not have been two call backs to this job I mentioned earlier. It really makes a big difference to the customer to see the bulk of the carpet gone and then wait for the little stuff. If it doesn't rain like last year then what happens?
Your right Brett. I like the idea of spending a little time to try to get the bulk of the heavy stuff off and then educate the customer with what will happen with the rest. Ultimately people want to see some kind of results sooner than later when they pay for a service. I just want to get away from spending a ton of time rinsing roofs.
BlueRidge said
Feb 18, 2018
Western Mass Prowash wrote:
Your right Brett. I like the idea of spending a little time to try to get the bulk of the heavy stuff off and then educate the customer with what will happen with the rest. Ultimately people want to see some kind of results sooner than later when they pay for a service. I just want to get away from spending a ton of time rinsing roofs.
When I think of all the roofs we cleaned just last year, we didn't have that many that needed pre-moss removal. The extra time we spent on those jobs is way less than the time involved with just one call back. In my feeble brain, the math wins!
I got a call this summer from a guy who was buying a foreclosed home and the roof was in rough shape. Normally when I have mossy roof, I spend the time to do a rinse for more of an instant result. I have tried in the past to spray and wait, but I got impatient and I believe the customers did as well. I decided on this one that I would try to spray and come back in 2 months to see how it was looking with hopes that a good portion of it rinsed away with the rain. Knowing that we had at least 4-5 good rain storms during the two months, I returned to see that most of the dead moss did come off, but there was still a good amount on the roof. I ended up spending about 3 hours rinsing the remaining portion off (front and back of roof). I did get $1000 for the job, but I would love to get to the point of being able to apply my solution and move to the next.
And yes, I rarely get to clean a roof that isn't covered in lichen and moss!
Rinse or not to rinse is always a big subject. I think it is always a decision that we need to decide for ourselves. I don't think rinsing is wrong but I just don't do it. I also don't think that not rinsing is the right way to clean a roof for everyone. I just inform my customers of the reasons I don't rinse. Since 2010 I haven't had one roof not come clean. Some come clean in a few weeks and some can take the whole season. Depends on Mother nature and the weather
As I read this post for maybe the third time I think we are talking about different rinsing here.
1. I rinse all the moss that comes off prior to cleaning then no more rinsing.
2. I rinse the moss, clean the roof and rinse again.
3. I rinse every roof we clean.
I have rinsed a roof one time the same day that I applied the solution. The moss doesn't clean off to easy and I will not be doing it again if I can help it.
I think each situation is different regarding location in the country and the type of growths that each area have. I know in my area we get lots of moss but even more so is lichen! I believe that if lichen is rinsed off forcefully that more damage will occur than if it were allowed to fall off after it decomposes.
Out of all the roofs we cleaned last year I would say that 90 percent of them had lichen on them, I only have 2 jobs where I need to swing by in Early April to see if the lichen fell off since the homeowners contacted us saying some bits were still up there. Going back to 2 jobs is much better than spending all that extra time ALL YEAR rinsing roofs. Just my experience.
I agree with you on that Zack. We both have roofing experience and I never ever force anything off a roof. I want to treat the customer right and give them a roof cleaning but I'm also going to do what is right for the roofing material.
The one that I rinsed the house was going up for sale so the homeowner wanted it to look its best. Some times you have to do what you can to help it along.
As Zach stated, "each situation is different".
We tend to have as much moss as lichen. We never touch the lichen except to spray and wait. As to moss, the heavy carpet moss roll off with pretty much garden hose pressure, or a #40 in the pressure washer. This seems to work well leaving the small stuff behind.
In December we had some good weather, the customer was putting the house on the market in February. The crew neglected to remove the heavy moss so it sat there as a wet blanket. The garage was a lower pitch than the house and had way more. The moss on the house fell off with the light rains (we didn't have much rain last year). I had to send them back to drag the moss off as best they could without damage. It was 80% better. Another email and a worried customer, we went back after he signed off on probable damage to scrub and rinse on a 43 degree day. Had they followed protocol (for us) and gotten the heavy moss off I am sure we would not have had to go back. Removing the heavy moss has cut down the concerned calls and call backs in situations like this.
A side note... this customer was a referral from a real estate agent I have never met who sends us no less than three good jobs every year so it was worth sucking this up and doing it.
We also offer the service for houses listed for sale to give them the very best curb appeal now.
My experience with our roofs is if they have heavy lichen, moss etc there is bad "roof acne" already present. ( We use that term in our sales calls so we set reasonable expectations of what we will reveal and what will worsen if ignored.) This is one time when Ugly is not just skin deep.
We are Proactiv Teen Roof Acne specialists
What a great discussion concerning how we all do things the same with a little difference with it comes to certain portions of our work. This can not only help us understand the different areas we live in and what needs to be done differently. It also helps the new guys when they run into a situation such as moss, lichen and a pending home sale.
Where was I wrong? My opinion was to apply the solution to kill the three forms of growth and allow for the moss and lichen to decompose and start to release from the roof. I was paid in full for this which took me about 45 mins. I didn't want to force this amount of moss and lichen away from the shingles causing more damage. I then returned (which was planned) after 2 months and rinsed the rest with a garden hose. It did take me about 3 hrs, but I am very particular and got almost 100% of what was left on the roof rinsed. I believed this was the "right" thing to do with this particular situation. I get what your saying about not having to return, but sometimes doing the right thing isn't the most convenient thing. In the end, I have learned from some of the guys that have been doing this for MANY years that I should have just allowed mother nature to continue her process and let it be.
You will have to figure out what works for you. I have found the calls, return trips and headaches have diminished greatly if we take anywhere from 15 mins. to 1/2 hr. to rinse off the heavy moss before we apply the mix. If the crew had followed our SOP there would not have been two call backs to this job I mentioned earlier. It really makes a big difference to the customer to see the bulk of the carpet gone and then wait for the little stuff. If it doesn't rain like last year then what happens?
When I think of all the roofs we cleaned just last year, we didn't have that many that needed pre-moss removal. The extra time we spent on those jobs is way less than the time involved with just one call back. In my feeble brain, the math wins!