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Post Info TOPIC: Cedar Roof Cleaning/Tannin


Approved Exterior Cleaner

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Cedar Roof Cleaning/Tannin
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I have noticed that many cleaning cedar haven't considered the factor of tannin.
Cedar is among a group of woods ( like Cyprus, Redwood and Mahogany) that have a natural acidic chemical called tannin which is caused by moisture in the wood. Tannin is water-soluble.

Here is a cedar roof we just cleaned that had a lot of tannin, combined with brown rot fungi and other infestations. What many miss is the proper cleaning of tannin ( those using SH will find it doesn't remove tannin) and when the roof dries from a cleaning it will look like a checker board. When first cleaned a cedar roof always looks good but a few weeks later will have a completely different look. On a cedar roof the tannin will have a black look to it. In most cases some section will have it and some won't because of the moisture content of the cedar roof. Just food for thought

David & Nancy Garage Before & After.jpg

Here is another example.

Rob Front Before & After 2.jpg



-- Edited by Bruce Sullivan on Tuesday 17th of June 2014 05:18:41 AM

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Bruce Sullivan

Sullivan Roof Cleaning

Des Moines, Iowa



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Tannin stains disappear during the second step of a normal cleaning,..cleaning first then neutralizing with oxalic or ox-citric blend. Nothing to worry about really, even if it takes a second application. High PH cleaners will also cause tannin stains to become worse during the first step of cleaning,..but as stated, the neutralizing will remedy the issue.

Jeff



-- Edited by Jeff Wible on Tuesday 17th of June 2014 05:56:58 AM

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Raystown Pressure Washing

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It would be great to see a good article written on proper cleaning techniques of cedar.....with pictures.....:}

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Is the process chemical cleaning only?



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ALABAMA PRO WASH    

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Andy Hinson       

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Approved Exterior Cleaner

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Hey Andy,..if the Cedar is just grayed out it is a fairly simple clean and neutralize. If it's got alot of growth then it is a little modification of the cleaner,..and ALOT of rinsing,..the edges of Cedar holds onto growth very well.

Jeff

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Raystown Pressure Washing

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Founding Member Rest in Peace

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Jeff,

You just described the one recent cedar roof cleaning we did with the growth(moss) holding to both the edges of the shingles/shakes. We spent most of the time rinsing as the actual spraying was the easy part. Thanks to Mike DeRose I was able to price it accordingly. The customer and his realtor stated it looked like a brand new home after we finished.

Hank

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Pocono Non Pressure Roof & Exterior Cleaning, LLC

Stroudsburg, PA 18360

The Machine

Serving the Pocono and Lehigh Valley(Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton, Monroe, Pike and Wayne Counties), PA community as well as both Warren and Sussex Counties of New Jersey



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Good to hear Hank,..yea,..no secret to Cedar,..just tedious at times.

Jeff

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Raystown Pressure Washing

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Here is our next Cedar roof cleaning, quoted it back in March. It is now scheduled for this week.



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Michigan's Roof Cleaner

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Certified Cedar Shake Cleaning

 

Dan Dykstra

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Im still staying away from them because I have never cleaned one.



-- Edited by Andy Hinson on Monday 23rd of June 2014 08:10:38 PM

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Andy Hinson       

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Andy,
no need to shy away from a Cedar roof, its really good money when you clean them.

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Andy Hinson wrote:

Im still staying away from them because I have never cleaned one.



-- Edited by Andy Hinson on Monday 23rd of June 2014 08:10:38 PM


 Andy,

How did you ever clean your first roof? If you stay away from things you have never done you would not be where you are today. You are obviously strong enough to overcome the obstacle!

There are too many good people here willing to help and answer your questions.......use them as the greatest tool on your truck.



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Baton Rouge Roof Cleaner wrote:
Andy Hinson wrote:

Im still staying away from them because I have never cleaned one.



-- Edited by Andy Hinson on Monday 23rd of June 2014 08:10:38 PM


 Andy,

How did you ever clean your first roof? If you stay away from things you have never done you would not be where you are today. You are obviously strong enough to overcome the obstacle!

There are too many good people here willing to help and answer your questions.......use them as the greatest tool on your truck.


 Yea, Thats not it. The first hood vent I ever cleaned I convinced Captain D's I was the guy. I had never seen one be cleaned. My experience with cleaning cedar sided homes and using sodium hypo. it left a film that              had to be removed with pressure to get the wood back to natural look. That's why I stay away.. I am not positive I can get the wood to a natural color without pressure. I know some of you have found a way.

 

 

 



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Andy Hinson       

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Hey Andy,..Sodium Hypo does leave that skin of white on just about anything wood. But Sodium Hydroxide or Sodium Percarbonate,..and even a combination of the two will provide you easier rinsing results. You still have to get the growth off,..but the proper mix will make the wood itself rinse free with a garden hose,..or even rain. But,.yea,..I know that white haze your talking about you get with Hypo. Will do it to any wood. It should be used sparingly on any wood in my opinion. Alot of the staining you see on wood will actually come out with the oxalic neutralizer. In fact Oxalic is also sold as a wood bleach.

When neutralizing do not use just any acid,..like Hydrochloric or Hydrofluoric,..they will turn the wood a very unappealing gray.

Oxalic or Citric is the way to go,..although I've never used the Citric,..I remember years ago people talking about using it,...and even a combination of the two in a product called "Citralic"

Jeff

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Raystown Pressure Washing

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Jeff Wible wrote:

Hey Andy,..Sodium Hypo does leave that skin of white on just about anything wood. But Sodium Hydroxide or Sodium Percarbonate,..and even a combination of the two will provide you easier rinsing results. You still have to get the growth off,..but the proper mix will make the wood itself rinse free with a garden hose,..or even rain. But,.yea,..I know that white haze your talking about you get with Hypo. Will do it to any wood. It should be used sparingly on any wood in my opinion. Alot of the staining you see on wood will actually come out with the oxalic neutralizer. In fact Oxalic is also sold as a wood bleach.

When neutralizing do not use just any acid,..like Hydrochloric or Hydrofluoric,..they will turn the wood a very unappealing gray.

Oxalic or Citric is the way to go,..although I've never used the Citric,..I remember years ago people talking about using it,...and even a combination of the two in a product called "Citralic"

Jeff


 I have all three of those items in 50lb bags. Did not know you could mix hydroxide and precarb together, I plan on experimenting on removing the 4 year old stain from my cedar home. I tried sodium precarb and hypoclorite but it did not cut it well.

Im along way from Bruce Sullivan and called him in an attempt to buy his product to use on a roof but things did not  work out. I don't get many calls, but the ones I get want it done

 

 



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Hey Andy,..you don't need Bruces product(s),...The Hydroxide and Percarbonate combo will work fine. I'm sure Bruce still sprays alot of water when rinsing,..so even if his product is different, the end result and amount of work in rinsing is most likely the same. Cedar is not hard,..just a pain,...but if you live in an area where there's lots of Cedar shingles,..then it's worth learning,...But,..it isn't hard,...just harder than asphalt shingles cleaning.

Sodium Percarbonate and Sodium Hypochlorite go wild when mixed together,Ha,Ha,...Foam volcano!!

Jeff

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Raystown Pressure Washing

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Yes Jeff they do. Thanks!

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I personally think that cedar is easier than any other type of roof. You have less runoff to deal with and they clean up very easily.

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Cedar is very profitable. Not many guys are comfortable cleaning them. Don't over promise the results and when you exceed the expectations the customers will be very happy. The key is to rinse with a volume of water. Booster pumps work very well for rinsing. Our first job a couple years ago was $3600 and we were nervous - but got great results. Just don't chase the ones that have already been sealed or stained.

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Vesta Wash Roof Cleaning

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Tannic acid is brown in color, so in general white woods have a low tannin content. Woods with a lot of yellow, red, or brown coloration to them (like southern yellow pine, cedar, redwood, red oak, etc.) tend to contain a lot of tannin.

As to the cedar cleaning process, there are a couple different ways to clean them. All are effective. Whatever works best for the cleaner. When I first started, about 5 seasons ago, they were a hand full cleaning them. Today they are very easy and fast because the process is second nature. Thus we can price them reasonable but yet profitable. 95% of our roof cleanings are cedar. All we do is roof cleaning only, all other work requested we past on to other exterior cleaners. We clean 2 to 4 cedar roof a week, weather permitting and of course the size of the roof.

This is a cedar roof we finished last Tuesday, took us 17 hours over two days and was 6,640 sq. ft., had a lot of tree cover thus moss, pretty common, lichen and tannin. Couldn't get pictures of the back because of all the trees but was much more roof than the front.

George Front Before & After.jpg



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Bruce Sullivan

Sullivan Roof Cleaning

Des Moines, Iowa

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