Should You Power Wash A Roof

Advice from nfrc national federation of roofing contractors.

Should you power wash a roof.

The course you take is up to you and what you re comfortable with. The water pressure will remove the granules that are important for protecting your roof. The response isn t wrong. The short answer is no when you search this very same question you ll see the internet shout back with words like never and don t.

You might be among the vast collective of homeowners with a power washer stowed away in your garage so you wonder can you care for your roof safely by pressure washing its shingles. The damage caused by pressure washing is not immediately noticeable. Of course some chemicals can harm your roof as well and the runoff could cause problems with your landscape or parts of your home. There is a chance that the pressurized water could damage your shingles.

Once you squeeze the trigger the powerful recoil on the spray wand can throw you off balance and off of a ladder. Of laundry strength liquid chlorine bleach and water. Instead spray down the roof with. Power washing the tiles will remove fines in the concrete which will affect the lifespan of the tiles.

This is the best way to clean a roof if you have asphalt shingles. The powerful stream of water can also loosen roof shingles and with asphalt shingles strip them of the embedded granules that help extend the life of your roof. Use a sprayer attached to garden hose that s filled with equal parts chlorine bleach and water. Not to mention using a pressure washer from a high place is dangerous.

As a manufacturer of concrete roof tiles we would not advocate power washing or recoating tiles as this would invalidate any guarantee. Use a pressure washer which can loosen shingles and seriously damage your roof. But pressure washing your asphalt roof will do more harm than good. Pressure washing is very effective but may be best for metal or concrete roofs.

Never pressure wash your roof if you have asphalt shingles. If you must have a beautiful roof for some special guests or your own personal happiness you certainly can gently wash your asphalt roof while being aware that you are potentially shortening its life.