Roof Cleaning: Why It Is Important
Homeowners do a lot to keep their home looking clean and fresh. Mowing the lawn, shoveling the sidewalk, power washing the deck and siding, repainting, and more.
But something that numerous homeowners forget is roof cleaning.
Your roof and gutters might be less of an aesthetic factor when it pertains to keeping your home clean and looking good, however that doesn’t imply it’s any less important to keep clean. In fact, it’s one of the most essential locations of the home to maintain. Unlike a lot of aesthetic upgrades homeowners can choose to concern themselves with, cleaning the roof can actually help to avoid costly damage.
Not everyone is a roofing expert. So here are some important reasons to help understand why it may be important to keep your roof clean.
1. Prevent Ice Dam Formation
Ice dams are ridges of ice that form at the edge of your roof throughout the winter. These can form as a result of not cleaning the snow and/or particles off of your roof after snowfall or after a storm.
As the snow melts and runs the roof, it can freeze at the edge of the roof forming a big wall of ice known as an ice dam. This avoids water from draining pipes off the roof, that makes the issue progressively even worse in time.
Ice dams can trigger serious damage to your roof and to your home. They can cause leakages, shingle and roof damage, harmful icicle formation, gutter damage, and more.
There’s an extremely basic fix to preventing ice dam formation: regular roof and gutter cleaning.
Cleaning your roof and clearing off any snow and particles on it can avoid the formation of ice dams. It’s essential to either do this really carefully or hire a roofing professional to clean the roof as lack of experience can cause additional roof damage, gutter damage, or physical injury.
2. Prevent Roof Algae, Moss, and Lichens
The roof over your head protects you and your family from the weather, the weather, and nature in general. The roof of a property is exposed to all those things day and night, which, in turn, means that dirt, water, leaves, plants, and more all find their way onto the roof eventually.
The issue is that rain and snow can typically make your roof appear clean when there’s actually dirt, moss, lichen, and algae existing all over the roof (especially on the side that gets less sun).
Even if these things can seem undetectable at times doesn’t mean that they aren’t a problem for you and your home. They can also cause aesthetic problems: these things can make your roof appear blotchy and stained with dark blue and green splotches on many parts of the roof.
Algae, moss, and lichens on your roof can significantly reduce your roof’s life-span and increase the likelihood you’ll need a roof replacement much sooner than necessary. They can lead to gutter and shingle damage.
Not only that, however these things can also harbor mold spores, which can lead to mold growth. Mold can cause various unfavorable health repercussions throughout your home.
Professional roof cleaning services can get rid of, and avoid, algae, moss, and lichen growth on your roof. Cleaning after you notice any of this development can minimize any possible damage it triggers.
3. Prevent Shingle Damage
Failing to clean your roof can lead to shingle damage as a result of ice dams, falling particles, and the algae/moss/lichen development. Damaged or missing roof shingles can cause severe issues with your roof consisting of:
– Mold growth
– Water damage to the roof and the inside of your home
– Mold and/or fungal development
– Decreased energy efficiency (increased energy expenses).
Shingle damage in the winter season is especially destructive. Debris, snow, and ice can quickly damage or remove shingles if they are not cleaned appropriately. This can permit water to permeate into your roof, walls, and more.
When that water freezes, it can lead to cracks in your roof, walls, and home’s structure. Not just is this very expensive to fix, it’s likewise exceptionally unsafe for your home’s structural stability.
Cleaning your roof regularly, or having it cleaned up by a professional, can lower the chance of shingle damage.
4. Prevent Wood Rot
Moss and algae as well as ice dams and shingle damage can result in excess water leaking into your roof.
This leads to increased possibilities that you’ll get a dripping roof, freezing water damage, and wood rot. Water getting into the wood of your roof and home can cause major decaying damage that can be really costly to have repaired. If the damage becomes extensive, you might need a professional roofing company to do an entire roof replacement.
You’re better off appropriately cleaning and keeping your roof to prevent this from happening. Wood rot can typically go undetected by homeowners, so you may not constantly understand it’s occurring. That’s another reason that constant roof cleanings are necessary for the health and durability of your roof.
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