Roof Cleaning in Central Indiana

Black streaking, moss and lichen taken off asphalt shingle at under 100 PSI, without stripping the granules that make the shingle a roof.

Those black streaks are alive

The dark staining running down an Indiana roof is gleocapsa magma, a cyanobacteria that feeds on the limestone filler in modern shingles. It is not dirt, it is not soot, and it will not wash off. It spreads downward with the water, which is why the streaks run in lines and why the north slope is always worse.

Left alone it holds moisture against the shingle, and the moisture is what shortens the roof's life. Moss and lichen do it faster still, because lichen roots into the granule surface.

Under 100 PSI, and never a wand

Granules are the roof's sunscreen. Strip them and the asphalt underneath is exposed to ultraviolet light, and the shingle begins to fail. A pressure wand strips them by the handful, and the damage does not show up for two summers.

We apply a cleaning solution, let it work, and rinse at a pressure that would not disturb a leaf. The organism dies, the roof comes back to its own color, and the shingle is untouched. It is also the method every major shingle manufacturer points at in their own maintenance guidance.

What we protect while we work

The solution that kills roof algae is hard on plants, so landscaping gets covered and rinsed, gutters and downspouts are flushed, and drives and walks below the work are wet down first. This is most of the reason a roof clean takes longer than people expect.

Cleaning is not the same as rejuvenation

These get confused constantly, including by companies that sell both. Cleaning removes what is growing on the shingle: the black streaking, the algae, the moss and the lichen. Rejuvenation is a separate treatment applied afterwards to a qualifying asphalt roof, aimed at the shingle itself rather than at what is living on it.

A dirty roof needs cleaning. A dry, aging, already clean roof is the one worth discussing rejuvenation on. If yours needs both we will say so and price them separately, and if it needs neither we will say that too.

When a roof is past cleaning

Cleaning does not fix a roof that has failed. Curling and cupping across a whole elevation, granules filling the gutters every rain, soft decking underfoot, daylight in the attic: those are roofing problems, and washing them makes no difference except to the photographs.

We do not replace or repair roofs and we do not pretend a wash is a substitute. Where we see that, we say it plainly and you can spend the money on the right trade instead.

What is included

• Black streaking, algae, moss and lichen
• Under 100 PSI, chemical dwell, never a pressure wand
• Asphalt shingle and other applicable roofing systems

Every estimate is free, most of them do not need a site visit, and nothing about getting one obliges you to book. Call or text (765) 388-9554, or send the form and we will come back with a number.