Your shingled roof came with a zinc or copper particle as part them. That powdered zinc / copper will slowly leach itself out and stop algae infestations on the roofing. That usually lasts about 7 years. After about 7 years, you will see some graying coloration, often in streaks, but not always.

Then soon it will turn black with a tough algae known as Gloeocapsa magma. Once it starts infesting your roof and eating away at the limestone filler in the shingles, you will find quite a bit of your roofs coloration granules in your gutters, just from the strength of rainstorms.

Tile comes with no anti fungal properties, it relies on it's glazing, to let water run off and not saturate the tile, creating an algae infestation paradise. When it comes to shingles, we are talking about algae DAMAGE. Tile on the other hand is mainly just that it makes it look ugly! So, if ugly doesn't bother you, your tile roof will not be damaged by the Gloeocapsa magma growing on it. Of course, that wet black living algae will increase your air conditioning costs considerably, whether tile or shingle. In fact, a few years of high AC bills would have given you the money needed to have it professionally cleaned and a good job will last, so that you only need to re-clean it every 4 years or so!

I have been cleaning roofs here- based out of Englewood Florida, since 1989.

In 1989 I pressure washed all roofing, just as all the other pressure cleaning contractors did. That's all anyone back then knew how to do!

Fortunately for homeowners, the shingle roofing manufacturers got tired of paying for premature roof failure, due to pressure washing machines removing the granules, that protect and colored the shingled roofs, so those manufacturers came up with a totally new and non destructive manner of cleaning that black algae from their products. This process is called Non-Pressure Cleaning [ Or chemically cleaning, No-Pressure Cleaning and Soft-Washing ]

This was and is the only good answer to the problem! No more premature roofing failure due to blasting the granules off the roofs with power washing equipment! I bought the needed equipment { NO PRESSURE WASHER IS USED } and now I clean all roofs with this gentle, long lasting method.

More about tile in a minute, but at the following link you can read what these roofing manufacturers say to do. You will note that each one says "DO NOT PRESSURE WASH"

http://www.bergmanpr..._Specifics.html

Tile roofing is a different story, when it comes to warranty claims. These manufacturers never had to deal with premature roof failure from algae eating away at the roofing, nor, for the most part, due to pressure washing damage. The reason is that pressure washing tile will remove the tiles glazing, etch / pit the tiles surface and blow pieces of the cement holding the ridgecaps in place off into space! However, the homeowner is not likely to be aware of that-thus, no claims!

Therefore, they are still in the dark ages, as to cleaning and have never cared to change their website wording and some suggest power washing the tile. I can reason things out, with all the roof cleaning experience I have though, so I clean tile in the same exact manner-gently, with Non-Pressure Cleaning!

As I said, I once pressure Cleaned Shingles and Tile, I noticed that the pressure washers blasting power removed the glazing on the tile and if the roof had been cleaned 1 two 3 or more times previous to my cleaning, by another pressure washing person, that they had already removed the glazing and I was now removing some of the slurry coating. The slurry coating is basically the factory paint job you see as color on the outside of the tile. Pressure washing can start turning that colored tile into a pale image of it's once new color. It can turn a red tile roof into a pinkish color eventually.

So, if roofing can be cleaned, without blasting it with a pressure washer, why not do a gentle cleaning on the tile roofing as well? Another point: a gentle chemical cleaning job lasts around 4 years, before it needs to be cleaned again. Pressure washed roofs generally need cleaning every 2 years. Some don't even last that long, as pressure washing does not totally kill off the Gloeocapsa magma, it just makes the black color, which is not the living plant itself, but a black shell it grows for it's protection.

Chemical cleaning completely erradicates every algae spore on the roof, without blowing it all over your property with a pressure cleaning ,machines' blast!

So, those are some facts for you, to help you make a sensible decision on how to have your Charlotte County Fl or Sarasota County Florida roof cleaned.

Now, what about pressure cleaning?

It's perfect for cleaning surfaces you can stay a long distance from. This includes houses, mobile homes, manufactured homes, aluminum house soffit, fascia, gutter face trim, pool cages, enclosures, porches,decks and docks. It's also especially great when you want to take advantage of it's up close blasting power! Like for driveways or parking lots. In fact, that is also where a surface cleaning machine is used! { I own 2 of them-it's the yellow machine in one of the videos.

Some pressure washing companies are using these powerful cutting jet machines to clean roofs!!! OUCH!!!

Unbelievable to me! These people will do anything to get your money, with little operating costs to themselves and no care for the damage they inflict on your tile, or, heaven forbid on your shingles! To make it sound gentle { It Ain't! }, some say they are using it for shampooing roofs! Ha ha! I know better!

Here are some videos I have made to show you just how roofing really should be cleaned, based on the roofing manufacturers specifications for cleaning. I will also add video showing a Cement Surface cleaning machine operating, with us cleaning a driveway with it.

Lastly there will be a video about my business.

Thank you for reading my blog and this information will be of help to you I am sure, to not damage your roof, using any process to get the black algae cleaned off, other than soft washing it, with a no-pressure, chemical cleaning system!

Me cleaning shingles:

Surface Cleaning machine-Not For Roofs!

Tile roof my sons cleaning for me. My son on the roof has worked steady for me since 1994. He is an expert, just as myself:

Chuck Bergman Roof Cleaning and Pressure Washing, based in Englewood, Florida since 1989.

941-698-1959 or 474-8883

My website: http://www.bergmanpressurewashing.com/