The weather is finally starting to brighten up after what feels like a year of winter. With spring on the horizon, many people are starting to plan their next big outdoor project. Sprucing up the garden, fixing the shed roof, jet washing the patio – there’s a ton to do for anyone with a garden or outdoor area.
However, there’s one job that people tend to ignore. One that we really shouldn’t if we want our home to look its best when summer rolls around.
Keeping your roof clean isn’t just about looks, either. Clean your roof tiles, and you reduce the risk of leaks and unseen damage wrecking havoc without your knowledge. It’s a tough job, one often best left to the professionals, but we have a solution that means you won’t have to do it anywhere near as often.
Should I Clean my Roof?
In short, yes! Cleaning your roof has a number of benefits. As we mentioned, it’ll not only improve the look of your home, but it will also ensure it does its job well for a few more years.
Bad weather, birds, and nearby trees cause mud, twigs, and leaves to build up on your roof. This prevents your tiles from funnelling rainwater towards your guttering, allowing it to sneak in between the tiles and into the more vulnerable parts of your roof. This will cause damp patches around the top of your walls and bigger leaks if left unchecked. Roof leaks can be easy to miss if you have an attic, as you won’t be up there checking for damage very often, if ever.
Moss can also grow on mud and leaves. This acts like a sponge for rainwater, trapping it and then slowly letting it soak between tiles. Insects will love snacking on the moss, too. But if they can get into the wood of your roof, that’s a feast they’ll enjoy even more. There are birds to worry about, too. They’ll pick at the mossy patches of your roof looking for bugs, which can damage tiles or drop large lumps of moss and mud into your gutters.
The best way to prevent all of these issues is to clean your roof regularly. Now is the perfect time of year to do it, as the winter weather will have coated your roof tiles and flashing with mud and detritus, and your gutters will be full of moss and leaves. But where do you start?
The Parts of the Roof You Should Keep Clean
We don’t recommend giving your roof a complete clean unless you have experience working with roofs or are at least confident on a ladder. But there are a few parts of your roof you can clean yourself.
The main one is your guttering. If the water coming out isn’t in a steady stream, you probably have some buildup in the gutters that is causing a blockage. If you catch it early and it’s just a few leaves, you can set up a ladder and clear it out by hand. But mud and twigs can create a solid blockage that is much harder to remove. This also puts a lot of additional weight on plastic guttering that was only designed for water. Ignoring a blockage can lead to leaks – the water has to go somewhere! – or partial collapse of your guttering.
If you think your gutters are damaged, it’s dangerous to lean a ladder against them, even if it’s just to take a quick look. To clear out blocked gutters, you need a professional, but you can keep on top of it so that they aren’t needed.
You can also try cleaning your tiles yourself. This requires a lot more preparation, which is why experience is essential. You need to make the roof safe to walk on, even a flat roof, and have the proper precautions in place when you’re using ladders or carrying heavy tools. Once you’re up there safely, a pressure washer is the ideal way to clean tiles. Any other way is too time-consuming and won’t get you the best results.
If this doesn’t sound fun, don’t worry; we have the perfect solution.
Professional Roof Cleaning and Treatment Services
At Improve A Roof, the clue is in the name. We specialise in roof cleaning, helping to make it look its best and prevent any future issues. Not only do we clean your tiles, flashing, guttering, and even your chimney better than anyone else in the North West, but the cleaning process will also reveal any damage or issues with your roof you wouldn’t have noticed if you did it yourself. Sometimes, the problems are hard to spot unless you know what to look for; we’ll identify them and help you get them sorted ASAP.
If a cleaning is all you need, that’s all we’ll provide, but our other service is something you should consider if you’re sick of dealing with a dirty roof.
Our thermal roof coating is the best way to make your roof work better than ever. It improves insulation and water flow no matter what your roof is made of. It also makes it look better than new and, more importantly, makes it harder for mud and moss to build up/grow, so it’ll look fantastic for a long time.
Before we apply our roof coating, we always give the roof a thorough clean. This is not only because it’s the right thing to do, but it also makes sure it sticks to your tiles properly, and no muck will be trapped underneath. If we spot any damaged tiles, we’ll let you know and replace them as soon as possible, with minimal delay to the sealing process.
Communication is just as important to us as doing the job properly. You want to know what’s going on with your roof, which is why we always do everything we can to keep you in the loop. We’ll also explain the entire process before work begins so that you know what to expect and you aren’t just expected to leave us to it.
If you sigh every time you look up at your roof or are worried about the issues it may cause, it’s time to get it cleaned properly. Get in touch with us, and we’ll have it sparkling in no time.