How To Clean Slate Roof Shingles

Limit cleaning to removing organic debris and delaminated slate flakes from valleys snow guards gutters and the area behind the chimney.

How to clean slate roof shingles.

The goal when cleaning a slate roof is to soften and loosen the undesirable buildup. The more applications and sitting time the better. Cleaning roofs is slippery work. Such harsh chemicals are incompatible with the copper components of your slate roof.

Wait about 20 minutes then rinse. Regular roof cleaning is critical for your roof as slate is easy to cleave and water absorbent. Sunlight and warm weather will ensure the cleaning solution dries too fast to be of any use. You want to keep it wet once you ve begun.

When cleaning a slate roof don t use chemicals like ammonia or chlorine bleach. Buildup of moss and debris on slate roofs hold moisture in the slates that can split them during winter. Use heavy rubber gloves to scoop up material in areas you can safely reach. Asphalt shingles are easy to install last anywhere from 10 to 50 years depending on the type and are less expensive than other roofing materials such as slate tile and metal.

Punch a hole into shingle from the back. That way you always stand on dry surface and reduce the chance of slipping. Before applying the cleaner spray the roof with water to cool it down. The day you perform deep cleaning on the shingles should be cool and overcast.

Spray the cleaner on a section of roof and let it sit for about 15 minutes. That ll prevent the cleaner from drying out too quickly. The trick to doing this successfully is applying the solution with a garden type sprayer and letting it sit and reapply and reapply and reapply. If a slate shingle needs to be replaced use the slate ripper a 2 foot piece of cast steel that includes a blade and a hook for the removal of slate nails and broken shingles.

Use the sprayer to saturate a strip 3 feet high x 10 feet wide. No pressure washers please. Slide the replacement shingle into place. In addition choose a day with little wind so that when you spray the solution it stays on your roof 1 x research sourcestep 2 perform maintenance on your roof.

A vinyl leaf rake can clean harder to reach spots. Then spray the cleaner onto the shingles photo 1. Step 2 replacing the shingles. Start at the lower portion of the roof moving up as you clean each lower section.

Hook the nails and pull them out. They re likely to damage the shingles just be sure to wet your foundation plantings first and rinse everything in clean water when you re done.