We finished a large home yesterday with areas that had heavy infestaions of moss and lichen. We pre-rinsed to get as much of the loose moss off as possible and then sprayed 2 heavy coats of 3%. Still lots of patches of lichens were left which we told homeowner would take 3-6 minths to dry up and wash away. just fater we finished there was a brief (about 20 min) heavy rain from a passing thunderstaorm. Homeowner is concerned that treatment washed off with rain And hence not effective. Should we wait and see or go back and re-treat right away?
Michael Derose said
Sep 3, 2014
Did all the moss and lichen turn white or orange? If so then it's treated and already dying.
Doug Shaffer said
Sep 3, 2014
Yes. It turned white. Thanks for responding. Hope to hear from more of you if you get time.
Michael Derose said
Sep 3, 2014
It will fall off. Check back on the house in 3-4 weeks to make sure of it and did you take pics?
AC Lockyer said
Sep 4, 2014
Yes Doug, white moss and lichen is the key as Mike said. Give it a lil more time, you can always courtesy treat later and look like a service rock star.
AC
Dan Dykstra said
Sep 10, 2014
Doug,
If it turned white, then you killed it and it will fall off, when you go look at it again in 4 -6 weeks you will be amazed at how good the roof looks. I have done roofs that were completely covered in moss and lichens, 6 weeks later = new looking roof. Even though I explain all this to the homeowner when bidding the job and again when job is complete, it never fails that they call me a week after we have completed the job saying they still have growth on the roof, I once again explain the process, I then tell them that I will swing by in 4 weeks and check the roof and retreat if necessary, not once have I had to retreat.
Mike Bend said
Sep 12, 2014
Yeah i just did a heavily infested roof with really bad lichen. did 2 heavy coats at about 3%, and turned it all into cottage cheese haha. drove by the following day and it looked 60% better. A week later the house looked like new from street distance.
The process works, just very important to manage the customers patience. I love when they look almost disappointed when they see its not gone right away, but then getting that call a week later when they are astonished at how amazing their roof looks.
Gary Bola said
May 18, 2017
Hello,
Once the moss turns white, is it okay to wash it off with the bulk rinse module? OR do we have to advise customers that the roofs been treated and they'll see a difference in little time?
Troy Layman said
May 18, 2017
Welcome to the forums Gary!
The BEST and MOST GENTLE way to do this is to treat the roof until you see the color change in the lichen and moss, and let Mother Nature do the rinsing. The moss will look like someone threw a handful of popcorn on the roof, or as others describe it, cottage cheese or cotton balls. The more you walk on a roof to rinse, the more granules you will break free with your boots. Also, if you rinse with the bulk rinse module, you may want to get the customer to sign some kind of document or waiver releasing you from any damages you may cause by spraying that much water on their roof. You never know if you could cause a leak with spraying and you don't want them coming after you for damages. Plus the longer you are on site, the more you will have to charge as well. Typically we don't rinse off moss unless there is a really good reason or a really persistent customer. Give them about 6 weeks and stop by to check on the roof and make sure they leave a glowing review of your outstanding customer service. If your customer seems a little more urgent than most to get the moss off immediately ask them why. Are they trying to take pictures of the house to post online? Has an insurance inspector came by and harassed them about their roof? If it is not a valid and pressing issue, push to let time and Mother Nature weather away the moss.
Probably the most important tip is to be sure to set the customers expectations on this and any job. If you explain up front they know to expect it and it makes sense. If you treat the roof and then try to explain the exact same thing, some people may think you are simply making up a story now that the job is done.
Also, there are some lichen that you could soak in pure fresh bleach that would not change colors. Take your lead by the surrounding flora. If it has all turned white and this one patch of lichen is still orange, it is dead and just not changing color. There are over 100 different kinds of lichen and not all will bleach white via SoftWashing. Trust the process...it works. And after you go back in ~6 weeks or so you'll get some confidence in how fast things whether away.
Gary Bola said
May 19, 2017
thank you Troy!
Troy Layman said
May 19, 2017
My pleasure Gary!
I don't know if you've seen the section on the forums or AC's website where AC offers his training classes? They are WELL worth the time and money. I'm extremely OCD and I read every article and watched every video I could get my hands on for 6 months or so, including a 2 hour video of one of AC's classes. When I left his class, I doubt all that time researching covered 20% of what we covered in class. I'm assuming you are new to the business by your question so I cannot stress how much better you will be after taking AC's training. There are very few questions a customer can ask you that you will not be able to answer well. There are probably several companies around me (not on this forum) that have more experience and reviews, but I beat them out frequently because compared to the education I received, they sound like untrained weekend warriors. You'll also learn what NOT to do, which is what will save your butt. There are so many little ways to cause damage or make mistakes that can kill your company before you get it off the ground that you can avoid via his training. For instance, I recently did a house wash for a woman that had aluminum siding that was 80+ years old. If I'd washed the house using normal methods I probably would have stripped the paint off the siding from the oxidation damage. That would have cost me more than the training.
We finished a large home yesterday with areas that had heavy infestaions of moss and lichen. We pre-rinsed to get as much of the loose moss off as possible and then sprayed 2 heavy coats of 3%. Still lots of patches of lichens were left which we told homeowner would take 3-6 minths to dry up and wash away. just fater we finished there was a brief (about 20 min) heavy rain from a passing thunderstaorm. Homeowner is concerned that treatment washed off with rain And hence not effective. Should we wait and see or go back and re-treat right away?
AC
If it turned white, then you killed it and it will fall off, when you go look at it again in 4 -6 weeks you will be amazed at how good the roof looks. I have done roofs that were completely covered in moss and lichens, 6 weeks later = new looking roof. Even though I explain all this to the homeowner when bidding the job and again when job is complete, it never fails that they call me a week after we have completed the job saying they still have growth on the roof, I once again explain the process, I then tell them that I will swing by in 4 weeks and check the roof and retreat if necessary, not once have I had to retreat.
The process works, just very important to manage the customers patience. I love when they look almost disappointed when they see its not gone right away, but then getting that call a week later when they are astonished at how amazing their roof looks.
Hello,
Once the moss turns white, is it okay to wash it off with the bulk rinse module? OR do we have to advise customers that the roofs been treated and they'll see a difference in little time?
The BEST and MOST GENTLE way to do this is to treat the roof until you see the color change in the lichen and moss, and let Mother Nature do the rinsing. The moss will look like someone threw a handful of popcorn on the roof, or as others describe it, cottage cheese or cotton balls. The more you walk on a roof to rinse, the more granules you will break free with your boots. Also, if you rinse with the bulk rinse module, you may want to get the customer to sign some kind of document or waiver releasing you from any damages you may cause by spraying that much water on their roof. You never know if you could cause a leak with spraying and you don't want them coming after you for damages. Plus the longer you are on site, the more you will have to charge as well. Typically we don't rinse off moss unless there is a really good reason or a really persistent customer. Give them about 6 weeks and stop by to check on the roof and make sure they leave a glowing review of your outstanding customer service. If your customer seems a little more urgent than most to get the moss off immediately ask them why. Are they trying to take pictures of the house to post online? Has an insurance inspector came by and harassed them about their roof? If it is not a valid and pressing issue, push to let time and Mother Nature weather away the moss.
Probably the most important tip is to be sure to set the customers expectations on this and any job. If you explain up front they know to expect it and it makes sense. If you treat the roof and then try to explain the exact same thing, some people may think you are simply making up a story now that the job is done.
Also, there are some lichen that you could soak in pure fresh bleach that would not change colors. Take your lead by the surrounding flora. If it has all turned white and this one patch of lichen is still orange, it is dead and just not changing color. There are over 100 different kinds of lichen and not all will bleach white via SoftWashing. Trust the process...it works. And after you go back in ~6 weeks or so you'll get some confidence in how fast things whether away.
My pleasure Gary!
I don't know if you've seen the section on the forums or AC's website where AC offers his training classes? They are WELL worth the time and money. I'm extremely OCD and I read every article and watched every video I could get my hands on for 6 months or so, including a 2 hour video of one of AC's classes. When I left his class, I doubt all that time researching covered 20% of what we covered in class. I'm assuming you are new to the business by your question so I cannot stress how much better you will be after taking AC's training. There are very few questions a customer can ask you that you will not be able to answer well. There are probably several companies around me (not on this forum) that have more experience and reviews, but I beat them out frequently because compared to the education I received, they sound like untrained weekend warriors. You'll also learn what NOT to do, which is what will save your butt. There are so many little ways to cause damage or make mistakes that can kill your company before you get it off the ground that you can avoid via his training. For instance, I recently did a house wash for a woman that had aluminum siding that was 80+ years old. If I'd washed the house using normal methods I probably would have stripped the paint off the siding from the oxidation damage. That would have cost me more than the training.
http://www.softwashsystems.com/orlando-academy/