With all the chaos going on inside a home, keeping your roofing and siding clean can go by the wayside. When you’re juggling a leaky sink, a flooded basement and a sea of Legos and Tonka trucks, certain things just have to go on the back burner.

But after a while, those back burner issues can become a big nuisance. Here’s a quick breakdown of how to manage that pesky green eyesore stuck to your shingles.

Assess the Damage

First, you need to figure out how prone your property is to some unwanted vegetation. There’s no one temperature or location that will grant you escape from moss; if you own a home, it’s something to keep in mind.

Moss thrives the most in wet, humid, and cool climates. Take note of any areas on your exterior that are prone to a lot of rainfall, or are often covered in shade. Spots covered in low hanging tree branches are obvious but don’t forget to think about how shadows from an awning, chimney or your neighbor’s home could cause more darkness in a certain spot than usual.

Scrub It Clean

While not recommended, it is possible to hold off the growth by straight up scrubbing it off.

The first priority is safety. If you do not feel 110 percent confident getting up to and doing manual labor on your roof, you should call a professional. But if you happen to own a low-storied home and a fairly flat roof, the moss can be addressed with tools around your own home.

One way to remove moss would be with a pressure washer, as it will be thorough in getting the most green out of your shingles. You can use pure water, or a 50/50 mix of chlorine and bleach for added effect. Be careful, though, as the pressure intensity could damage your shingles. Also be sure to work down the roof, or the stream’s strength could uplift some of the roofing.

Brooms and long-handled brushes are other alternatives that will not cause as much damage as water. You can also take a putty knife and scrape away the moss, although this isn’t the most fun way to spend a Saturday.

Any way you put it, all of these methods are simply band-aids. If you truly want to keep your roof safe, you need to be proactive, not reactive.

Don’t Waste Your Pennies

You may have heard the suggestion that putting pennies on the shadier parts of your roof can stave off frequent moss growth. What sounds like an old wive’s tale does have some science to back it up. However, don’t bust open your piggy bank just yet.

 When it rains, the chemicals in the copper will kill any growing seedlings on your roof. Copper sulfate and zinc sulfate are effective chemicals in killing moss and preventing future growth. The danger with these is limited, although excessive runoff could cause damage to the grass in your yard below, or any ponds or creeks nearby if they pollute them.

The problem with pennies is, of course, that they are pennies. You’d need a lot of them on your roof for the amount of copper to be effective, and even then, they’re difficult to keep in place. The next downpour, windy day or curious crow that stops by your neighborhood could leave your penny scattering efforts in vain.

The everyday solution is copper or zinc strips. Firmly place strips of the material under the shingles themselves. This way, you get to keep your candy money.

Be careful not to nail down the strips into your roof, as improper installation could lead to you poking a hole in your ceiling. As with the cleaning instructions, it’s advised to call a roofing professional to properly install copper strips and perform any additional maintenance and preventative care work that can be done.

Looking for Roofing Companies in NJ? Contact Longview Contracting.

We here at Longview Contracting hope that the information we have furnished will help you choose a roofing contractor in New Jersey. Our website shows which manufacturers we work with and the services that we provide. Please contact us with any questions you might have about your roof, roofing materials or our company, 908-705-1689.