Asphalt shingle roofs should never be power washed — direct pressure strips the protective granules and can void the manufacturer's warranty. Cleveland Pressure Washing treats roofs with a low-pressure soft-wash application instead: a biocide solution breaks down algae and moss at the root, then a light rinse clears it away without touching the shingle surface itself.
Pressure washing a roof is the fastest way to turn a routine cleaning job into a full reroof. Granules on an asphalt shingle are already loosened by UV exposure, and a wand run at driveway-level pressure knocks them off by the square foot — which is exactly the layer that keeps water off the deck underneath. Cleveland Pressure Washing runs every roof job as a soft wash: low pressure, a cleaning solution that kills algae and moss at the root, and enough dwell time for the chemistry to do the work the nozzle isn't allowed to.
That's also the only method most shingle manufacturers will honor under warranty. A crew that shows up with a surface cleaner and calls it a roof job is one bad decision away from a claim nobody will cover.
What actually turns a roof black in the first place?
The dark streaks running down a shingle field are algae, not soot or dirt, and they spread outward from the shaded, north-facing slopes. Moss takes over wherever water sits — valleys, behind chimneys, the low side of a dormer — and once it roots under a shingle tab, the tab lifts and stops shedding water the way it's supposed to.
Neither comes off with a plain rinse. The soft-wash solution has to sit on the roof long enough to kill the organism at the root; rinsing too early just knocks back the surface growth, and it returns within a season.
- Dark streaking concentrated on north-facing slopes
- Moss buildup in valleys or behind chimneys
- Lifted or curling tabs where moss has rooted underneath
Why does the roof still look streaky right after the crew leaves?
The roof won't look bright the day the work wraps up. Soft-wash results show up over the following week or two, as the dead algae and moss dry out and rinse off naturally in the next few rains rather than disappearing the moment the solution hits the shingle.
Booking a roof job
Cleveland Pressure Washing treats roof soft-washing as one more line item across the twenty towns it services from Cleveland, backed by a 4.9 Google rating and 28 reviews. Call (216) 999-4953 with the roof's approximate age and how long it's been since the last cleaning, and the crew can tell over the phone whether it's a moss job or a straightforward algae wash.
Will pressure washing my roof void the warranty?
Most shingle manufacturers require a soft-wash method and can deny a claim if pressure washing caused the damage. Cleveland Pressure Washing uses low-pressure soft-wash equipment on every roof for exactly that reason — call (216) 999-4953 to confirm the method before booking.
How soon will I see results after a roof soft wash?
Not immediately — expect the roof to keep clearing over the following week or two as the dead algae and moss rinse off naturally in the rain. A roof that still looks streaky the day after the crew leaves isn't a sign the treatment failed.
Do you need to walk on my roof to clean it?
Most soft-wash applications are sprayed from a low position and don't require walking the full roof, which is part of why it's gentler on the shingles than a pressure wash. Ask about the specifics for your roof's pitch when you call (216) 999-4953.