LESLIE: Kumar in Iowa is on the line with a roofing question. How can we help you today?
KUMAR: We have a 1985-built house where the shingles have started to show a blackish discoloration after the past six months. Someone came by and offered to pressure-wash and we’re hesitant.
TOM: Yeah, you don’t want to do that.
LESLIE: Yeah.
TOM: That could damage the shingles.
KUMAR: Yeah. Is there a product you recommend, sir?
LESLIE: Yeah, well, when it comes to mold and moss growth, really, it’s something that you’re going to have to do as far as a maintenance issue. You’re going to have to clean it and then over time, it’s just going to come back. The one thing that does a great job of getting rid of it is allowing more sunlight to get to the area, because the shade is really what causes the mold and the mildew to grow. So, if …
KUMAR: And there’s absolutely no shade.
LESLIE: Interesting. Well, it gets in the air and the mold spores …
KUMAR: It’s all exposed. We had trees in the backyard. We cut all the trees and the whole roof is exposed, open to the sun.
LESLIE: Mm-hmm. I mean …
KUMAR: And this is on the front side, back side and everywhere.
LESLIE: Well, with mold growth, what happens with the spores is that they get into the air and they just travel where they want. And so they’ve decided that your roof is the place that they really like and they’re thriving on it.
There are so many different products out there but because of the roof, you want to use something that’s going to continue to do its job over time and not need reapplication. And Tom and I both have a lot of experience with a product called Wet & Forget. And they’ve got a great website: it’s WetAndForget.com.
And what happens is you apply it. You can use it – one of those garden sprayers – and you’ll apply it to the roof surface and then just sort of let it sit there. And what happens is as it rains and more water gets on it, it actually activates whatever is in the Wet & Forget and causes that mold and mildew growth to really go away.
And if you go to the website, you’ll see some amazing before-and-afters. I’ve used it on a second-floor window sill that I just could not get to very well and it’s really done a good job of keeping it off throughout the season, so it’s something that you could invest in and will do a good job of keeping it away.
KUMAR: So you would not recommend any kind of low pressure-washer or anything like that?
LESLIE: Not on a roof surface. No, uh-uh.
TOM: No. No, because you’re going to do structural damage to the roof by doing that. Plus, it’s not the pressure that gets rid of this; it’s a chemical process. You’ve got to kill off the mold spores and the moss spores and that’s what actually keeps it from coming back.
So, take a look at WetAndForget.com. I think that’s a product that’s perfect for this application.
KUMAR: Good, great. Thank you. Appreciate your help.
TOM: You’re welcome, Kumar. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
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