cedar shake roof treatment.

junker1

junker1

Roundtable Host 2009
I have a cedar roof that is coming up this spring and man is it covered in moss. I am assuming that there is something going on with the construction to completely cover the roof in moss. Project calls for cleaning and staining the shakes but my Question is, what is a readily available product available to help retard the growth of moss once I get it cleaned up? any ideas?
 
Steve, I find that if moss has grown on the shakes badly that you will find some damaged, rotted, and compromised shakes. You may be looking at some replacement as well. Once you have restored the shakes it would be a good idea to provide the homeowner with a maintenance plan that includes periodic cleaning as well as re-coating. Since you will not have to put as much detail into as this time you should call it a "Discounted Maintenance Plan" which will help build future income.
 
Everett Abrams said:
Steve, I find that if moss has grown on the shakes badly that you will find some damaged, rotted, and compromised shakes. You may be looking at some replacement as well. Once you have restored the shakes it would be a good idea to provide the homeowner with a maintenance plan that includes periodic cleaning as well as re-coating. Since you will not have to put as much detail into as this time you should call it a "Discounted Maintenance Plan" which will help build future income.
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I agree with the needing of replacement for some shakes. I have added that into my first initial estimate. From my initial inspection they do look like they are in pretty good shape. I will be doing a better inspection in the spring.

I have to think that for myself and two other guys this project will take about two and a half to three weeks from start to finish ( Prep, work,grounds cleanup, fixing the grass from lift etc,), geeze take me 40 hours to clean it all off, its about an inch thick all over the roof. And probably a good 40 hours to stain , with back brushing, the complete roof. This roof is huge.

I would like to use a darker ( semi solid for longevity ) A/C stain with some extra mildewcide added into it.

The homeowner is adamant that cedar shakes stay on there and realizes that maintenance will be needed.
 
I would agree that using a more pigmented product that will wear and not peel in areas is the way to go. I also agree that adding mildewcide will also help. Another alternative to consider that many do not think to use is intermixing. We have all used or are familiar with semi-transparent and solids, many manufacturers also use a product in between and call it a semi-solid. You never hear of this going the other way too often though. In this scenario you take the manufacturers natural product and mix it 50/50 with the semi-transparent. This gives you the color, tone, and pigmentation as well as last a little longer and insure no peeling and easier future maintenance. You can also play with the mix ratios. We do this for cabins. wood siding, and decks all the time. This is especially helpful on older wood that has lost it's original luster and you want to give it a little more tone and evenness to the appearance and still keep it easy for future maintenance without going to opaque on the stain.
 
Everett Abrams said:
I would agree that using a more pigmented product that will wear and not peel in areas is the way to go. I also agree that adding mildewcide will also help. Another alternative to consider that many do not think to use is intermixing. We have all used or are familiar with semi-transparent and solids, many manufacturers also use a product in between and call it a semi-solid. You never hear of this going the other way too often though. In this scenario you take the manufacturers natural product and mix it 50/50 with the semi-transparent. This gives you the color, tone, and pigmentation as well as last a little longer and insure no peeling and easier future maintenance. You can also play with the mix ratios. We do this for cabins. wood siding, and decks all the time. This is especially helpful on older wood that has lost it's original luster and you want to give it a little more tone and evenness to the appearance and still keep it easy for future maintenance without going to opaque on the stain.
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Not sure what you mean when you say " Natural product ". Do you mean clear or solid? I have mixed colors before and would like to do it with this job to try and match the front and garage doors.
 
Steve , you can buzz me about roofs and maintenceance . I use copper nap as a additive for a few reasons . Less pigment or no pigment is actually better on a roof . Do not use any drying oils on a roof or water base . Decreases life and promotes cupping and curling decreasing life .
 
Diamond Jim said:
Steve , you can buzz me about roofs and maintenceance . I use copper nap as a additive for a few reasons . Less pigment or no pigment is actually better on a roof . Do not use any drying oils on a roof or water base . Decreases life and promotes cupping and curling decreasing life .
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I Just put in the quote, it was a little high, so I really don't expect to get it. BUT, if I do I was thinking A/C stain. they have the non drying oils in them.
 
junker1 said:
I have a cedar roof that is coming up this spring and man is it covered in moss. I am assuming that there is something going on with the construction to completely cover the roof in moss. Project calls for cleaning and staining the shakes but my Question is, what is a readily available product available to help retard the growth of moss once I get it cleaned up? any ideas?
Click to expand...

The best retardant for moss grows or any other type of growth on a cedar roof is a 100% kill ratio. So make sure you're using the right cleaners and make sure that everything is rinsed good. I have found the best way to do this is to apply your solution generously, and then after you've completely rinsed everything, apply the solution again and let it stay.

Staining it may help, but from what I've seen, stained cedar and Cedar that has not been stained develop infestations and has to be cleaned Every five years or so.

There is a housing complex around me and all of the roofs are Cedar. I've cleaned one without using any treatment other than the cleaning solution and A good rinse process, and I've cleaned one directly beside it but on this one used in oil treatment. After one year they both look exactly the same. From what I can see, in four more years they both will need to be cleaned again. I've noticed the same with stained cedar vs non-stained cedar.

If you don't completely kill everything, the stuff just grows back pretty fast. So In my experience 100% kill ratio is the best retardant and the best way to keep the stuff from growing back rapidly.
 
Thee are 2 main reason to preserving wood surfaces and the hardest part in conveying to your customer. It is preserving and extending the life of the wood as well as the desired appearance. This is the most difficult issue when confronting a customer with a proposal. A good contractor will do his/her best to marry the two for a desired result that fits the wood and costumers needs. With that being said cleaning wood and doing nothing with it will ultimately just dry the wood out sooner than later and by coating or replenishing and moisturizing the wood it will make it last longer. In that regard, I could care less what the appearance is you should be attempting to prolong the life of the wood. Now, regarding appearance I will tell you that coated wood vs. uncoated wood will certainly look different within a year. Sun left to beat on a wood surface with beak it down and turn it gray quicker than wood not coated. In your scenario that your roofs look the same, even if they did, you should put a treatment on the roof to help prolong the life.
 
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