A clean roof is essential for your home’s longevity. Regularly cleaning your roof protects it from the elements and can save you thousands of dollars on costly repairs down the road. But how much does a professional roof cleaning cost? Read this guide to find out!
How Much Does Roof Cleaning Cost?
It’s important to know how much roof cleaning will cost before you start looking for a professional. The price ranges from £400 to £1,100+ largely depending on the type of washing method you opt to go ahead with. It can go even higher if your roof has been neglected for long periods of time or is excessively dirty.
Since the cost of hiring a professional depends on many factors, there is no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to what people should expect to pay.
There are basically two ways professional roof cleaners usually operate. The first is to scrape each and every one of those shingles by hand, a slow process that can take much longer to complete.
The alternative, which saves time and manpower, will be to use a pressure washer on your roof. Although this method is a little more perilous for the environment, it does get the job done much quicker.
Below is an outline of how much roof cleaning can cost based on 4 different scenarios using the hand washing method.
| HOUSE SIZE | SERVICE | ESTIMATED COST |
| Terraced house | Roof cleaning | £395 to £495 |
| Semi-detached house | Roof cleaning | £495 to £595 |
| Detached house, average size | Roof cleaning | £595 to £695 |
| Detached house, large | Roof cleaning | £795 + |
Pressure washing on the other hand may cost more and may not be suitable for old buildings since it uses high pressure to remove moss and lichen. It removes more than just the top soil and unfortunately may also result in tiles being dislodged.
The cost of pressure washing a terraced house is between £550 and £700, with it increasing to £750 to £900 for a semi-detached home.
Detached homes can command fees of £900 to £1,000 for an average-sized property, with a large, detached home costing more than £1,100.
What factors determine the roof cleaning cost?
As indicated above, the roof cleaning cost will vary depending on a number of factors. Let’s look at each in turn.
Location
The location of the property can have an impact on the cost of its services. Generally, choosing roofing contractors that are local will be cheaper than those that are not because they have fewer travel expenses and can pass on the savings to you.
However, it’s important to note that there is no universal rule for this—local companies may charge more or less than non-local ones. Yet, it’s an important factor to consider.
Experience of the Contractor
The size of a contractor is important to consider when estimating your roof cleaning cost. A large contractor may have more employees, which means they can complete the job more quickly than a small one. An experienced crew will also be able to work more efficiently and use fewer materials, which can reduce your costs.
If you’re looking for a contractor who is both professional and affordable, check out our list of top roof cleaning contractors in your area by clicking here.
Ease of access
One of the most significant factors is the difficulty in accessing your home’s roof. For example, if there is no way for contractors to access your roof without climbing up several stories or even onto another building, it’s going to cost more money than if they can easily access your home through an attic or crawlspace.
If your roof is high up and can be dangerous and accessing it safely is important. This can affect your cost in several ways. You may need scaffolding or ladders to reach the roof, which will add to your cost and safety considerations.
The contractors may also need to use necessary safety equipment to get the job done which can add up to the roof cleaning cost. These could include protective equipment like harnesses or helmets for workers’ protection from falls or other injuries due to poor working conditions.
Size of Roof and Condition
The size and condition of your roof are two critical factors when determining how much you’ll spend on cleaning.
- The bigger the roof, the more time it will take to clean it. For example, a 2,000 square foot house with a 1/2″ thick layer of tar and gravel would take around 15-20 minutes to clean while a 5,000 square foot house with 2″ layer would take between 45-60 minutes—more if the area is dirtier than usual.
- The worse the condition of your roof (e.g., mossy or lichen covered), then more you will have to pay for repair before any cleaning can begin.
How to Save Money on Roof Cleaning?
The first step to saving money on roof cleaning is narrowing down the scope of your project. For example, if you don’t need to scrub down the surface of your roof, you can consider hiring a professional to clean only the gutters and downspouts. If this is done regularly enough, it may be more cost-effective than paying someone else each time they are clogged with debris.
Another way to save money when hiring a roof cleaning service is requesting a breakdown of costs in advance—including what materials will be used and how much labour will be involved. You should also ask them for a detailed schedule of work so that there are no surprises when it comes time to pay the invoice at the end!
Finally, if possible try doing some tasks yourself like power washing so that only those portions need professional attention later on (e.g., removing mould or mildew).
What’s Involved in Cleaning a Roof?
First things first, hand-washing is ideal if you have a small area of moss or mould growth on your roofing shingles because it allows for more precise control over how much dirt gets removed from each individual piece of shingle. This method also doesn’t leave behind any residue like pressure washing does (more on why this matters below).
However, if there are large sections of moss or mould growth covering most of your shingles then pressure washing may be better since it covers more ground than hand-washing within a reasonable amount of time—plus it saves money by not having to purchase as many products or hire extra help as needed when using hand-washing exclusively throughout an entire home’s structure!
When you hire a roof cleaner, they’ll use one of two methods to clean your roof: hand washing or pressure washing. Hand washing involves using brushes, scrapers and other tools to manually remove the dirt and moss from your roof.
Pressure washing uses high-pressure water jets to blast away the gunk without any manual scrubbing needed. Both methods are effective for cleaning roofs, but each has its own benefits that you should keep in mind before hiring someone for the job.
How Do I Find and Hire a Professional Roof Cleaner?
Now that you’re more aware about the roof cleaning cost, hopefully you can use this information to determine whether your roof needs cleaning. The next step is finding a professional cleaner.
If you have a friend or neighbour who has had their own roof cleaned, you can ask them for recommendations. You can also use online reviews to find contractors with good reputations.
If possible, look at examples of their work and check references before hiring a contractor by asking them if they have experience in cleaning roofs like yours and if they have any photos of previous jobs they’ve worked on.
It’s important that you hire someone who is licensed and insured because this ensures that they are qualified to do the job safely and legally (which protects both parties). Additionally, make sure that the company has been around for at least three years so that it has some history of doing business successfully during this time period.
Once these factors are determined to be satisfactory in your mind then start looking for an estimate for how much it will cost per square foot for what type of materials may be needed depending on what kind of material covers your roof (for example: asphalt shingles require more frequent maintenance than metal rooftops).
If you are looking for roofing cleaning services, then please feel more than welcome to contact us here at LD Roofing Services Ltd for a free quote today!
