Moss Growing On The Roof,,

[CADplans]

For a couple years, I had noticed moss growing in the roof of our house,,but, I just avoided thinking about it,,,
Well, last year, we received a RECORD amount of rain,, and the moss grew more than ever,,,

I looked up possible fixes,, most recommended getting on the roof, with a brush, some sort of cleaner,, and a hose,,,
THAT was just too labor intensive for me,,,

The other answer I had seen on line was putting copper sheet under the shingles near the top of the roof,,
the copper dissolves minute amounts during each rain,, and when it washes down the roof, the copper kills the moss,,,
I have the thin copper sheet,, BUT,, the wife said NO WAY was I going to get on the roof and start installing the material,,,

So, last September,, I ordered a small bottle of copper fungicide

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I mixed up 2 gallons of water, some Dawn dish-washing liquid , and some copper fungicide

I sprayed the mix on the roof,, then promply forgot about it,,,

Well, I looked at the roof today,, about 6 months later,, and,, surprisingly,, the moss is GONE!!



The quarter sized light areas are where the moss had been,,



I think there are a few minor spots of remaining dead moss,, but, that does not bother me,,

So, I consider the single copper application a 100% success,,, I will reapply the same mix in about 3 months,, I have plenty remaining.

The same copper mix is supposed to remove the black that occurs on this type of roof,,
the black is from algae growing on the roof,, the algae spores are carried to the roof by the wind,,

So, do you use any magic concoctions that keep the house looking nice??

[darkminion_17]

Too bad you did not have a before photo, beats having someone power-washing the moss off.
I was told Tamko shingles are the ones that have the black staining problems.

[bugeye]

The black staining is common here in south east Pa. I don't think it is only one brand of shingles, but more due to ambient humidity levels and sun exposure. Our home roof ridge is east/west. The south side of the roof is clean. The north side of the house and east/west sides of the perpendicular garage roof all have the black staining. Shingles are Elk installed in 1997. 40 year rating. Elk was acquired by GAF.

What was the effect to any landscaping due to the spray or roof run off? From reviews/questions on amazon, it seems ok for the plants.

[CADplans]

Originally Posted by bugeye

What was the effect to any landscaping due to the spray or roof run off?

From reviews/questions on amazon, it seems OK for the plants.

The amount used was tiny, maybe 2 ounces for the entire roof.

I see no effect on any non-moss plants,,,,
I would guess that any copper fungicide that got off the roof went into the gutter due to rain wash-off,,
not because I sprayed the plants.

[twoton]

I used cupric oxide mixed with linseed oil for years to coat the insides of wood gutter. Also white lead paste mixed with linseed oil putty to glaze window sash.

[mickb72]

Hi Cad. I did the brush, scrape, broom last fall. Applied a mixture of Spray and Forget (#2 to Wet and Forget). The roof is clean now, waiting for the first sign for a recoat. Your mixture seems to be 75% cheaper than what I spent, I will try that later. Mike

[DeltaCub]

Cad, did you use any personal protection such as a mask, rubber gloves or safety glasses?

[CADplans]

Originally Posted by DeltaCub

Cad, did you use any personal protection such as a mask, rubber gloves or safety glasses?

Nope,, the copper is IMHO,, is not much different than touching wire,,

I did not touch any of the stuff anyways,,
and the spray was more of a stream, than a mist,,,

The first rain probably did a lot to spread it around,,,

[green 4 acres]

Here it is mold growing on the back side of plastic siding

[CADplans]

Originally Posted by green 4 acres

Here it is mold growing on the back side of plastic siding

I get some mold or moss on some vinyl siding,, I might have to try the same spray on the siding,,

I do not know if the green is mold, or moss,,,

It only occurs in total shade areas,,,