Wooded lots and the streaks they put on a roof
The black streaks on an asphalt shingle roof are a blue-green algae that feeds on the limestone filler in the shingle. It spreads from the shaded, damp side of the roof, which under hardwoods is most of the roof. Leaves in the valleys and behind the chimney make it worse, and gutters full of leaves keep the eave wet.
The fix is a soft wash: we clear the leaves and the gutters, apply a cleaner at low pressure that kills the algae, and let the rain and a gentle rinse carry it off. Pressure washing a shingle roof strips the granules and takes years off it, which is why a soft wash for the shingles is the only way we do it. The streaks fade over the following days as the dead algae washes down, and the roof reads one color again.
The weather sets the schedule for this work. We watch the forecast from the Birmingham weather office and plan roof work for a dry stretch, because the cleaner needs time on the shingle before a rain. We work Monday through Saturday, 7am to 6pm, and answer quote requests the same day. We move a roof day if the forecast changes rather than rush it.
Older homes and painted siding
The mining-town houses near the center of Brookwood are frame homes with painted wood siding, some with vinyl or metal put over it later, and brick ranches from the 1960s and 70s. Painted wood is the surface we are most careful with. It gets a mild cleaner, a soft brush where the mildew is heavy, and a rinse at garden-hose pressure. Paint that is already chalking or lifting will show it after any wash, and we tell you that before we start rather than after.
Brick on these lots is often shaded on one side and holds mildew in the mortar. It gets more dwell time with the cleaner and a rinse that does not dig at fifty-year-old joints. Vinyl that was put over old siding needs the low-pressure method too, since water forced behind it has nowhere to go.
Concrete in Brookwood is usually a short drive from a gravel road, with a walk to the porch. Concrete and gravel-edge drives get a surface cleaner on the slab and a rinse that leaves the gravel alone, and the clay tracked from the road onto the slab is treated as clay, not growth.
What we wash in Brookwood
Roofs, first and most often. Then houses: painted wood, brick, vinyl and metal siding. Concrete drives, walks and porches. Wood decks and fences under the trees, which grey and mildew faster than they would in the open. Gutters, which in Brookwood fill every fall and again in spring, cleared by hand and flushed. Metal roofs on the newer houses and the outbuildings get the same low-pressure treatment as shingles, since the green film on a north slope is the same algae, and we check that the downspouts actually drain away from the slab while we are up there.
The same crew that works Brookwood runs down Highway 216 to Vance and across to Coaling and Cottondale. The newer streets in Vance are mostly vinyl and fiber-cement and get a different list, but the roofs under the trees on the Brookwood side are what keep us out here. We wash houses, roofs and concrete across Tuscaloosa County: Tuscaloosa, Northport, Cottondale, Coker, Brookwood, Vance, Duncanville, Fosters, Coaling, Moundville, Holt, Lake View and Samantha.
Services we bring out here
- Roof CleaningNo pressure washer on the roof, gutters and plants protected.
- House WashingLow-pressure soft wash that lifts algae, mildew and pollen film and keeps water out of the wall.
- Driveway and Concrete CleaningA surface cleaner lifts red clay, mildew and oil with no wand stripes.
- Pressure Washing in VanceSoft wash for siding, concrete cleaned.
- Pressure Washing in CoalingGreen siding film and roof streaks cleaned without high pressure by a local crew.
- Pressure Washing in CottondaleShade mildew and green concrete, priced from a photo.
- Where We WorkFind your town and send a photo for a same-day written quote.
- Get a Free QuoteLearn what sets the price and what happens after you send the form.
- Home base: TuscaloosaFastest response, every service.
Questions we get
How long does a roof cleaning last in Brookwood?
Under hardwoods, usually a few years before streaks start showing again, and longer if the gutters are kept clear and the overhanging limbs are trimmed back. A roof in full sun goes much longer. The soft wash kills the algae rather than rinsing it, which is why it lasts.
Will the roof cleaner hurt the plants below the eave?
We wet the beds and the lawn under the drip line before we start and rinse them again when the roof is done. The runoff is diluted by the rinse and by the pre-wetting. Tell us about anything you are worried about and we cover it.
Can old painted wood siding be washed at all?
Yes, gently. A mild cleaner, a soft brush on the heavy spots and a low-pressure rinse take the mildew off without lifting sound paint. Paint that is already failing will look worse after any wash, and we point that out before we start.