Tile Roof Soft Washing
The Place at Corkscrew

The Place at Corkscrew is a gated community of almost 1,400 acres in Estero, a few minutes from I-75 and Southwest Florida International Airport. Cameratta Companies developed it with a Southern Plantation look, and Lennar and Pulte Homes built the houses.

Recent listings at The Place at Corkscrew show tile roofs on homes built from 2019 to 2022. In Southwest Florida, new tile commonly develops the first faint shadows of Gloeocapsa magma within a few years, usually on the north and east slopes.

Lennar’s one- and two-story plans run from about 1,677 to 3,357 square feet with three to five bedrooms. Pulte offered 15 designs from 1,674 to more than 4,242 square feet with two- and three-car garages, so roof sizes and pitches vary a good deal from street to street.

At that early stage the algae is thin and a mild soft wash solution clears it quickly. Left for several more years it thickens, lichen can take hold beside it, and the clean becomes slower and needs more product.

The streaks are mostly Gloeocapsa magma. The Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association calls it probably the most prevalent of the algae that discolor roofs and says it is most widespread in the Gulf States. Owens Corning’s bulletin adds that it is carried through the air, so a brand-new roof picks it up as readily as an old one.

Owens Corning also says it has not seen evidence that algae deposits affect the performance of asphalt shingles. For most owners here, cleaning is about appearance and neighborhood standards, and we would rather say that than sell it as a repair.

Newer roofs also deserve careful handling. We don’t use pressure on tile, and crews stick to safe walk zones. Two-story roofs are worked with proper footing, well back from the eaves.

Concrete tile makers set clear limits. Eagle Roofing Products recommends water alone for routine cleaning at no more than 1,200 psi, because higher pressure can change the tile’s pH and discolor it, and it allows a cleaner on heavy growth only in its most diluted, concrete-compatible form.

Eagle also warns that a wet tile roof is difficult and dangerous to walk and tells owners to hire a licensed, insured contractor with tile experience who uses fall protection. On two-story Pulte and Lennar plans our crew is harnessed and steps only on sound tile.

Lawns here are fully maintained by the association, and the landscape crews keep a regular schedule. We pre-wet beds and turf before any treatment, rinse them again after, and ask you or the manager which day the mowers come so our work does not overlap theirs.

After a bleach-based clean, Owens Corning wants both the roof and the plants around the house flushed well with water. Pool enclosures are rinsed, pool equipment is covered, and runoff is kept off the water and the walking paths.

Homes that back onto the nature preserve tend to stay damp longer after rain and see more leaf fall. Gutters on those lots collect needles and leaves quickly, and we flush every gutter and downspout once the roof is rinsed.

Each slope is photographed before any solution touches it. Eagle recommends routine inspection for cracked tile and drainage problems, and on a roof only a few years old those photos are a useful baseline to compare against later.

Mortared ridge and hip caps are where growth often settles first. Our tile with ridge cap treatment covers the work along those lines, and any loose or cracked cap is photographed so you can raise it with your builder or roofer.

ARMA says plainly that roof cleaning results are temporary and that discoloration may return. Rather than quote a set number of years, we suggest booking again when the first shadows come back, and the written record makes it easy to see how long the last clean held on your street.

The amenity plan is large: a two-story fitness center, a cafe and marketplace, pool and spa with a 100-foot waterslide, a splash pad, courts, a restaurant and a wine and martini bar, added to an earlier playground with zip tracks, a pavilion, a fenced dog park and a flex field. Those buildings belong to the association and are quoted separately from private homes.

Single-story tile roofs start at $299, two-story roofs at $399, and tile with ridge cap treatment at $349. For the roof and a full house wash on one visit, pricing starts at $599; our tile roof cleaning page describes the method in more detail.

We are licensed and insured, confirm gate registration with you or your manager before each visit, and email photos and a written record afterward. Call 239-544-1165 to book a first roof cleaning at The Place at Corkscrew.