Roof Cleaning
Park Shore

Park Shore stretches from US-41 to the Gulf and wraps around Venetian Bay, with canals reaching into the neighborhood. A home on a canal gets salt from the Gulf breeze and moisture off the water beside it, and both keep its roof damp longer than an inland roof.

Raymond Lutgert developed Park Shore as one of Florida’s first planned unit developments and the first in Collier County. Today it holds more than 600 single-family homes, about 25 high-rise condominiums, several mid-rises and some commercial property.

Damp roofs grow algae. On canal-front homes the slope facing the water usually streaks first, and the streaks tend to come back sooner than on inland streets near US-41, so those slopes are where we look first on the walk-around.

The dark streaks are mostly Gloeocapsa magma. The Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association calls it probably the most prevalent of the algae species behind roof discoloration and says it is most widespread in the Gulf States, and Owens Corning notes that it travels through the air and settles on roofs.

Pitched tile and metal roofs get a low-pressure soft wash. That kills the algae without cracking tile, wearing its surface or scratching the coating on metal panels.

Concrete tile has a maker’s limit we work inside. Eagle Roofing Products advises plain water at no more than 1,200 psi for cleaning, warning that higher pressure can change the tile’s pH and discolor it. Our soft wash stays far below that figure.

For a heavily soiled tile roof, Eagle allows a cleaner only in the most diluted solution possible and only if it is compatible with concrete, since some products can change the tile’s pH or etch the face. We set the mix for each roof instead of using one strength everywhere.

Where a Park Shore home has an asphalt shingle roof, ARMA and Owens Corning both point to a bleach-and-water solution left on for a limited time, about 15 to 20 minutes, then a gentle rinse. Both say no power washer and no scrubbing, because that loosens the granules.

Metal roofs get the same low pressure and a mild solution, with no brushes that could mark the finish. If the panel maker supplied care instructions, send them with the booking and we will follow them.

The Gulf-front towers are a separate job. Their flat roofs, parapets and equipment areas collect salt and sand and are cleaned only for the association, with access set by building management.

Towers here range in age from Park Shore Tower, 20 stories and 75 units from 1985, to Le Parc from 1990, Club Brittany from 1996 and Aria from 2006. Each has its own roof system, so we ask management which membrane is installed before quoting.

If a building has a GAF EverGuard TPO roof, GAF’s bulletin TAB-C-27 calls for a mild household detergent and water, a soft brush or floor broom, and a low-pressure washer at 2,000 psi or less. It says not to pressure wash at low curbs, base flashings or other points where water could get in.

If the roof is a Sika Sarnafil-type PVC sheet, Sika’s bulletin 17-03 prefers lower pressure, a wide nozzle held 16 to 24 inches off the sheet, and spraying from the field sheet over the seam rather than into it. It rules out wire brushes, which can scratch or puncture the membrane.

Residents also share the private Raymond L. Lutgert Beach Park, 2.7 acres with 200 feet of beach, open to members with a card. Homes close to the beach and the towers along it take the most salt off the Gulf, and salt holds moisture on a roof, so a fresh-water rinse ends every job here.

Florida’s milestone inspection and structural integrity reserve study rules apply to condo buildings of three stories or more, and reserve studies cover waterproofing among other items. A dated service record with photos gives the board one more piece of its maintenance file.

Runoff matters with water on every side. Owens Corning advises flushing the roof and the surrounding greenery thoroughly after a bleach-based clean, and both GAF and Sika ask crews to protect plants and shrubs, so beds are soaked before, rinsed after, and dock edges and seawalls get a fresh-water rinse.

Roofs are slippery once wet. ARMA says only trained professionals should work on them, and Eagle calls a wet tile roof difficult and dangerous to walk, so our crew uses fall protection on two-story homes and on any tower roof outside the parapet zone.

Results are temporary. ARMA says plainly that discoloration may recur after cleaning, which is why we photograph every slope before and after and send a written service record instead of quoting a number of years.

Single-story roofs start at $299, two-story roofs at $399, large bay-front roofs at $499, and a roof with house wash at $599. Tower roofs are quoted per building; see tile roof cleaning for our method on pitched roofs.

We are licensed and insured, with a certificate of insurance for any association. Call 239-544-1165 to book a Park Shore roof.