About fourteen years ago, we were using the best system we knew to take care of roofs in Portland. We used a product that required the roofs to be cleaned with pressure washing before they were treated. Then we discovered a company called Dennco Chemical that allowed us to treat roofs without cleaning them first, extending the service lives of all the roofs we worked on.
Why We Use Dennco for Moss Prevention
The product we first used was an oil-based, zinc naphthenate. It would stop the moss growth by releasing zinc oxide every time it rained. It was okay for the environment, but pretty smelly, and could only be used after we cleaned the roofs.
In Portland, we get three and third feet of water every year, so continually pounding the roofs with water to clean them is really hard on the material and lessens the life of the roof overall. We wanted to figure out a way to treat the roofs without that damage.
Enter Dennco Chemical: We met a guy named Dennis Covert who was working on products for shake roofs. He had figured out the right ratio of cleanser, sodium silicate, and a sticking agent that could be put on a roof covered in moss and black fungus. Over a course of four to six months of rain, the product would activate and clean the roof itself.
Environmentally Safe and Effective
You can imagine my skepticism when Dennis first told me about the product. But he challenged me to find the two dirtiest roofs in Portland to try it out on. So I found a couple homeowners and told them we wanted to try an experiment. Dennco came out and applied the product, and lo and behold, I went to check on them after a few months and the roofs looked brand new.
This was huge for Roof Life. We had to re-tool all of our treating trucks, and invest in industrial compressor blowers, because we were now blowing off roofs instead of cleaning them.
Our relationship with Dennco Chemical has allowed us to move our clients’ roofs forward many years and give them the best product in the business. The products are backed by Dennco and backed by Roof Life, giving the Portland area an exclusive service, unlike any other in the market.