Lichen is an organism which is a combination of fungus and algae. Although it has plant-like qualities, and will usually be light green in colour, it is not technically a plant. Lichen is commonly found growing on the roofs of homes and businesses throughout the UK; it thrives in cool, shady and moist settings, and our weather usually provides it with the perfect conditions for rapid growth. As well as giving your roof a dirty and unkempt appearance, lichen can also cause a host of practical issues.

Although lichen does not hold as much water as moss, which means there is less chance of your roof being damaged by rain, its strands can penetrate down into your roof tiles, causing physical damage and weakening their structure. This can have serious consequences, resulting in possible structural damage to your property and meaning you have to shell out for expensive repairs. For these reasons, it is important that lichen is removed from your roof as soon as possible after you notice it growing there.

Lichen is often extremely hardy and durable, so it can be difficult to remove it by yourself. There’s also the fact that it makes roofs slimy and slippery, rendering amateur cleaning dangerous. It’s much better to get the help of a professional team, such as ours. We will carefully remove the lichen by hand, using tools which will not cause any further damage to your roof. Not only will we remove the existing growths, but we will also apply a biocide product to prevent the lichen from returning and keep your roof looking fresh and clear for longer.

Whether you have moss, algae and lichen on your roof, patio, driveway or any other part of the property, it’s important that you get skilled help to get rid of it and ensure no structural damage is caused. As one of the leading roof cleaning companies based in Surrey, we’re on hand to help with our gentle and effective cleaning techniques. Get in touch with us if you’d like to know more about what we can do.