[drive surgeon]

i see loads of houses with moss on rooves. only prob is i dont like heights. also never have jet washed a roof. what do i need to know.?  also i know you need a roof ladder and harness. but there must be a load of other problems to consider.? 

[S]

The problem I had was broken tiles. Not broken by me, the moss seems to make them stick. I could see the crack in the tiles before I started.  So I knew it was not me. That would be a problem.
Gutter downpiped can get blocked.
Always handy to have someone on the ground footing the ladder, etc.

Just for my experiences

[drive surgeon]

yes the first thing that springs to mind is broken tiles. either from you loosening them or the pressure of the turbo nozzle blasting them loose. custy would not be happy at all.  is it more hassle than its worth?

[S]

Maybe, turn down your setting

[Blast Away]

Never broken one with the lance but have split a few by stepping in the wrong place whilst flipping the cat ladder.

Rosemary tiles are prone to break but dead easy to replace as they're only nailed down every 5th course and they just slide up and hang on. Cleaned Gary Cahill's roof nearly 2 weeks ago, half by cherry picker and half by cat. The support brackets on the cat caused about 6 tiles to break as towards the bottom of the roof near the gutter the tiles dipped.

[Matt Gibson]

Never broken one with the lance but have split a few by stepping in the wrong place whilst flipping the cat ladder.

Rosemary tiles are prone to break but dead easy to replace as they're only nailed down every 5th course and they just slide up and hang on. Cleaned Gary Cahill's roof nearly 2 weeks ago, half by cherry picker and half by cat. The support brackets on the cat caused about 6 tiles to break as towards the bottom of the roof near the gutter the tiles dipped.

Which ones are the rosemary tiles? How easy are those cement tiles to replace? They look pretty sturdy, im guessing they dont break that easy anyway? or do they cause they are brittle?

[Blast Away]

Never broken one with the lance but have split a few by stepping in the wrong place whilst flipping the cat ladder.

Rosemary tiles are prone to break but dead easy to replace as they're only nailed down every 5th course and they just slide up and hang on. Cleaned Gary Cahill's roof nearly 2 weeks ago, half by cherry picker and half by cat. The support brackets on the cat caused about 6 tiles to break as towards the bottom of the roof near the gutter the tiles dipped.

Which ones are the rosemary tiles? How easy are those cement tiles to replace? They look pretty sturdy, im guessing they dont break that easy anyway? or do they cause they are brittle?

Very brittle. Stand on the tails. Can be a nightmare to replace, sometimes having to take a few out. Get a roof hammer to get the nails out properly. If any get broke in the centre of the roof and you're putting in new tiles, take some weathered tiles out from behind the chimney and put the new tiles there. Keep a uniformed colour then.

[Matt Gibson]

cheers mate, ive been lucky with the tiles in the past, but i know im eventually gonna break some..

I dont know any roofers, so im either gonna have to learn how to replace em or pay for it..

Hopefully i can keep my clean record for a while longer, ive got a roof clean thrus, with those heavy cement tiles..

[Blast Away]

cheers mate, ive been lucky with the tiles in the past, but i know im eventually gonna break some..

I dont know any roofers, so im either gonna have to learn how to replace em or pay for it..

Hopefully i can keep my clean record for a while longer, ive got a roof clean thrus, with those heavy cement tiles..

One of my mates is a roofer and if required by the customer I'll get him in to point all ridges and valleys etc.
Never done pointing and wouldn't even bother trying on a roof.

[Londoner]

You guys really ought to check out the working at height regulations . Its illegal to work off a roof ladder, or any ladder at that height. (over 2m) They can only be used for access or inspection. Only then after carrying out a written risk assessment

To be legal you have to put a scaffolding up.

And don't come back to me and say you see loads of people working on roofs without doing all that. I know, I know, we have had all that on the window cleaning forum. Personally I don't care what you do.

But its still illegal and they are gradually getting done by H&S.   

[Matt Gibson]

I don't...

[mike roberts]

You guys really ought to check out the working at height regulations . Its illegal to work off a roof ladder, or any ladder at that height. (over 2m) They can only be used for access or inspection. Only then after carrying out a written risk assessment

To be legal you have to put a scaffolding up.

And don't come back to me and say you see loads of people working on roofs without doing all that. I know, I know, we have had all that on the window cleaning forum. Personally I don't care what you do.

But its still illegal and they are gradually getting done by H&S.  

Vince - why not take some snippets from working at height regs and do a rather stupid post--
owe thats what you have done!!

We are SAFEcontractor approved health and safety to the max. You can use ladders for work but must maintain 3 points of contact at all times.(in addition you need full ladder inspection records blah blah) You can use roof ladders .. in addition we use 2 ropes harness helmet etc one rope positioning one fall arrest both to ground anchorage points... we maintain 2m distance from edges, hence no edge protection required for short term use. Both operators rope trained one on roof .. one on ground incase of emergencies. Full risk assesments and method statements on all jobs.

Scaffolding alone will not save you must use harnesses suitable anchorage points. Makes me laugh how some guys erect basic towers and simply walk on roof - If you are using scafolding has to be designed to catch operator slipping of roof std tower is not suitable - However this is not possible in alot of domestic situations - due to width restrictions.

So agree companies really need to improve hs on roofs but please state facts.
Be interesting to know if you clean roofs and if so what type of scafolding u use.
Chances are basic tower but please prove me wrong!!

[drive surgeon]

think i will stick to the ground cleaning       

[Londoner]

You guys really ought to check out the working at height regulations . Its illegal to work off a roof ladder, or any ladder at that height. (over 2m) They can only be used for access or inspection. Only then after carrying out a written risk assessment

To be legal you have to put a scaffolding up.

And don't come back to me and say you see loads of people working on roofs without doing all that. I know, I know, we have had all that on the window cleaning forum. Personally I don't care what you do.

But its still illegal and they are gradually getting done by H&S.  

Vince - why not take some snippets from working at height regs and do a rather stupid post--
owe thats what you have done!!

be interesting to know if you clean roofs and if so what type of scafolding u use.
Chances are basic tower but please prove me wrong!!

I don't clean roofs, partly for that reason but I am seeing more and more cowboys doing all sorts of roof work, not just cleaning
with absolutely no safety in place what so ever. From my perspective things are going backwards. On at least two occasions I have seen people just walking on roofs cleaning them.

I am not interested in any sort of pressure washing anymore, window cleaning is much more profitable.  Regular work year on year instead of constantly hunting for and quoting for one offs. Occasionally I still get asked

[APWS]

ladders-ladders-ladders!!!!!!  when will it ever end?

[Kenny83]

may I just interupt and point out it's rooves, not roofs  lol
I personally have nevr done one, but I see you lot talking on here about them alot and have noticed 'anchorage points' mentioned a few times, usually to the ground, I'm  just curious to know this is odne and how it would stop someone falling as i would expect an anchorage pont to stop someone falling would be above the working height, it keeps doing my head in everytime i see it, I know that it would be impossible to anchor any higher as your on a roof. just wondering how this works? like do you anchor it round a chimney then run a rope to the ground? I really don't have a clue as you can probably tell, but I'm intrigued to know how it's done?

[Londoner]

ladders-ladders-ladders!!!!!!  when will it ever end?

Its not going to end but I suppose it will result in fewer deaths and injuries - eventually.

[Kenny83]

oh right, I see, knew it would be something simple, lol. so to protect your ropes you could realy do with some kind of wheel, maybe on some kind of piece of angled steel to sit on top of the roof.
So are the ropes like rock climbing ropes with all the abseiling type gear? (the snap locks etc) or can you just use any rope just tied to the van/tree etc?

[Matt Gibson]

Blast aways pics really helped me out  

I cleaned the hip roof really easily with my tied together ladders

[Kenny83]

Sounds good, technical, but good, you wil defo get more work than those gangs of pikeys i see going round, some of them don't even have a cat ladder!