Roof soft washing in Beach Haven West

What starts the conversation

• A neighbour's roof cleaned last year that still looks clean, next to yours that does not
• Moss or lichen sitting in the shingle courses on a shaded roof
• Dark patches on the north slope while the south slope still looks new

Why this comes up in Beach Haven West

Here is what makes Beach Haven West particular: nearly every lot fronts a lagoon with a bulkhead and very often a lift. The canals connect directly to Manahawkin Bay, so the water here is tidal and salt-influenced — but the community is sheltered, humid and almost treeless dredge fill, so it behaves like neither the wooded mainland nor the windswept island.

Salt marsh known as Remson Meadows until 1950, then dredged and filled into more than 130 saltwater lagoons. Built in phases: the first opened in 1957 between Morris Boulevard and Jennifer Lane, a second was complete by the early 1960s between Jonathan Drive and Walter Boulevard, a third covered Mill Creek Road between Route 72 and Jonathan Drive with the Charles Boulevard spur, and through the 1970s the community ran down Mill Creek Road toward East Point. Village Harbour on Newell Avenue and Colony Lakes followed, the latter by 1986. Largely single-storey, and a substantial share were never elevated after 2012.

Practicalities in Beach Haven West

Narrow lots with a bulkhead at the back. The rig stages from the street, the waterside is reached through the property or from the dock, and anything below the bulkhead cap is worked to the tide rather than the calendar.

Any permit for this runs through Stafford Township. State registration has to be current before one is issued.

What happens on site

The black streaking is a cyanobacteria, Gloeocapsa magma, that feeds on limestone filler in asphalt shingles. The Asphalt Roofing Manufacturers Association's guidance is low pressure and a cleaning solution; pressure washing strips granules and is excluded under most shingle warranties. Ask what pressure the crew works at and what they do to protect the gutters, plantings and the run-off path before they start.