Using bleach to clear moss off tarmac - anybody actually tried it?

Si_Clist

Thanks to all the rain, this year we've got a really bad dose of moss all over the tarmac outside our front door.  Has anybody had any success using diluted bleach, and if so, exactly how did you go about it (dilution, applied when moss was wet or dry, how long before rinsing off etc)?

Monsternextdoor

Bleach kills anything but you would be better with a litchenite removal substance.

JJ_Egan

Bleach may discolour tarmac .

Apodemus

Mosses and lichens can be good indicators of environmental health and it doesn't take much to weaken and kill them.  Bleach will do that, but so would soap, vinegar, salt, copper, urine, iron sulphate, diesel, or any number of other chemicals which may or may not be sold as moss killers!  Presuming you don't want to pee on your own doorstep, the cheapest approach might be to spray (or even sprinkle, if you don't have a sprayer) cheap, undiluted vinegar (40p for 568 ml from Tesco) onto the area.

Si_Clist

JJ_Egan said:

Bleach may discolour tarmac .

Obviously.  That's one reason I asked those specific questions.

Si_Clist

Apodemus said:

Presuming you don't want to pee on your own doorstep ...

I would have no problem with that, so may well give it a go if the moss ever dries out enough from all this rain to give it a good chance of working!  

twopenny

It's worked well on my lawn.
No moss and very few weeds. Feels like velvet. Luckily no one's asked why.
I'd suggest you collect it in a watering can out of sight rather than direct for the sake of the neighbours.
Follow up with a stiff plastic brush once killed.

goldfinches

Si_Clist said:

Apodemus said:

Presuming you don't want to pee on your own doorstep ...

I would have no problem with that, so may well give it a go if the moss ever dries out enough from all this rain to give it a good chance of working!  

twopenny said:

It's worked well on my lawn.
No moss and very few weeds. Feels like velvet. Luckily no one's asked why.
I'd suggest you collect it in a watering can out of sight rather than direct for the sake of the neighbours.
Follow up with a stiff plastic brush once killed.

I laughed so much at the above comments that I joggled my mouse and ended up taking the scenic route round this website. 
I suggest you say that you "added nitrogen" if anyone asks.

coffeehound

Wouldn’t something like Algon be less harmful

Apodemus

coffeehound said:

Wouldn’t something like Algon be less harmful

The active ingredient in Algon is acetic acid...which is an expensive name for vinegar!  Algon = £3/L  Tesco Vinegar = £0.70/L.  Of course, pee is free!

Si-Clist, as long as it is not actually raining, you may find that any spray actually works better during damp weather as less will simply run-off. 

Edit:  Algon also contains a non-ionic surfactant, ie a "soap" to help break surface tension and encourage the acetic acid to soak into the moss.  A very small dash of washing up liquid added to your chosen home-made solution would achieve the same thing.

Apodemus

...and here is a pic, taken just now, of some moss that was sprayed with vinegar on Saturday afternoon: