Water damage is one of the leading causes of home insurance claims, affecting over 14,000 Americans daily. In addition, clogged gutters are one of the top reasons homeowners have water damage.
Water damage can lead to mold, mildew, and severe structural damage. If you're a homeowner, you need to take steps to prevent water damage by tackling common causes - like your gutters. Learning more about gutter cleaning and when to call in the professionals will save you a lot of time and money in the long run.
If you don't have a plan in place, it's time to make changes. Keep reading this gutter guide to learn how to clean your gutters effectively and efficiently.
Why Is It Important to Clean Your Gutters?
Gutters are vital to diverting the rainwater that falls on your roof. When your gutters are clear, they can easily redirect water through the downspouts and away from your home's foundation.
When your gutters are clogged, water can't flow freely from the roof, through the gutters, and out of the downspout.
When you have a buildup of debris and leaves in your gutters, rainwater starts to accumulate. Eventually, it will overflow and seep down your siding, causing severe damage to your walls.
Even more, winter's melting and freezing cycles cause snow on your roof to melt. This snow melts in your gutters and then freezes there. Sometimes it will make gutters too heavy, so they detach from the roof. It can also make gutters swell and crack.
Melted snow can overflow from your gutters, forming icicles and eventually building an ice dam. Once ice dams form, any water behind them stays on the roof surface, allowing water to pool.
How Often Should You Clean Your Gutters?
Cleaning your gutters at least twice a year is usually enough to keep the gutters flowing.
If many mature trees surround your home, your gutters can fill up quickly. This makes them more attractive to insects and birds. In these cases, you'll need to clean your gutters more frequently.
Gutter maintenance in the fall is necessary to remove excess debris and leaves. These leaves can block water from moving out of the gutters normally during winter. This results in standing water which can freeze.
In addition, you'll need to clean your gutters during springtime to clear away all the debris from winter.
How to Clean Your Gutters
There are a few ways you can go about a DIY gutter cleaning. Remember, your safety is the most important thing. The last thing you need to be doing is attempting to climb on your roof to clean the gutters.
Cleaning Gutters From the Ground
It's safest to clean your gutters from the ground, if possible. Remember that this method takes a little longer since you'll have to move slowly. This is because you can't see exactly what you're doing.
However, cleaning gutters from the ground is still effective, and you'll get the job done.
You can buy a gutter cleaning accessory kit for wet/dry vacuums. You can also use this on one or two-story homes while safely standing on the ground. The tubes lock together to form a long tube with a nozzle at the end. The bottom of this tube will connect to the shop vac.
This method is best for dry leaves, not sludge or wet leaf clumps. If you have a buildup of leaves and sludge, you may need to try other methods, like a pressure washer.
You can blow the leaves right out of your gutters with a pressure washer. You can find pressure washer attachments with various tubes that snap together. These tubes can extend up to 18 feet.
Cleaning Gutters With a Ladder
Cleaning gutters while standing on a ladder isn't safe. If you want to try this method, avoid using a step ladder since it can tip over easily.
Instead, using an extension ladder with stabilizing arms is best. These arms will brace the ladder and keep it sturdy, preventing it from slipping to the side.
You'll need to decide on a cleaning method before you begin climbing. A leaf blower is an effective option; you can easily bring it up to blow the leaves out of the gutter.
Cleaning gutters by hand is also a common method. All you'll need is a trowel or gutter scoop and a bucket. Remove the debris and leaves by placing it in the bucket. Once you're done, flush the gutter with water to ensure there are no clogs.
Hire a Professional Roofing Company
It's best to hire a professional roofing company like Tresnak Roofing to take care of your gutters. While you can clean them on your own, having regular gutter cleaning and maintenance will extend the life of your gutters and roof.
A professional company can clean your gutters and inspect how your gutters are working overall. They'll look for signs your gutters need replacing, like:
- Sagging or buckling gutters
- Regular basement flooding
- Gutters leaking at the end caps
- Gutters pulled away from the roof
- Paint peeling behind the gutters
You may need a gutter replacement or gutter guards. Gutter guards protect your gutters against clogs and debris buildup, minimizing how much you need to clean them.
You'll also get helpful gutter-cleaning tips to help you throughout the year.
The most significant advantage to hiring a professional company is they can detect water damage early on before it becomes a major problem.
Gutter Cleaning and Replacement in Royal Oak
Learning more about gutter cleaning will help you keep your gutters in tip-top shape. But sometimes, you may not be able to clean your gutters on your own. Or, you may need new gutters if your current ones are buckling or sagging.
The good news is you can turn to Tresnak Roofing Inc. for all your gutter needs. We're a family-owned business helping homeowners in the Metropolitan Detroit area since 1984.
Our goal is to provide you with high-quality workmanship and services at a reasonable price. We offer gutter installation, cleaning, and services, including gutter guards and full gutter replacements.
We also provide roofing services like roof installation, repairs, shingle roofing systems, and skylight installation.
Make sure to contact us today to get a free estimate!
