Keep your gutters clear with our gutter maintenance tips. Keeping gutters in good repair can prevent your home being damaged by water.
* Have a helper: If you’re going to tackle the job yourself, get someone to stabilize the ladder and be on hand to help. Also, use a bucket attached to a rope to load up the debris and lower down to your helper to dispose of, so you’re not cleaning up twice.
* Ladder safety: Always use a ladder that is long enough for the task and wear shoes that have good traction. Avoid leaning your ladder on the gutters, as this can damage them. Most hardware stores carry ladder extensions that curve to put the ladder weight on the roof.
* Scoop it up: Put on some heavy-duty gloves or use a small gardening shovel to scoop out leaves, sticks and other debris that might be clogging gutters and spouts.
* Get out the hose: After the debris is removed, use the hose for a final rinse to check that water is moving through your downspouts properly.
* Clear obstructions: If the water fails to drain freely, use a plumbing snake or wet/dry vac to clear the clog from the bottom up.
* Don’t forget to check gutter screens/guards: Check that these are not damaged or clogged with leaves. Carefully lift the guards to avoid damaging them and remove any leaves or debris under them and reinstall properly.
* Check insurance: When hiring a professional, check that the company is insured and ask to see their policy. Check that you have enough homeowners insurance, as well.
* Twice a year: Plan on cleaning your gutters once in the fall and again in the spring.
* Rest up! Take frequent breaks, especially when working from a ladder.
* A final check: Once your gutters are clean, check to see that they are firmly attached to your home and repair any loose spots you find.
Many homeowners will attempt to clean the gutters themselves, and many of them will have accidents. Each year there are more than 164,000 emergency room visits caused by ladder injuries.
