Most homeowners think about cleaning their gutters primarily in the fall. While it certainly makes sense to focus on the fallen leaves and other debris that collect around that time of year, gutters can also use a little TLC in the Spring. Whatever you didn’t get back in the fall, combined with the runoff from snowstorms and other winter weather events, has created a nice little bed of loam nestled inside your gutter. As the early spring seeds start to fall, small plants will start to grow in your gutters, creating a little jungle right along the edge of your roof. While the effect can be kind of charming, the roots from these plants are reaching into cracks in your gutters and roofing, getting ready to erode the metal and loosen shingles, weakening your roof’s drainage system just before it has to hold up to the brunt of the spring rains.
Cleaning gutters isn’t difficult, but it can be tedious and, since ladders are involved, slightly dangerous. Blue Door Painters can be hired for gutter cleaning if you decide that the task isn’t something you want to bother with, or you can follow our simple tips for safe, effective care and maintenance of these vulnerable areas.
– Only reach as far as you can without tipping your ladder. Climb all the way down and move your ladder between each section of roof, so that you are not straining; unbalancing the ladder dangerous.
– Wear gloves at all times. Mold, mildew, and bacteria (not to mention mosquitos and other insects) can easily breed in the perpetually moist environment of a clogged gutter. Keeping your hands protected will make you both safer and more efficient.
– Bring any tools you might want on a hook on your belt. While on a ladder, it is good to keep your hands free. So if there are any small tools you might want to use (like a scoop, or even a bag to put the muck in), bring them attached to you belt, so you can use both hands while going up and down the ladder
– Consider using power tools. While you have to use extra care in high spaces, tools like a power blower or pressure washer can make the job go much more quickly.
– Clean your gutters before getting other work done. If you are repainting, staining, or doing any other work on the exterior of your home near or below the roof, it is a good idea to get your gutters cleaned as part of the preparation process. That way, nothing will leach out of the gutters to impact your new paint job, and you will not have to worry about paint failure due to improper drainage during the wet spring months.