How to Clean Rain Gutters


Summary:

Gutter cleaning: check the installation

The essential gestures for gutter cleaning:

  • Step 1: Remove the leaves from the gutter
  • Step 2: Clean with a pressure washer

Cleaning a gutter: dedicated tools

After gutter cleaning: taking stock

Gutter cleaning: don’t forget safety!

Extend the life of your eavestroughs with regular drainpipe cleaning

For a gutter to continue to be useful throughout the seasons, it is essential to maintain it, which involves:

– Cleaning the entire eavestrough,
– gutter repair.

This maintenance will prolong the gutter lifespan and avoid the need for major repairs or changes to gutters that are no longer in use.

Gutter cleaning: check the installation

There are two aspects to the maintenance of a gutter:

– cleaning the gutter channels: this involves removing the accumulation of dead leaves, branches, pine – – needles, large dead insects, etc..,
– checking that your eavestrough is working correctly:
– absence of leaks at the connections, births, along the entire length of the sections,
– no major obstruction,
– the hooks are securely fastened to the rafters (if necessary, tighten the screws), and the rails are securely fastened to the hooks (the gutter flanges may have shifted).

Essential steps for gutter cleaning

Step 1: Remove leaves from the gutter

Unfold the ladder along the façade, making sure it is stable and secure. Your ladder must protrude at least 1 meter from your gutter so that you can work comfortably and safely.

Take a trowel, bucket, and gloves with you.

Work either from the roof or from the ladder.

Clean the gutters of various residues: moss, leaves, soil…

If you need help with the trowel to take them off (without damaging your gutter) and put them in the bucket.

Lower all debris to the ground.

If you have a lot of trees in your garden, it can be useful to install a system to prevent leaves from accumulating in your eavestrough and make it easier to clean: gutter guard, toad, or leaf guard are convenient accessories.

Note: do not work on rainy and windy days to avoid slipping and falling off the ladder!

Step 2: Clean with a pressure washer

To clean your gutter:

– Unfold the hose so that you have enough length on the roof and can work efficiently.
– Climb up the ladder with the hose and clean the entire length of the gutter.
– Check the condition of the gutter utility hole and clean it if necessary.
– Also, remember to clean the downspout, which may be clogged.

Take this opportunity to check the condition of your installation: hooks, expansion joints, and gutter.

Repairs may be necessary if there are cracks, holes, or lack of stability.

Good to know: if your downspout is clogged, use a ferret to unclog it.

Cleaning a gutter: dedicated tools

There are all kinds of small tools on the market that make it easy to clean gutters quickly and efficiently:

– cylindrical brushes that scrape the inside of the frame,
– pliers with handle can be equipped with telescopic extension,
– gutter cleaners, brush, and scraper, to be mounted on a handle and to be used from the floor.

After gutter cleaning: taking note of the situation

The cleanup could have identified a few problems:

– pierced or cracked gutter,
– broken hook,
– faulty fitting gasket,
– Necklaces ripped off.

These repairs may require the intervention of a professional.

To avoid these complications, you can install gutter protection: gutter guard, gutter toad, or leaf guard.

Gutter cleaning: don’t forget about safety!

Your safety is paramount: working on gutters is a dangerous exercise that must be surrounded by precautions.

Here are a few safety essentials:

ScaffoldingIt provides a more comfortable and safer procedure, but moving it along the walls is a bit more restrictive.
Ladder– Distances: ◦ spaced from the wall by a distance corresponding to 4 times the height, ◦ must protrude more than one meter from your eavestrough to allow you to access the inside of your gutters without difficulty. – With a facade spacer that provides a small setback that is more comfortable to work with. – With non-slip feet.
—————————————————————————-
– Accessories: – a tool holder, a bucket hook: you keep the tools within reach, – a stabilizing foot: you ensure the stability of your ladder on uneven ground, – a ladder attachment on gutter: you hang on to the gutter without damage and avoid the ladder tipping sideways or backward.

Safety harness– If you intervene at a distance of more than 6 meters, this precaution is mandatory. – To be anchored in the wall or in the bottom of the roof with safety hooks. – It’s best to work in pairs to keep the lower end of the ladder while the other climbs. – Important: Beware of close proximity to electrical wires.
Gutter cleaning: for your safety

If Rain Gutter Cleaning, Rain Gutter Installation, Rain Gutter Repair, Commercial Rain Gutters, and Residential Rain Gutters are the things that matter to you at the moment, you can get in touch with CAG Solutions Corp. in Hialeah. They will make sure your gutters don’t let you down!

Remember to share your experience in the comment section below.