Last chance to clean your rain gutters

Only two more days until winter is officially underway. But unless you live in Hawaii or Florida, you’ve already experienced some winter weather. However, it’s not too late to do some last minute winter preparation for your roof. Consider this your last warning though before the worst of the winter weather hits. One aspect of your roofing system that’s often overlooked is your rain gutters. Unfortunately, you can’t see the debris clogging your rain gutters from the ground. As a result, you may unknowingly be setting yourself up for disaster.

What’s the worst that can happen?

If you think ignoring your rain gutters for a few months is no big deal, think again. Letting your rain gutters remain clogged through the winter could cause a number of problems many of which are quite serious and costly. Keep in mind that when your rain gutters become clogged, the rain water can’t make it through the downspouts and away from your home. Instead, water spills over and can end up damaging the foundation of your home. Not exactly a quick fix. If you have a basement, the water could end up leaking into it. Water with nowhere to go may also end up seeping into the wood that the rain gutters connect to. Rotting wood in turn may attract termites and other pesky insects. All of these long term and expensive problems can be avoided simply by having your rain gutters cleared.

Hire or DIY?

Though cleaning your rain gutters is certainly a task you can do by yourself, hiring a professional is always a good option. A roofing company will have the right training and equipment to do the job safely and efficiently. If you do decide to do the job yourself, take precautions to stay safe. If your roof is slippery or very steep, it’s probably best to work from a ladder rather than trying to stand on your roof. Though it is more tedious, it’s better than risking serious injury.

While you’re at it

Since you’re already working on cleaning out your rain gutters, you’ll want to watch for a few other things as well. Over time, sections of your rain gutters can pull loose, especially when weighed down by debris. Also, your rain gutters can become corroded. Corroded rain gutters should be replaced and loose sections, securely fastened.
Remember that it only takes a little debris to block your rain gutter. If you haven’t checked them recently, make sure to do it soon before winter is in full swing.

Home improvement news brought to you by bartonroof.com

Source:
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I hope it warms up enough to clear the small amount of debris left in my gutters.  

We have small plastic  devices like an inverted onion that stand proud of the down pipe when inserted neck down .they are made like a cake cooling tray wiring being full of holes to let rain water through but to hold back the leaves.

 Most new builds places have a strip off a roll  of highly perforated semi rigid plastic screen that runs the length of the gutters , it's nailed in place before the last couple of rows of tiles /shingles are laid in place  & clips on to the guttering front lip . Whilst the rain brings everything down off the roof on to the separator the leaves are simply blown away by the wind as & when it arrives or if it is a major downpour a small amount of rain washes the leafs off the screen..
 
Being in a bungalow I can use my pressure washer with a retractable 15 mtr ( 50 feet ?) high pressure hose and a pair of step ladders to clean the gutters in three ascents of the ladder by  pointing the rotating  spray cone down the gutter .. it simply blows all the crud out of the gutter by the force of the rotating spray cone.


 A few months ago I saw a similar device being used by contractors standing on the ground
  the water to clean a three story block of apartment guttering   .

 The jet was angled back into a cone glued a 2 inch dia rigid carbon fibre pipe set which was plumbed via a rigid hose pipe  into the back of a truck where an engine driven pressure pump and vacuum recovery unit were housed .
 
 When triggered the jet head  in the gutter blew all the crud back into the suction hose cone and everything was pulled back into the truck's water recovery unit.   It was interesting to see for I don't think any of the passing pedestrians had any inkling of what was happening some  30 feet above their heads. They  just muttered about having to walk around the cordoned off safety zone area.

plantoid wrote:
 
 When triggered the jet head  in the gutter blew all the crud back into the suction hose cone and everything was pulled back into the truck's water recovery unit.   It was interesting to see for I don't think any of the passing pedestrians had any inkling of what was happening some  30 feet above their heads. They  just muttered about having to walk around the cordoned off safety zone area.

Just imagine the muttering that would have taken place if they had been showered with all the gutter muck instead!   

GG

For 40 years I have been putting up a 36 ft X ladder, cleaned my gutters twice a year.
NO more, I had a local contractor come in and install a system similar to Gutter Helmet.
Allows rain the drop in the gutter, and leaves go over the top.
Only 1 season so I cannot comment. Looks good and seems to do the job it's designed for.I'll still use my 6 & 8 foot ladders, however no more way up...