Fall is the time of year when all of your leaves shed from nearby trees and tend to find their way into your gutter system which is designed to redirect drainage from your roof away from the structure of your home. Clogged or improper gutter drainage can have a very bay impact on the structure of your home, causing costly damages if not properly cleaned or maintained.

Many residents who routinely clean their gutters (spring and fall) recommend to wait until majority of your leaves have fallen, yet before snowfall to take on the task. Although, waiting too late into the fall is not a good idea, and doing the job too early will seem pointless after the leaves really begin to fall. When you decide that it is the perfect time to remove leaves or other debris that have accumulated over the spring and summer, here are some helpful tips to ensure that the job is done properly.

Gather what you will need.

Ensuring that you have everything ready to clean out your gutters will allow you to get the job done without having to stop because you don’t have all of the tools. Here is what you will need to clean the gutters on your Michigan home:

• Ladder
• Gloves
• Small hand rake
• Bucket or recycled shopping bags
• Hose

Removing accumulated debris

Starting near your downspout, prepare you ladder approximately one foot from the edge of your gutter. With your bags in your back pocket, and your trowel or small hand rake in your hand climb the ladder. You will want to get high enough so you can see into your gutter system. Using your trowel pull debris away from your down spout creating small piles of debris within your gutter. One handful at a time remove the debris and dispose of in your bag or bucket. It is very important, especially starting the job, that you pull debris away from your down spout, if too much gets in the downspout it can cause blockage which is another annoying task in itself. Eliminate the possibility of having to unclog your downspout by properly cleaning your gutters.

After you have completed a small section of your gutters, climb down and move the ladder a foot or two down.

Cleaning the outside of your gutter.

It may not seem like an important part of the job, but cleaning the outside of your gutter is just as important. If you see build of of what appears to be dirt, you will want to ensure that you wipe it down as well. More often than not this is actually accumulate resin from your shingles which adds quite a bit of weight to your gutters when it gets wet.

Finishing the job.

So, you have finally made your way around your entire home, removing all of the dirt or debris that have filled your gutters. At this point you will want to run your hose through your gutter system flushing out small debris that you may have missed with your hands. Running your hose through your gutter system will also pinpoint if your downspout has been clogged and ensure that the gutters are properly diverging water from your homes structure.

If it appears that your gutter system is failing, contact us and we will come check it out, and let you know if it is time to replace your gutter system to benefit your Michigan home.