How to Clean Gutters

Now that winter is over, and we’re all thinking about spring cleaning, it’s time to get the ladder out and clean out some of the gunk that has collected in the gutters this winter.  I’m going to warn you, it’s not a very glamorous or appealing chore, but it is one of those nasty realities of home ownership.

Here’s a couple of steps to making sure it is an painless {though, I can’t really help you with the gross factor} as possible:

1. Start by donning a pair of thick gloves and hauling out the ladder.  You will need to manually remove large bits of debris {usually leaves} from the gutter.  These wet gobs of goo are awesome additions to the compost pile, so don’t toss them.  I’m not going to lie, this part always kind of scares me because a friend of mine found a dead mouse in her gutters once.  I’m not really that squeamish, but grabbing hold of a dead rotting mouse carcass is just gross.
2. After you have pulled out all of the debris, grab a hose and rinse the gutters out.  As you do, watch for any leaks in the gutter.  You may just need to caulk some of the seams if you find leak.  Also, watch to make sure the water travels easily down the downspout of the gutter.  If it doesn’t, you probably have some sort of clog in the downspout that you will need to address.  Good luck with that.
3. Once they are sparkly clean {ish}, inspect the gutters visually {I feel like I should be wearing a tool belt when I say that.  Ha!}.  Look to make sure the gutter spikes go all the way through to the house.  They tend to work their way loose after a bit, which left unfixed, can cause your gutter to completely come down from the house.  I’m not an expert here, but I am going to say that’s probably not good.

Now get out there and get your home maintenance on!

~ Mavis