Forgot To Clean Your Gutters Last Winter? Do It Now!

Posted: 03/22/18 - Category: Eavestroughs & Gutters

If you have been putting off cleaning your gutters, or if you forgot about cleaning them last year now is the perfect time to get them cleaned. Getting your eavestroughs cleaned is an important part of home maintenance and it needs to be done regularly. If you don’t get them cleaned out regularly you can end up with serious damage to your home as a result of backed up water and debris. If it’s been a very long time since you had your gutters or eavestroughs cleaned there may even be rodents or pests living in them.

Why Eavestroughs Are So Important

You probably don’t think about your gutters that often. But they are a very important part of your home and when they aren’t functional because they are clogged you could end up with serious damage to your home. Eavestroughs are designed to keep moisture from leaking into the walls of your home and to keep water from collecting on the roof.

If water collects on the roof it can end up damaging your roof or even causing the roof to leak. Melted snow and heavy rains can cause a lot of water to pool on the roof and eventually that weight can cause your roof to fail. The standing water on the roof is also filled with bacteria and mould spores. When water sits on the roof in the hot sun it can cause that bacteria and mould to grow rapidly. Eventually that bacteria can eat right through your roof and get into your home. Eavestroughs are designed to pull that water off your roof and keep water from damaging the roof and the sides of your home.

Gutters also protect the lower part of your home. By directing all that water away from the foundation of your home the eavestroughs help prevent serious damage to the foundation of your home. If water gets inside the basement or the foundation of the home it can cause leaks and cracks. And over time it can actually crack the foundation of your home and cause your home to shift.

So even though the eavestroughs aren’t what people think of when they think of a vital component of their home the gutters are extremely important. And it’s very important that they are kept clean because they can’t do the job they are they to do when they are clogged.

Over the course of the seasons all the dirt, branches, and other items that are blown against your house collect in the gutters. So does rainwater and melted snow and ice. And if you have trees near the home you can end up with gutters that are choked with leaves during the fall.

Many homeowners put off cleaning the gutters because it’s a dirty and fairly unpleasant task. It can even be dangerous. And it takes a lot of time. Definitely not the way that homeowners want to spend their free time. But they need to be cleaned. Hiring a professional to clean your eavestroughs solves the problem because it will give you the clean and functional gutters you need but you don’t have to give up your free time or risk your health and safety to do it.

It’s best to hire professionals to clean your gutters because professionals have the right equipment to get the job done. No matter what is clogging up your eavestroughs they can get it loose and clear your gutters out so that they can function the way they are supposed to. Professionals are also used to working on tall ladders and they can safely maneuver at great heights to clean out even the highest gutters.

Professional who have years of experience cleaning eavestroughs do more than just clean all the crud out of your gutters. They will look over every inch of your gutters to look for places where the gutters are cracked, weak, or about to break. They will tell you if there are any spots where the gutters need to be fixed or replaced so that you can get them fixed before they fail and start causing water leaks into your home. The professionals that are cleaning your gutters will also be checking your siding and windows for signs of damage. So when you have a professional come and clean the eavestroughs for you they are doing a lot more than just cleaning out gutters. They can alert you to signs of damage on the exterior of your home so that you can save thousands of dollars in emergency home repair costs later on.

Pests

No one wants to think about pests or rodents living in their home. But it does happen. Insects like bees and wasps often build nests in gutters or near gutters. And mice, squirrels and other pests can also set up a home in the gutters as a way to shelter themselves from bad weather. So if you have noticed signs of pests or rodents in your eavestroughs the best thing you can do is call a professional who can get rid of the nests and clean out the gutters so that the pests won’t return and start living in your gutters again.

Now Is The Time

So if it’s been a long time since you cleaned the gutters or had them cleaned don’t wait to get them cleaned. Springtime is the best time to clean them or have them cleaned. You can make it an annual part of your spring cleaning to have professionals come and clean the gutters. That way you will be sure that your gutters and the exterior of your home are in good shape for the coming year. It’s a smart idea to make a standing appointment to have the eavestroughs cleaned during the same month each year so that you won’t have to think about it over the winter. Have them cleaned and then set up an appointment to have them cleaned on the same day the next year.