We all know that having your gutters cleaned out is needed. But often times, we fail to understand why they need to be cleaned out and how often they need to be cleaned out.
Today we are going to discuss what gutters are supposed to do and why they must be cleaned frequently.
What Gutters Do:
Gutters are not in place to just keep water off of your head. Gutters serve a very valuable service. When rain hits your roof and comes barreling down, it needs someplace to safely land. Your gutters are the ideal place. Gutters channel the rain water to specific locations and then release it to the ground.
By channeling the water away from the roof line, gutters protect the wood underneath your edges of your shingles, the wood under your eaves of your home (fascia) and it protects your siding as well. Not only that, making sure that you have gutters helps prevent top-soil erosionof the landscaping at the base of your home. When water is allowed to pool at the base of your home it can lead to foundation cracking and many other expensive repairs.
In short, gutters are in place to save the homeowner money!
Now that we know why we have gutters lets talk about what gets into those gutters.
What Gets Inside Your Gutters
For starters, you are always going to find leaves. But not just leaves, decomposing leaves that have mixed with dust and turned into a soggy muddy mess. You will find twigs, branches, pine needles, and other “tree matter.” You will also find, often time, weeds that have grown up in the gutters. If you have asphalt shingles you will also get a good bit of debris from them. Little hard pellets of shingles come off with the rain and find a nice home in your gutters.
With all of these items you can see why its so easy for them to get clogged.
The Recommended Gutter Cleaning Schedule
Now, all good things must come to an end and that includes clean gutters.The Recommended Gutter Cleaning Schedule is usually twice a year. Once in the spring time and once in the fall. Of course, this doesn’t apply to every customers.
If you don’t have any trees in your yard, or your neighbors yard then the odds are that you will not need this service done but once every year to two years. On the other hand, if you live in an established neighborhood with many trees you might need this service done once every three months. In this, and in most things, a little common sense comes into place.
Save Money Now
Now, for the home owner to realize the savings of having functioning gutters, the home owner must insure that his gutters are cleaned out at all times. Preventative maintenance can go a long way to insuring gutters stay clean. Here are some steps that can be taken to help lengthen the time between gutter cleanings:
- Trim all trees and bushes so that they are away from the home and the roof
- Install gutter guards (another post)
- Place a water hose at one end of the gutters to help flush out any small debris
Gutters that work properly save the home owner thousands of dollars in repair bills. Having your gutters cleaned properly is key to realizing these savings. For those that prefer to NOT climb on a ladder we is here to help.
To receive a free estimate for your gutter cleaning Get Your Quote Online Here.
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