TOP 20 FAQs for Gutter Cleaning In Sacramento Ca

1)How important is gutter cleaning?
Few home maintenance tasks are more important than routine gutter cleaning. From preventing wood rot, mold, and water leaks to helping to keep pests in check and protecting expensive landscaping, gutter cleaning has many benefits when done correctly. Gutter cleaning is a preventative maintenance chore that must be done before there is a problem. Gutter cleaning also improves the appearance of your home and can help prolong the life of your roof, home exterior surfaces, decks, sidewalks, and more.

2)How often should I have my gutters cleaned out?
Gutter cleaning is a preventative maintenance task meaning it has to be done before there is a problem in order to be effective. The best times of the year to have gutter cleaning done would be when there are large amounts of debris such as seeds, flowers, leaves, and branches that could fall and enter the gutters. So generally in the spring and fall or twice a year. Your home may require gutter cleaning more often due to the amount of overhanging trees, wind, or other reasons.

3)What clogs my gutters?
Anything that enters your gutters can potentially clog them. It does not take many leaves, branches, catkins (spring tree pollen), or the occasional children’s toy to clog your gutters. Birds nests, baseballs, broken roof shingles and tiles, metal flashings, dead animals, and soda cans all seem to find their way into gutters and they all can cause a clog. Anything that is larger than the gutter channel (typically 5 to 6 inches wide) or that can get caught on gutter guards, screens, or attachment brackets is going to cause a clog.

4)What can I do about black streaks on gutters?
Black streaks on the outer surface of your gutters are evidence that at some time the gutter overflowed. The streaks are caused by the residue of the roof surface shingles or adhesive being splashed over the side of the gutter when it overflowed. The gutter may have overflowed because of a particularly heavy amount of rainfall in a very short period of time but more than likely it is because the gutter is clogged which is causing it to overflow.

5)How long does gutter cleaning take?
The amount of time it takes or professional gutter cleaning varies depending on a number of factors. Normally, a 1500 square foot home with a typical gutter and downspout arrangement can be cleaned in about two hours. The length of gutters, the height of the home, and obstacles such as decks and landscaping can all make the process take longer. A two-story home with a back patio and landscaping that must be worked around could take four hours or more to clean properly and to tidy up after.

6)How much does gutter cleaning cost?
The cost of gutter cleaning depends on the length of the gutters in total feet, the height of the home, how long it has been since the gutters were last cleaned, and if there are guards or screens installed. A good starting point for estimating is $1 - $2 per linear foot of gutters and a normal 1,500 square foot single level home will have approximately 150 linear feet of gutters installed. Clearing (but not disassembly) of downspouts and normal fastener tightening is typically included.

7)Does gutter cleaning include cleaning downspouts?
Normal gutter cleaning includes clearing downspouts of “soft” obstructions that do not require disassembly of the downspout. Downspouts that have hard blocks or obstructions caused by leaves, toys, or other items may require disassembly in order to clear them. Obviously this takes crews more time to accomplish and does factor into the overall cost of the job. Downspout attachments and light dents can often be taken care of at the same time as when the gutter cleaning is performed.

8)How often should you clean gutters with gutter guards?
Gutter guards do offer some protection from large objects falling into the gutter channels. But this does not lessen the need for regular professional gutter cleaning. Roof grit, catkins (spring tree pollen), and leaves can all still make their way into the gutter channels and cause clogs. And while it does take longer and cost a bit more, it is worth the expense to have gutters with guards regularly cleaned.

9)Do gutters with gutter guards need to be cleaned?
Simply put - yes. Gutter guards do offer some protection from large objects like branches and toys from falling into the gutter channels assuming the screens are secure and in good condition. Things like roof grit, small branches, seeds, catkins (spring tree pollen), and airborne dirt will all still make their way into your gutters and will eventually need to be cleaned out to prevent clogs. Gutters with guards or screens that are damaged or loose will create an immediate obstruction that will cause clogs, overflowing and damage.

10)How do you clean gutters with guards on them?
Gutters with guards or screens installed must have them temporarily removed in order to clean the gutter channels. In order to do this, the technician must access the gutters from above (either from the roof or ladder) and manually remove them from the gutters. They must be replaced again into the same position after the cleaning is done to ensure the proper fit.

11)What to spray on gutters to clean?
A number of products are sold claiming to remove black streaks from the exterior of gutters. Many work just fine for the purpose. The black streaks will not be eliminated if water continues to overflow the gutters carrying roof adhesive with it, which is what causes the black streaks. Professional gutter cleaning can take care of the clog and the homeowner may want to invest in the additional expense of having the black streaks removed. Often the stains cannot be removed and the gutters will have to be painted to cover the staining.

12)Are gutter guards bad?
Gutter guards and screens are not “bad” necessarily but they do cause homeowners to think that they can just forget about their gutters and gutter cleaning forever. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Gutters are crucial to keeping a home dry, free of a number of problems, and looking good. Ignoring gutter maintenance because screens or guards have been installed is a mistake that can be very, very costly to the homeowner.

13)How do you clean gutters without removing gutter guards?
You cannot. Gutter guards and screens keep things in as much as they keep things out of your gutters. Running water into the gutters or trying to blow the material out with a leaf blower will actually cause more clogging instead of removing debris.

14)What month should you clean gutters?
Spring and fall are the two times of the year when gutter cleaning is crucial because of the amount of material that typically falls into the gutters during those seasons. In the northern states, this equates to April to June for spring and September to November for fall. In the southern states, March to May for spring and October to early December for fall. Cleaning gutters too early in the season can miss the largest amounts of spring catkin or fall leaves, however.

15)What happens if gutters are not cleaned?
When gutters are not cleaned, meaning that debris like leaves, branches, and other objects are not removed from the interior of the gutter channels, clogs or blockages form. These clogs prevent rainwater from flowing through the channels, into the downspouts, and safely away from your home. The rainwater backs up and overflows the gutters and can cause wood rot, paint damage, leaks, cracks, erosion, plants to drown, as well as damage to sidewalks, decks, and patios. Clogged gutters also attract rodents and pests and are more likely to become damaged themselves due to the weight of the trapped water.

16)Do any gutter guards really work?
Gutter guards do prevent large items like branches and toys from entering gutter channels if they are installed correctly and are in good repair. They do not prevent all debris from entering gutters and therefore are not a guaranteed way to prevent gutter clogs. Oftentimes, obstructions like leaves simply get caught on top of the gutter guard preventing rainwater from even entering the gutter which makes the gutters useless for carrying water safely away from your home as they were designed to do.

17)Are gutter guards a waste of money?
It is hard to say that they are a “waste” of money as they do provide a way to prevent large debris like branches and leaves from falling into the gutters assuming they are installed correctly and are in good repair. It is up to the individual homeowner to decide if it is worth the investment compared to the relatively low price of regular gutter cleaning. A homeowner can typically have their gutters professionally cleaned twice a year for five years for the same price as a modest gutter guard system.

18)How do you know if your gutters need cleaning?
If rainwater is actively overflowing your gutters when it rains you know there is a clog and that your gutters need to be professionally cleaned. Large puddles of water near your home’s foundation after rain can also mean that your gutters are clogged and overflowing. Black streaks on the outside surface of the gutters also indicate that water has overflowed and gutter cleaning is in order. Lastly, noticing large amounts of pests like rodents, mosquitos, birds, and wasps near the gutters can mean that water is trapped in the gutters due to a clog.

19)How do you clean gutters without a ladder?
Gutters cannot be effectively cleaned from the ground using a vacuum or blower attachment. Gutters must be cleaned from above or at the same height in order to be able to access the gutter channels correctly to clean them. Professional gutter cleaning is always done from ladders and from the roof surface itself.

20)Is using a ladder Safe For Gutter Cleaning?
According to the National Safety Council, ladder falls are the top cause of non-fatal home injuries and the third leading cause of injury-related deaths. Cleaning gutters correctly requires climbing and/or working on a ladder. Given the above, and the possibility that many home insurance policies do not cover the homeowner for a fall, homeowners should consider avoiding the risk involved with gutter cleaning. Professional gutter cleaners have the correct ladders and are trained to work on them safely when performing gutter cleaning services.

21)Will gutter cleaning help prevent ice dams from forming on my roof?
Homes with gutters that experience freezing winter temperatures can also experience “ice dams” where melting snow on the roof refreezes at the very edge of the roof. This causes water to accumulate behind the dam and weight on the roof edge. The trapped moisture can enter the home in a number of ways, causing mold and mildew as well as water rot and damage. Gutters that are clogged with water will also freeze creating colder temperatures near the roof edge that helps cause ice dams in the first place. Anything that clogs or prevents water from being carried away from the roof only adds to the problem.