Gutters

[Vishenka69]

I'm too lazy to look for my original Clueless New Homeowner thread and it was getting way too out of control anyway.

Anyway, I've got a question about gutters. We had our house recently painted on the outside and the painter said that our gutters are pretty clogged. I haven't seen them and don't have a way to get up there, so I have to trust him on that. DH doesn't think it's worth having them cleaned now as they'll only get more clogged in the next month or so (foliage and all that). I think that if they're already full then adding more crap in them won't help and might worsen the situation. It's not expensive to get someone to do it, so I don't see why we can't do it twice if need be. Because of how the house is build it's not feasible for DH to do it himself.

Generally how do you know if your gutters have to be cleaned? Is it an annual thing?

We clean them annually in late fall after most of the leaves have fallen off the trees. Were the gutters cleaned last fall?

[Vishenka69]

I have no idea as we bought the house in December. Given that it was on the market at the time and all the other crap previous owners have neglected to do, I would say no.

Once a year should be enough (or is around here) but if it wasn't done last year and you have a lot of deciduous trees around, it might be worth it to do it twice. I think the gutters are too full if you see water coming over the edge of the gutter rather than running through it to the downspouts.

[SuzySunshine]

Once a year should be enough but ours are low enough that we can do them ourselves, we don't have to have them done. DH usually does them in early November which gets most of the leaves out but clears them out before the first bad ice/snow.

[migirl]

I *think* DH cleans our gutters twice a year (we have a few big trees in our yard, close to the house), we live in a ranch so it's pretty easy for him to get up on the ladder and do it himself.

I agree with Nellie, you'll be able to tell if they need to be cleaned if the water starts running over the edge of the gutter.

[fluffhead]

In our last house, if I didn't keep the front gutters absolutely clean, we'd get water in the basement. There was a magnolia which would dip its leaves in the gutter if not cut away from the house, and the water would run straight into this window well.
I'd say have them done. Though I'm not heeding that same advice for our current house - I can't get to any of the gutters here cause they're all like 40 feet high.

[Pollyanna]

Have them cleaned out, it will be way cheaper (even if you have it done more than once) than the problems clogged gutters can cause.

[DCJenn]

Definitely have them done now- because if you get a wierd snow/ice/freeze then you can get ice dams and those are soooo not fun to deal with. (Basically because the water has no place to go it backs up under the roof, freezes, expands, melts and next thing you know you've got a falling down ceiling. Happened at my parents house in one spot over and over again.

Jenn

[Vishenka69]

Thanks, I'll schedule someone soon. I definitely want to get them cleaned before the first freeze.