Family Handyman

Winterize Your Gutters

When gutters fill with leaves, sticks and other debris, this can cause clogs and result in water creeping under the roof and sometimes, into the foundation. Clogged gutters can also lead to ice dams in the winter. That’s why it’s important to be cleaning out your gutters every so often.

The Best Way to Clean Your Gutters:

An old plastic spatula makes a great tool for cleaning debris from gutters! It doesn’t scratch up the gutter, and you can cut it to fit gutter contours with snips. Grime wipes right off the spatula too, making cleanup a breeze. Your plumber’s snake is a great tool for pulling clumps of wet leaves out of clogged downspouts.

Don’t feel like putting in that much elbow grease? Consider a gutter cleaning robot.

How Often Should You Clean Your Gutters:

You should clean your gutters at a minimum of once a year and you should do it more often if you have overhanging trees and after a big storm.

Make Cleanup Easier:

To make cleanup easier, spread a tarp underneath your workspace to collect all the gutter gunk and protect your lawn and landscaping. Once you’ve removed the debris from the gutters, use a garden hose to flush the gutters and downspouts and clear out any remaining debris. This will also show you if you have any leaks. Need to replace your gutters? Here’s how to install them.

Set aside some time now to complete these simple fall maintenance tasks so you can rest easy, knowing you’re prepared.

Check out our five favorite gutter cleaning tools: