Guide to Gutter Cleaning: You Can Do it Yourself

There are a number of reasons you should clean your gutters and downspouts on a regular basis. The main reason to clean your gutters is to prevent damage to your home. Clogged gutters can cause water damage through leaks in the roof and flooding through the walls or the home's foundation.

Cleaning gutters isn't hard. Here is what you should do if you're planning to clean your gutters yourself:

You should check your gutters and downspouts twice a year with the best times being the spring and the fall. If you live in an area that gets frequent rainfall, clean them more often.

Gather your gutter cleaning tools. Some of these gutter cleaning tools you may already own and you may have to purchase some and borrow other items. The items you'll need for gutter cleaning are: a tall ladder, gloves, trash bags or s-hook and bucket, garden trowel, a garden hose with an attached sprayer and plumber's snake.

Locate your starting point. The ideal place to start to clean your gutters is in one corner of your house since you're more likely to find a downspout there. You should start at the downspout and work away from it. Once you've pinpointed where you're going to start, gather your gutter cleaning tools at that location so that you can focus on what you're doing and work swiftly.

Set up the ladder. Now you're ready to set up your ladder against your house. Make sure you set the ladder on level footing for your safety. When cleaning gutters you can attach either a bucket to your ladder or a trash bag to collect the leaves and other debris from the gutters. Make sure you put on gloves before you get started. You never know what debris you'll find while cleaning gutters and you'll want to keep your hands protected.

As I suggested earlier start cleaning gutters in a corner close to the downspout. Using your garden trowel remove the debris and put it in the trash bag or bucket. You can use your gloved hand to get out the more difficult pieces.

When all the large debris has been removed you can rinse the rest away with a garden hose with attached sprayer. You'll want to rinse the debris in the gutter toward the downspout.

Work your way around your house until you've cleaned all of your gutters. If you run into any clogged areas you can use a hose to loosen up debris or use a plumbers snake on the downspout.

Look for damage while you work. If you find holes and cracks during gutter cleaning you'll want to repair them as soon as you can to maintain the integrity of your gutters.

Work your way around your home until you've cleaned all of your gutters. If you run into any clogged areas you can use a hose to loosen up debris or use a plumbers snake on the downspout.

Look for damage while you work. If you find holes and cracks in your gutters as you clean you'll want to repair them as soon as you can to maintain the integrity of your gutters.