How to Prevent Gutter Clogs…
Why is it that you want to know how to prevent gutter clogs?
You didn’t let your gutters clog up again did you??
Dang these cheeky gutters!
They’re always looking for attention…
Just like kids, hey?
And wouldn’t you know it, that’s exactly how you prevent gutter clogs…
You need to give them attention by cleaning them out every 6 to 12 months…
But if you live in a really leafy suburb, you might need to clean your gutters a few times a year…
Because regularly cleaning your gutters is exactly how you prevent gutter clogs…
Who would have thought!!
I am being a little bit cheeky…
I know it can be a real pain cleaning your gutters every 2 months…
Who wants to do that??
So let’s see if I can show you some other ways to help prevent those gutters from clogging…
Let’s see…
Oh I know…
A Great Way to Prevent Gutter Clogs is to Trim Overhanging Trees…
Do you see this madness here??
This is one of the worst culprits for clogging up your gutters…
That tree will be there all day every day just dropping leaves straight into your gutters…
You can clean all you like but your gutter will clog up again in a matter of days…
I will gladly come and clean your gutters every 2 days if you like??
That’ll be $350 thanks…
See you again tomorrow??
Na didn’t think so…
Ok, you could just get your overhanging trees trimmed back…
That’s probably a much better long term solution…
You’re welcome, thanks for coming…
What’s that?
You trimmed your trees back but they’re still getting clogged??
Oh, I know what you could do…
Install downpipe filters…
If you read my article on how gutters get clogged, you’ll know that a blocked downspout is usually the culprit…
So here’s a really cheap way to stop your gutters from blocking up…
You can buy a brush gutter guard and install them over your downspouts like this…
These things are pretty good…
They'll allow the water to travel through but they’ll stop all of the leaves from clogging up your downspout…
You only need to install them over your downpipes…
Most companies sell them in packs of 24 or 48 pieces, but you can get them individually from Bunnings…
You could also try something like this mesh strainer…
It works pretty much the same…
Pop it in the top of your downspout and you’re good to go…
And in all honesty, you could always just roll up a piece of bird mesh wire and sit it just inside the top of your downpipe…
The thing is, leaves will still eventually build up behind the downspout filter but your downspouts will stay clear…
You’ll just need to clean the leaves out of your gutters as they build up…
I know, I know!!
You don't want to be doing all of this gutter cleaning…
Well, there is one other method you could use…
You could install gutter guards…
Now I don’t recommend gutter guard for everyone…
In most cases, gutter guards can be more trouble than they’re worth…
But if you have a situation where your gutters keep getting clogged up every couple of weeks then this could be the best option for you…
You could install a gutter guard system like this one…
It is pretty pricey to get this stuff installed but once it’s in, it will keep the leaves out of your gutters…
Here’s the thing…
If you think you’ll install a gutter guard and you can leave your gutters, then think again…
Have a look at this little situation here…
I see this all the time with gutter guards…
Dirt and soil actually filters through the top of the gutters guards and guess what happens next??
That’s right…
They fill your gutters up with high quality top soil and your gutters get clogged…
Then you have to call me out and I charge double the normal price to clean your gutters because I have to remove the gutter guards…
I’ve got a much better idea…
How to Maintain Your Gutter Guards so Your Gutters Don't Clog up and Your Bank Balance Stays Healthy…
I can’t believe I’m telling you how to steal the food right out of my mouth…
This is how I make my living, so if I tell you all my secrets, how will I feed my family??
Ahh, it’s all good…
I need to go on a diet anyway…
Let’s save you some money…
So my dear friend…
If you have gutter guards and you want to prevent your gutters from clogging, here’s what you need to do…
You can get yourself a leaf blower like this…
And attached a blower kit like this…
Don’t get caught out with this though, you’ll also need to get this nozzle adapter to make the kit and blower fit together…
Put it all together and then walk around and blow all the leaves off so they can’t damage your roof or mulch up and fill your gutters with dirt…
In all honesty, you can get cheaper options out there but you get what you pay for…
This is Makita…
It’s a trade quality tool so it's a lot better than the cheaper options…
Trust me…
You don’t want to go cheap with these tools if you want the job done properly…
Next you want to get yourself one of these pressure washer extension lance…
You’ll also want to pair this up with a pressure washer like this…
This is the beast that I use…
It has a Honda engine and it’s rated for commercial use…
But you don’t have to spend over $1000 like I did…
You can definitely get a $400 dollar pressure washer like this one and it would be great if you don't use it all day, every day…
The only thing you might have trouble with is connecting your extension wand to your pressure hose…
My Sabre washer above has this connection…
Whereas the extension lance has this quick connection…
If you run into this situation you can always purchase adapters like these to make it fit…
Now you should be good to go…
Then walk around and flush the gutter out right through the top of the gutter guards…
This will flush away any soil that filters through the guards so it won’t have a chance to build up…
And that my friend is how you prevent clogged gutters when you have gutter guards installed…
You’re welcome…
Now we’ve come to…
The Very Important… Gutter Clogs Wrap Up…
Honestly, the best way to prevent gutter clogs is to keep them clean…
You can clean them once every 12 months for most homes, whereas others will need it every 6 months…
And don’t forget…
If you go down the gutter guard route, they can still clog up so spray them out from the top every 3 to 6 months…
If you don’t you’ll need to take out a small loan to get them cleaned…
Aside from cleaning your gutters, make sure you trim back any overhanging trees…
The gutters that clog up the quickest are from home with overhanging trees…
That’s pretty much all there is to it…
Hope you got some great value from this article…
I’ll see you next time…
Peace,
Jason…
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