Learn How to Keep your Gutters Clean

May 29, 2015

Kelly Thiede

“Cleaning out the gutters can be a tedious task and even dangerous for those who are uncomfortable with heights or climbing ladders,” says Steve Carpenter-Israel, Broker and President of a Buyer’s Edge, a buyer brokerage real estate company in the Washington, DC Metro area. To help make this task more manageable we suggest using gutter liners. Gutter liners are a great way to simplify the task of cleaning out gutters. They are a cost effective way to gutter maintenance and are available at any Home Depot. Gutter liners are effective because leaves and other debris lay on top of the liner instead of gathering in the gutter, which enables them to blow off the gutters naturally. During heavy rainfall, clogged downspouts can become overwhelmed by the high volume of water making excess water spill over the tops of the gutters, resulting in water leaking down the sides of the home. Common outcomes of water leakage are mold and water damage, usually found in the basements of homes. Gutter liners lower the amount of build up and blockage in gutters, and assist in creating proper water flow out of the downspouts.

Gutter liners will not completely eliminate gutter maintenance, but will significantly decrease the amount of gutter maintenance for a homeowner, hopefully making their lives a little bit easier. Some additional benefits of using gutter liners are: they can be installed into existing gutters, they diminish the need to clean gutters frequently, and they help reduce rust and rotting by keeping out extra moisture and debris.

“If you have water in your basement the first thing you should check is your gutters and downspouts. Clogged gutters and downspouts can lead to damaged trim and many other water infiltration issues. If your home has trees that overhang your roof it is very hard to keep up with the maintenance required to keep your gutter clean. There are many good products available that cap or fill the gutter to keep out leaves and debris.” advises George Thiede, Co-President of Bethesda Contracting, a home renovation firm that provides superior craftsmanship and good value in suburban Maryland and DC

At Buyer’s Edge, we hope to give tips that are useful and beneficial for homeowners, and make tedious tasks a little more bearable.