Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Clean your gutters and live to talk about it

This Is A Hammer

Samantha Mazzotta King Features Syndicate

Last week, we learned about clearing debris from the rooftop and noting damage to be taken care of. This week, let’s go into more detail about the gutter system — a critical component of a healthy roof and a healthy house.

Gutter dams — buildups of leaves, twigs, nests and other debris in one or more spots along a gutter run — can cause a lot of damage to the gutter, and left unchecked, can cause problems in other parts of the house. For example, water spilling over the top of a gutter or through a torn gutter seam can cause leaks or cracks in the foundation directly beneath that spot, in a much shorter time that one can imagine.

So inspecting and cleaning the gutter system twice a year — spring and fall — is important. You can do some of this inspection from the rooftop, but for a more thorough look, set up a ladder (with a helper on the ground to brace the ladder and to take notes for you) and move along the run.

To clean the gutters, wear sturdy work gloves and carry a couple of tools in your belt — particularly a long screwdriver or sturdy rod to break up stubborn dams. Once these debris piles are loosened up with a long tool (which also scares off any critters that might be nesting in said debris pile), grab the debris and throw them down to the ground.

Once all these dams are cleared away, take the garden hose up with you, set it at the highest end of the run, and have your helper turn the water on full force. The water will wash remaining leaves and debris to the top of the downspout, where they will pile up on the downspout screen — from which you can remove them. The water flow also will reveal leaks in the gutter system that can be patched up after the cleaning is complete.

Most leaks appear at the seams where sections of the gutter run meet up. (This is also where most dams tend to build up, as there is a little lip at the seam on which debris can get caught.) Loose seams can be reconnected fairly quickly by drilling a new hole through the upper side of the gutter sections where they overlap, and inserting a screw and washer (with the head inside the gutter and the screw protruding outside it), tightening with a wingnut.

Gutter sections with rips or holes in the middle, rather than the seams, should be replaced if possible. If a hole is not too big, however, it can be patched using a gutter patch kit.

Home Tip: Newer gutter systems sometimes come with, or have available, patching or replacement kits. Check with the gutter manufacturer or at a home-improvement store.

Send questions or home-repair tips to homeguru2000@hotmail.com, or write This Is a Hammer, c/o King Features Weekly Service, P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475.