You know how important it is to install gutters on your home. Having gutters makes it much less likely that you’ll have issues with pooling water.
Without gutters, you might have to deal with water damage and other issues. Thankfully, it’s easy to get gutters installed professionally without spending too much cash.
You do need to maintain the gutters to keep them working properly. This means cleaning the gutters a few times per year.
If you don’t do this, the gutters are going to get clogged with debris. Leaves will get in the gutters and it’ll block things up so that the water can’t flow toward the downspout as intended.
Normally, people climb ladders and clean the gutters by reaching and manually grabbing the leaves out. They then throw the leaves down toward the ground for later disposal.
Some are too nervous to do this, though. If you’re afraid of heights, climbing a ladder might not be something you’re keen to do.
Is there a good way to clean your gutters while keeping your feet firmly planted on the ground? Keep reading to learn everything that you need to know.
How to Tell if Gutters Are Clogged?
You can tell that your gutters are clogged when you see water pooling. Often, you’ll notice water pooling or you’ll see water flowing over the sides of the gutters during a rainstorm.
Can a Clogged Gutter Cause a Roof Leak?
Clogged gutters can cause damage to your roof. If water pools on the roof, it can damage the roof.
This damage might eventually lead to issues with roof leaks. It will likely take time for a roof leak to occur, though.
Do Larger Gutters Clog Less?
Larger gutters won’t clog as easily because there’s more room. Water can more easily flow if the gutters aren’t too narrow.
So there is some benefit to buying larger gutters and larger downspouts. However, these gutters can still become clogged and you must keep them clean.
Use a Special Tool to Clean Gutters From the Ground
Using a special tool is one of the best ways to clean the gutters from the ground. You can buy tools and various attachments that will allow you to reach the gutters while staying on the ground.
There are telescoping gutter cleaning tools on the market that work rather well. These tools can extend and this allows you to use them to remove debris from the gutters.
You don’t need to climb the ladder to reach the gutters when you have a long tool such as this. For many, this will be a safer option than climbing a ladder.
Of course, it can sometimes be hard to get every single piece of debris that’s stuck in the gutters. This is why you don’t simply use the claw tool or brush.
Often, these tools will come with hose attachments as well. So you can reach up and spray water through the gutters in an effort to dislodge stubborn leaves that have become stuck.
Overall, this is a good way to solve your problems with blocked gutters. You can turn things around even if you don’t like getting on top of ladders.
Using Hose Attachments
There are hose attachments that can connect to your normal garden hose. Using a hose attachment to clean the gutters is a good idea.
Typically, these hose attachments will come in the form of a tube that has a curved end. The tube is stiff and you can maneuver it where you need it to go.
If you have a good hose attachment you can blast the leaves and other types of debris away from the gutters. It’s easy enough to stand on the ground and put the hose where you need it to be.
Admittedly, you can’t be as precise when cleaning the gutters in this fashion. Also, it might get messier than it would if you simply climbed a ladder and removed the debris manually.
If this isn’t a problem, you can happily buy a hose attachment and get to work cleaning your gutters. It might be wise to lay down some protection on the grass first, though.
You can put tarps down on the grass near your home. The debris that falls down will hit the tarps instead of falling on your grass or in your garden beds.
It simply makes the cleanup process a lot easier. You don’t need to do this if you don’t want to, but it will help you out when your goal is to keep things looking tidy.
Using a Wet/Dry Vacuum
Some people use wet/dry vacuums to clean their gutters. This is a different idea, but it does work rather well.
You can use a curved attachment to clean the gutters. This works much the same way as attaching something to your garden hose.
The difference is that you’re attaching something to your wet/dry vacuum and using it to suck the debris out of the gutters. You vacuum up all of the leaves and other types of debris.
These types of vacuums do an excellent job of getting rid of debris like this. It should allow you to completely remove the blockage from the gutters so long as you’re thorough.
To get good results, go along the gutters and ensure that you vacuum out each section. You can do this while standing on the ground, but you need to go slowly to ensure that you don’t skip over sections of the gutters.
Of course, the downside is that you can’t see the inside of the gutters when you don’t climb a ladder. So you’ll just have to trust that you’re getting everything properly unless you want to climb a ladder to check.
Use a Power Washer
Using a power washer to clean the gutters is almost the same as using a garden hose. You might not have an attachment for your hose that will work, but perhaps you do have a power washer.
Power washers often come with wand attachments that are fairly long. You might have an attachment that is long enough to reach the gutters.
Even if you don’t, you can buy an attachment that will work nicely. Ideally, you want a curved attachment that is long enough to reach the gutters and help you clean them out.
If you already have what you need, you can get right to work. If not, you might need to take a trip to the local department store or hardware store to look for attachments.
It’s also easy to get attachments for your power washer online. This really comes down to whether you want to use the hose or the power washer.
When using a power washer to clean the gutters, it’s recommended to wear goggles for protection. It might be wise to wear clothes that you don’t mind getting wet, too.
Some people go so far as to wear rain jackets. It’s easy to get wet due to all of the sloshing water.
Try to move slowly from gutter to gutter. You might need to stop every so often to let the water drain and go toward the downspout.
A Leaf Blower Can Also Work
If you’re in a pinch, using a leaf blower to clean the gutters is an option. This might sound like an odd choice, but you can get the job done this way.
Many leaf blowers come with various nozzle attachments. There should be one that’s fairly long.
You can use this long attachment to reach the gutters. If you don’t have such an attachment, you can purchase one and use it to clean the gutters once it’s in your possession.
To get the job done with a leaf blower, you need to hold the attachment just above your gutter. This can be done from the ground.
You then walk from one end of the gutter to the other. Slowly blow the leaves and other debris out of the gutters using the power of the leaf blower.
It can take a bit of patience and time to get things done using a leaf blower. Even so, it’s a fairly reliable method.
You might get a bit sore holding the leaf blower above your head for so long. A lot of this depends on how heavy your leaf blower is and just how long the attachment is.
Try to use an attachment that doesn’t make you feel as if you need to reach in an uncomfortable way. This method isn’t necessarily superior to the other methods that have been presented, but it can work well.
How to Safely Clean the Gutters Using a Ladder
Using a ladder is still the most common way to clean the gutters. You could say that it’s the simplest way to get the job done, too.
If you’re afraid of climbing ladders, it makes sense that you’d prefer to use the options that allow you to stay on the ground. However, it’s still good to know how you can clean the gutters safely while using a ladder.
To start, you should get someone to help you out. It’s much safer to do work that involves climbing a ladder when you have a helper.
Having a friend steady the ladder for you makes it much less likely that you’ll lose your balance. Also, if you did have an accident, you’d have a friend there who can help you out.
They can call an ambulance if necessary and you won’t have to worry so much. Of course, your goal is to not fall off of the ladder and get the job done without incident.
This isn’t that tough to do, but you should focus and try to climb the ladder only as high as necessary. You likely won’t have to climb to the top of the ladder to reach inside the gutter and pull leaves out.
To keep your hands safe, it’s wise to wear work gloves. This ensures that you won’t get any cuts or scrapes while pulling debris out of the gutters.
Some people like to wear goggles just in case as well. If you’re not working with a hose, it might not be all that necessary.
Once you’ve removed all of the debris, you will want to use a hose to flush water toward the downspout. You want to ensure that the gutters are functioning and that the water flows as intended.
Hire Professionals
Hiring professionals is another option that you might wish to consider. If you don’t like having to clean the gutters yourself, it’s easy enough to get professional help.
There are companies that you can contact to get the job done. They will come out to your home and clean the gutters in a timely fashion.
It’ll cost you money to hire people to do the job. So for some, this isn’t going to be an ideal option.
Depending on your budget and how much free time you have, this might be the best choice. Not everyone has a lot of free time to do chores such as this.
If you’re a busy person who spends a lot of time working, your days off likely feel precious to you. You get to decide whether spending your money to get professionals to clean your gutters is a good choice or not.
Hiring people to clean your gutters isn’t overly expensive either. It’s just that some would rather not spend the money and do the job themselves.
How Often Should You Clean the Gutters?
Cleaning the gutters is something you need to do multiple times per year. Most experts recommend cleaning the gutters twice per year to get the best results.
This might depend on how many trees are close to your home, though. If you have many trees close to your home, your gutters might get clogged with leaves more frequently.
So you might need to clean the gutters a little more often or a little less often depending on the circumstances. It’s simply good to clean the gutters every six months as a safety precaution.
It can help to trim the trees that are close to your property, too. You can trim tree limbs to keep debris from getting in the gutter as often.
Gutter guards can also be installed. These are guards that go on top of your gutter and keep big pieces of debris from getting stuck in the gutters.
You won’t have nearly as hard of a time keeping the gutters clean if you go this route. It can be worthwhile to install gutter guards.
Final Thoughts
Now you know how to clean the gutters from the ground. You have many options such as using a telescoping cleaning tool, using a garden hose with an attachment, and even using a wet/dry vacuum.
Decide which method appeals to you the most and then move forward. You’ll be able to get the gutters clean and you won’t have to climb a ladder if you don’t want to.
If you do decide to climb a ladder, be sure to get someone to help you. Having someone there to monitor you and steady the ladder makes things substantially safer.
I have a bachelor’s degree in Computer Information Systems and over 10 years of experience working in IT. As a homeowner, I love working on projects around the house, and as a father, I love investigating various ways to keep my family safe (whether or not this involves tech). I’ve also played guitar for almost 20 years and love writing music, although it’s hard to find the time these days.