Blocked gutters are easy to ignore because you can’t see them from the front door. Then the first proper storm of the winter comes in off the Mersey and water pours over the edge. A few weeks later there’s a damp patch on the bedroom wall. I’ve seen it in every part of the city. Clearing a gutter is a small job. Fixing what a blocked one causes usually isn’t.
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How can you tell if your gutters are blocked?
Water spilling over the front edge when it rains is the obvious one. Others are easy to miss. Look for plants growing out of the gutter or a dark stripe down the brickwork underneath it. Water splashing up from the ground instead of going down the downpipe is another giveaway. So is a gutter that’s started to sag in the middle.
If you can see moss on the roof, there’s a good chance a lot of it has already been washed into the gutters. Every heavy shower brings more of it down.
What damage can blocked gutters cause?
Damp, rot and broken gutters, mostly. When water can’t get away it goes over the edge and runs down your walls. Brickwork stays wet for weeks and that’s when damp starts showing inside. Fascia and soffit boards rot from the back. Water pooling at the foot of the wall soaks into the ground by the foundations. It can wash the sand out of block paving near the house too, which is why I often end up re-sanding driveways right under a leaky gutter.
Then there’s the staining. Green streaks down render and black lines under the gutter are both signs of water going where it shouldn’t. Those can be cleaned off with brickwork cleaning or a uPVC clean, but they’ll come straight back if the gutter is still blocked.
Quick tip: go outside during the next heavy downpour with a brolly. Two minutes watching your gutters in proper rain tells you more than any amount of looking up on a dry day.
Why are blocked gutters worse in a storm?
Because a storm dumps a lot of water in a short time. A half-blocked gutter might cope with drizzle. It won’t cope with a downpour driven sideways by the wind. The water backs up, spills over and gets blown straight at the walls and windows.
In a cold snap it gets worse again. Water sat in a blocked gutter freezes and expands. That pulls joints apart. The weight of wet leaves and ice can drag a whole run of gutter off its brackets. Any one of those repairs costs more than years of gutter cleaning. Honestly, it’s the cheapest bit of house maintenance you’ll ever pay for.
When should you clear your gutters before winter storms?
Late autumn, once most of the leaves are down. Clear them before the winter storms arrive and they’ll handle the heavy rain. If you’re under big trees, like a lot of homes in West Derby, Woolton or Heswall, twice a year is safer. I’ve written before about gutter cleaning before winter as part of your general seasonal jobs if you want the wider picture.
How do you clear blocked gutters safely?
From the ground. I use a gutter vacuum with a 15 metre reach, so there are no ladders against your walls and no one walking on your roof. A camera on the pole lets me see inside the gutter as I go. I can show you the before and after on the screen. Downpipes get checked and cleared so the water has somewhere to go once it leaves the gutter.
Lots of people book their gutter cleaning alongside a driveway clean to get everything sorted in one go. You can see a few recent gutter jobs on my Facebook page.
FAQs
Clearing them is cheaper, by a long way. A gutter clean is a small job that’s done in one visit. The damage a blocked gutter causes is a different matter. Damp patches inside need treating and redecorating. Rotten fascia boards need replacing. A gutter pulled off its brackets by ice and wet leaves needs a new run fitting. None of those are jobs I do, and none of them are cheap. I can’t give you a figure for repairs because that’s down to whoever fixes them. What I can say is that I’ve never met anyone who wished they’d left their gutters blocked for another winter. Send me a photo and I’ll price the clean.
Usually within about five minutes if you message me on WhatsApp. Send a photo of the front of the house to 07469 539 068, plus the back if you can get it. Make sure I can see the gutter line and how many storeys there are. If there’s a conservatory, an extension or a tricky bit of roof, mention it. That’s normally enough for me to give you a proper price without coming out. You get 10% off for quoting this way because it saves me fuel and time on the road. If a storm is on the way and you’re worried, say so in the message and I’ll do my best to fit you in quickly.
Most houses are done in a single visit. The time depends on how many runs of gutter there are, how full they are and whether the downpipes are blocked as well. A small terrace with light leaves is quicker than a big detached house that hasn’t been touched for years. Because I work from the ground with a 15 metre reach vacuum, there’s no faffing about moving ladders round the house. That speeds things up and keeps your walls and windows clear. I’ll give you a rough idea of how long I’ll be when I send the price. You don’t need to be in, as long as I can get to all sides of the house.
It stops the water causing it, which is the first step. If damp is showing on an inside wall right under an overflowing gutter, the overflow is very often the reason. Clearing the gutter and downpipe means the water goes where it should. The wall then needs time to dry out, which can take a good while in winter. I won’t promise it fixes every damp patch, because some damp has other causes like broken pointing or rising damp. That’s one for a builder or a surveyor to look at. What I can do is rule the gutters out. If the damp sits right below where water was spilling over, there’s a fair chance you’ve found your culprit.
Yes, it can. A gutter full of wet leaves, moss and silt is surprisingly heavy. Add standing water and maybe a bit of ice, then strong wind on top, and the brackets can give way. I’ve seen whole runs hanging off the front of houses after a bad night. Older plastic gutters that have gone brittle in the sun are the most at risk. If yours is already sagging in the middle, that’s a warning sign the weight is pulling on it. Clearing it takes most of that weight away. If I spot a bracket that’s loose or a joint that’s leaking while I’m working, I’ll tell you so you can get it sorted.
Over time, they can add to problems at ground level. Water pouring off the same spot every time it rains soaks the ground right by the wall. That’s not where you want water to sit, especially on older houses. I’m not a structural engineer, so I won’t pretend to diagnose foundation problems. The common damage I do see at ground level is washed out block paving, green slimy patches on paths and splashback staining on the bottom of the walls. Those are all signs the water isn’t being carried away. Keeping the gutters and downpipes clear is the simple way to stop it landing there in the first place.
For most homes, once a year is enough, ideally in late autumn before the storms. If you’ve got big trees close by, twice a year is safer. Once after the leaves fall and again in spring to catch the seeds and blossom. Houses with mossy roofs also tend to block faster, because every heavy shower washes more moss down. If yours overflowed last winter, I’d book it in before this one rather than wait to see. A gutter that blocked once will block again if nothing has changed above it. I’ll always tell you honestly if yours look clear enough to leave for another year when I see the photos.
No. Everything is done from the ground using a gutter vacuum with a 15 metre reach. That reaches the gutters on most houses round here. No one climbs on your roof and no ladders lean against your gutters or windows. A camera on the end of the pole lets me see exactly what’s inside the gutter, and I can show you the before and after on the screen. It’s safer for me and it’s kinder to your house. It also means I can get round the back of terraced houses without needing to come through, as long as there’s a way into the garden or an alley at the back.
Yes, downpipes are checked as part of the job. A clear gutter is no use if the water hits a blockage on the way down. When a downpipe is blocked the water backs up and spills over the gutter at that corner, which can look like the gutter is still full. I check each downpipe once the gutters are clear and clear what I can. Most blockages are just leaves and silt that have packed down at a bend. If something is badly stuck or the pipe is cracked, I’ll tell you rather than pretend it’s sorted. Then you know exactly what needs doing before the next storm comes through.
Rain isn’t usually a problem, but strong wind is. Light rain doesn’t stop the vacuum working and it actually helps me see where water is going once the gutter is clear. A storm with strong gusts is different. Working with a long pole in high wind isn’t safe, so I’ll move the job to a calmer day. That’s why it pays to book before the stormy season really kicks in, rather than ringing on the day a big one is forecast. I keep an eye on the weather for every job in Liverpool, Wirral and Sefton, including Southport. If I need to move you, I’ll ring and let you know as early as I can.
Get your gutters cleared before the next storm
Don’t wait for the damp patch. Send me a photo of the front of your house on WhatsApp for a price. I normally reply within about five minutes and you get 10% off for quoting that way.
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