Estimated reading time: 12 minutes
Learn why cleaning your gutters is essential for property maintenance. Regular gutter cleaning prevents fascia damage and potential water damage to your home.
Importance Of Property Maintenance As A Homeowner
In the UK, we call them eavestrough, but in Canada, you might be familiar with gutters.
Either way, I’m talking about the same thing when it comes to cleaning gutters.
Homeowners must be prepared to do the grunt work or hire someone.
Aside from hard work, often, there’s a financial investment needed to keep your property in top-notch shape.
Taking care of your home from the inside out is a way to ensure you’re protecting the roof over your family.
Our budget has a category specifically for home maintenance, and we save for projects as a projected expense.
In other words, if we know we want to install gutter guards, we will save x amount of dollars each month until our goal date.
We are unprepared to put home expenses on credit, so saving is our only alternative.
What Are Gutters?
Gutters, or eavestroughs, are a water system for your home to guide water from rain away from your property through downspouts.
Without gutters on your house, leave your property open for water damage incidents that might not be noticeable until it’s too late.
Problems such as mold, mildew, foundation, soil erosion, and potential basement flooding are some expensive consequences.
When To Buy New Gutters
There will be tell-tale signs that you need new gutters installed on your home.
- Rust build-up around the perimeter
- Damage to gutters and downspouts
- Seams are broken
- Bowed or dangling gutters.
- Peeling Paint
- Water damage under the gutters or on the wall
- Installation materials no longer stable (screws and latches)
- Pooling water and overflow (they may need to be cleaned)
Property Damage From Gutters
If your eavestroughs are damaged, rainwater or melted snow goes in behind into the fascia and will cause wood rot.
Fascia Damage
When this happens, the fascia can no longer hold up the eavestrough as it softens, causing it to fall, bow, or bend.
It can tear away from the home, ripping part of the roof with it, causing even more expenses for the homeowner.
Of course, a falling rock from the sky can cause this type of damage, too.
Cracked Foundation
If your foundation has a small crack during winter, water gets in during the day and freezes overnight.
Water expands when it freezes, thus making the crack bigger.
Once the freeze-thaw process happens, the crack will continue to get worse.
Any damage to your gutters causing water to leak can speed up the process.
Remember, if the freeze-thaw process can destroy mountains, it will ruin your foundation.
Garden and Landscape Preservation
You may notice some houses in your neighborhood with extensions on their downspouts.
This is important to ensure that the water system flows from the gutters into the grading and away from your home.
When water pooling around your home, consider the possibility of an added extension, grading repair or maintenance, or replacement gutters.
Roof Protection
Ensure that cracks and holes in your eavestrough are patched to prevent leakage, rotting, and compromise of the roof and exterior of your home.
Basement Flooding
Flooding in your basement can occur when the gutters are not kicking the water away from your house or foundation.
Putting extensions on the end of your downspouts will help ensure the grading is sloping away from the house.
If the gutters are not channeling water to the downspouts, they can overflow, causing water to do the same as above.
Phone the insurance company if your basement is flooded, and you have to raid your bank account if it’s not covered.
Leaving water in your basement is a surefire way to set mold up, which adds to your savings and health costs.
Preventative Maintenance For Winter
Our cold winters in Canada put our homes under stress, but with excellent upkeep, the home will prevail.
Ice build-up will happen when the snow melts or rains and freezes.
There is potential damage if the water management system is not up to snuff during the winter months.
Our neighbors have a metal roof, and we always hear ice sliding down the roof and hitting the gutters onto the ground.
Gutter Longevity
New gutters and downspouts should last homeowners for up to 20 years or more based on maintenance.
However, situational instances such as wind damage, a tornado, or a raccoon doing gymnastics may make repairs or replacements necessary.
Keep your gutters clean and maintain the downspouts and attachments.
Reduce Pesky Rodents and Pests
Squirrels are everywhere in Canada; the last place you want them is in your gutters or, even worse, overwintering in your roof space.
Friends of ours this winter had two squirrels living in their roof space after chewing through the vent cap on the roof.
Another instance was when the gutters, siding, and fascia were removed from our home, and dead ants and other bugs were present.
If the gutters are full of dirt, leaves, tennis balls, and other debris, it’s an open invitation to the wild.
When To Clean The Gutters
Spring and Fall are the best times to clean the gutters around your home.
In the spring, you remove any leftover leaves, sticks, or other debris from the winter.
In the Fall, you prepare the gutters for the winter, especially when the snow thaws, to ensure proper flow through the system.
Leafguard Gutter Protection
Some homeowners want to forgo cleaning the gutters and opt to install gutter protection.
According to Leaf Guard Canada, it’s an affordable “Clog-Free” – One Piece Gutter Protection System with—a Lifetime Transferable Warranty Installed in Just 1 Day.
LeafGuard gutters are a one-of-a-kind gutter system that is guaranteed to prevent clogging. The design of the gutters features a patented built-in hood and one-piece design.
LeafGuard gutters use the liquid adhesion principle to allow water to flow through the front-facing curved surface while allowing debris to fall off. LeafGuard gutters in Toronto are installed on the fascia board (and away from the shingles).
Leafguard.ca
- Clog Free
- Scratch Guard Finish
- Eliminates Guards and Leaks
- Durable One-Piece System
- Debris and Weather Protection
- Customized To Your Home
Although we haven’t considered this option, I will get a free estimate.
I’m getting older now, and I won’t be able to get on the roof like I used to in a few years.
Sometimes, it’s best to hire a professional to get the job done instead of potentially getting hurt.
Hire A Gutter Specialist Or DIY Gutter Cleaning
Hire a professional or handyman willing to clean the gutters for a reasonable price.
How to hire someone to clean your gutters?
Many roofers or gutter specialist services across Canada will come to your home and give you a free quote.
Most of the time, they do window, pressure, and deck cleaning, so if you’re in it for the ride, get both done while they are at your house.
Don’t forget to ask for referrals and do some homework online to see if you find any company reviews.
Cost of gutter cleaning services in Canada
According to Spartan Property Cleaning, they are offering to clean gutters for only $99 and service Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, Guelph, and the surrounding area.
Every company differs in price so it’s best to call around and get free quotes.
Gutter cleaning (also referred to as eavestrough cleaning) can be a daunting task that no homeowner enjoys.
Our process includes removing leaves, sticks, dirt, and all other debris from your gutters and roof.
We also flush each downspout so that the entire gutter system is 100% cleared.
Our friendly gutter cleaning staff will take before and after photos so you know exactly what’s going on up there, without you having to go up and check.
We then bag up the debris and take it with us so there is no mess left for you.
Spartan Property Cleaning
Insurance Coverage
Not all home insurance companies cover all risks to your house, so it’s essential to read your policy and ask questions.
What kind of insurance should contractors have?
Brokers Trust Canada says your contractor should have commercial general liability insurance, which covers both bodily injury liability and property damage liability.
Ideally, your contractor should also have workers’ compensation coverage or an equivalent policy.
A workers’ compensation policy pays for injuries and lost wages for workers or employees injured on the job.
However, if you hire a handyperson, consider what will happen if there is an accident and they are not covered under WSIB.
According to WSIB, independent operators are automatically covered under the WSIA in the construction industry with certain exceptions.
If hiring a professional is not within your budget, you can do a DIY cleaning of the gutters.
DIY Gutters And Replacement Costs
Depending on the size of your home, the prices will vary, and if you still need time to save money, having a quote gives you an idea of the cost.
Twice a year, on a nice day, I use my ladder to get on the roof with a hard hat, gloves, scoop, goggles, and a bucket.
I lay a tarp on the ground to capture any depth that misses the bucket or won’t fit.
Once done, I flush out the downspouts and gutters to ensure no debris clogs the system.
The tarp makes cleanup easy; anything compostable can go into our green bin.
Last year, I decided to replace the entire gutter system because it was time.
We also replaced the siding, soffits, and fascia for $8062 plus taxes.
The total for everything came to $20,13.20.
Even so, almost $10,000 to replace the gutter system for a 1500 sq ft house is pricey.
Maintaining your home inside and out will prolong having to replace something earlier than expected.
Thankfully, ours lasted 25 years, which seemed reasonable given that they won’t last forever.
Related: Our Vinyl Siding Installation: Process and Costs
Potential Emergency Home Maintenance Costs
Clogged gutters are unsightly and can cause extensive property and home damage if not cleaned.
In summary, if you don’t protect your investment, a simple gutter cleaning for a few hundred dollars may cost you thousands.
Discussion: How do you clean your gutters, and do you have a gutter guard?
Please share your comments below.
Thanks for reading,
Mr. CBB