News
The Cincinnati Enquirer | 23 July
2009
Time for first of two gutter cleanings
By Angie Hicks
Angie's Advice
- Have a helper: If you're going to tackle
the job yourself, get someone to stabilize the ladder and
be on hand to help.
- Ladder safety: Always use a ladder that
is long enough for the task and wear shoes that have good
traction. Avoid leaning your ladder on the gutters, as
this can damage them.
- Scoop it up: Put on some heavy-duty
gloves or use a small gardening shovel to scoop out debris.
- Get
out the hose: After the debris is removed, use the
hose to check that water is moving through your downspouts.
- Clear
obstructions: If the water fails to drain, use a plumbing
snake or wet/dry vac to clear the clog from the bottom.
- A final check: Once your gutters are clean,
check to see that they are firmly attached to your home,
and repair any loose spots you find.
BLUE ASH - Cliff Wicks leaves gutter cleaning to the
professionals now.
The Blue Ash resident used to clean his own gutters, until ahout five
years ago when a ladder accident during a cleaning left Wicks with
a broken nose, bumps and bruises.
"I gave the ladder away and decided I would outsource it," Wicks
said with a laugh. "They know what they're doing."
Hiring a professional is sage advice, says Dave Molloy, owner of Cincinnati-based
Molloy Roofing Company. According to a 2007 study by the Center for
Injury Research and Policy, an average of 136,000 Americans end up
in the emergency room each year due to ladder-related injuries.
Not only is hiring a professional safer, that person has the equipment
to do the job right and the training to spot problems with roofs and
gutters.
"If there's a problem developing, it could be caught
perhaps before a roof leak develops and turns into interior damage," Molloy
said.
Common problems are damage to the fascia, a leaky
roof or basement, water damage to the interior and landscaping erosion.
According
to a poll of Angie's List members, 60 percent said they clean their
gutters at least once a year, but 20 percent said they never have their
gutters cleaned. Nearly 20 percent of those responding to the poll
have had damage to their home as a result of ignoring gutters.
A gutter
cleaning should include the removal of all debris from the roof, gutters
and downspouts, checking for loose gutters and repairing any loose
gutter spikes.
"Twice a year is kind of typical – after the
seeds fall in the spring and after the leaves fall in the autumn," Molloy
said.
Protective barriers for gutters are becoming increasingly popular,
but are not a replacement for regular cleanings.
"There must be 50
of them, and each one has its merits (but) it's been our experience
that there's no such thing as one that requires zero maintenance," Molloy
said.
Angie Hicks is the founder of Angie's List, a national provider
of ratings in more than 425 categories of service. www.angieslist.com.
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