Preparing Your Gutters for the Fall Season

Fall is a beautiful time of the year, especially because of the trees: the leaves explode into vibrant yellows, reds, and oranges – their swan song before slowly falling to the ground – or, in the homeowner’s case, this means slowly falling straight onto the lawn and into the gutters. However beautiful, fall is an imperative time to clean your gutters, and there are a few steps that could save you from big problems throughout winter.  Downspout guards like the Wedge are a good idea during the fall; even if that’s the only time they’re in your gutters. They’ll prevent massive blockages from fall foliage in your downspouts, and make the cleaning process much easier. This ensures that when winter comes around, there aren’t the huge frozen blocks of muddy leaves clogged in the enclosed pipe. These melt much slower than snow, so they’ll be sure to cause heavy, stressful backups in your gutters that are nearly impossible to clear.

Depending on your roofline, you might consider using a leaf blower to clear your roof in the fall. The leaves and debris up there will inevitably be carried into your gutters, so if your roofline is gradual enough, using a leaf blower may save you some agitation. However, if your roofline is too steep, do not attempt this! Leaf blowers are heavy pieces of machinery, too awkward to safely navigate a steep roof with.

If you’ve been thinking about installing, or having one installed, fall is a great time to invest in a gutter guard system. Ideally, you’ll want it installed in the early fall (or even better, late summer) before the leaves start to fall. The end of fall may require some cleaning, as debris and foliage still tend to sneak in, but you should find the amount of leaves present in the gutter channel has been reduced, and that you don’t have to stay on the ladder for nearly as long.