Gutter and Blocked Down Pipe Cleaning Tools
There are many different ways to clean gutters. The different ways will require a variety of gutter cleaning tools depending on the way you want to clean your gutters. This post will outline the various methods of gutter cleaning and then also have pictures of the different gutter cleaning tools available from your local hardware store. It goes without say that a suitable ladder is required to clean gutters and unblock down-pipes.
1. Cleaning Gutters by Hand
Cleaning gutters by hand is the easiest and simplest method when it comes to gutter cleaning. This tool has to be the most effective hand gutter cleaning tools available and definitely needed if you plan on cleaning any gutters. Cleaning gutters by hand is self explanatory, however there is a good gutter cleaning tool you can purchase that will make the guttering and down pipe unblocking job a lot easier. This gutter cleaning tool costs next to nothing and is well worth the little money spent if cleaning your gutters and dealing with a blocked downpipe is going to be a regular occurrence.
2. Blowing Out the Gutters
This is by far the best gutter cleaning tool. The petrol blower, preferably a quality brand like Stihl would make a perfect gutter cleaning tool in summer and spring. This is quite an easy method and takes a lot less time to clean the gutters with a petrol blower than to clean them by hand.
If you are looking for a good tool for gutter cleaning, and you have a large home. Then this is the gutter cleaning tools for you. In winter, when the gutters are full of wet debris and mud, then its best to clean them by hand, unless you don't mind mud splattered all over your walls. If you want to see this gutter cleaning tool in action, follow the link.
3. Gutter Vacuum System
This is the third way to clean your gutters. This requires a wet and dry vacuum cleaners that is capable of sucking out the mud, muck and leaves in your guttering & down-pipes. This seems to be the most hazardous method, running around on roofing with vacuum hose lines everywhere etc. Quite interestingly the gutter vac system cannot pick up twigs and small branches from the guttering and down pipes. This downfall on the gutter vacuum system is a major let down in South Australia. Every house in the Adelaide suburbs has small twigs and sticks in the guttering. No gutter vacuum system can vacuum this type of debris that is found all over the gutters and roofing in South Australia.
Some people just do small sections at a time from the ground and empty the wet & dry vac several times every ten meters of gutters cleaned. This method of gutter cleaning is not only time consuming but it also requires the purchase of expensive equipment to convert into a gutter cleaning tool.
4. Downpipe Unblocking Tool
The very best tool to use to unblock downpipes is a simple garden hose or a thinner patio hose. So if your downpipes are blocked then just shove a garden hose into the downpipe entrance and turn on the water. This should unblock even the most stubborn blocked downpipe.
Blocked Downpipe Cleaning and Gutter Mesh Products
Whether its gum leaves, bark or gum-nuts these massive Australian trees simply make a mess of residential homes in Adelaide, South Australia. Gum trees literally keep our gutter cleaning business going 24/7 day per week.
When it comes to roof leaks, there is nothing more annoying then not being able to find the leak that is causing the water damage on the ceiling. Often roof leaks are caused by poorly maintained roofing or blocked down pipes and guttering.
We have spent years hunting down roof leaks and fixing them before serious water damage takes place. Preventative maintenance is the best way to prevent serious water damage and leaks from occurring. Its a good idea to regularly clean your gutters and make sure the down-pipes are not blocked up with leaves and moss. Even if you do not have trees around your home, it's always good practice to check them every 6 months to make sure nothing is blocking them.
Gutter Mesh can sometimes cause roof leaks as well. Especially if it is installed in the valleys under large gum tree's. Check out this gutter mesh in Adelaide and the work that was done to clean up the gum nuts and the gum tree bark off the gutter guards before they were damaged from the weight of the tree foliage.
This gutter mesh would have collapsed eventually under the weight of the tree foliage and caused some serious blockages in the downpipes and no one would have noticed.
Then one unsuspecting day a big heavy thunder storm arrived in South Australia and the water is overflowing into the ceilings, causing extensive water damage.
This cheap gutter mesh can be purchased at your local Bunning's Warehouse and is relatively easy to install if you class yourself as a handyman.
When installing gutter guards it's important to remember that you will still need to clean your gutters, just not so often. It will also cost more to remove and clean them in a few years time, than a standard gutter clean.
On this residential property it had gutter mesh or leaf guards installed and they just did not do anything but create a blocked downpipe and gutters more efficiently than if they didn't have any gutter mesh installed.