The rains are coming soon and you know you need to clean your gutters and downspouts.  But it’s been a few years since the last time you cleaned them out, and truth be told, you blocked it out of your memory.  What is it I need to do?  What materials do I need to gather up before I get started? How do I clean my gutters and downspouts?

The truth is cleaning out your rain gutters and downspouts is surprisingly easy.  Get yourself a nice, tall sturdy ladder, not some rickety old thing your neighbor dumped on you before he moved, a bucket or bag but honestly a bucket is going to work best, a scoop of some sort like an old plastic spoon or sandbox shovel, and a garden hose with a spray nozzle.  And don’t forget the old clothes.  You don’t want to be cleaning out your gutters and downspouts in your Sunday best.

Put up the ladder, of course and start near the downspouts.  Start by scooping out the big pieces first, putting them in the bucket.  Try not to slop too much over the bucket and down the sides of the house, as that’s just more mess you’ll need to clean up later.  Then, using the garden hose, spray from the middle of the rain gutter towards the downspouts, cleaning and washing away all the smaller left over gunk.  If the downspouts themselves are plugged you can use the spray nozzle to clean them out, either by blasting them from the top down or by blasting them from the bottom up until they are clear.  Top down may be a little better as it may be a little cleaner, however, if it’s still plugged, going from the bottom up may work to get things moving.  If that doesn’t work, a plumber’s snake is often used to clean out the most stubborn of downspouts.

Cleaning gutters and downspouts is not a glamorous job, but if done regularly, it is much easier.

photo credit: DallasGutterMan