One of the best ways to keep mold and mildew from forming on the exterior of your house is to regularly clean your gutters. Not only does this prevent the development of unwanted fungi, but it also helps keep your gutters free from damage by rain and snow melt.
Besides being essential for directing water away from your home, gutters also help prevent water from leaking through cracks or gaps in the roof or foundation of your home. If these areas are clogged or improperly draining, moisture can accumulate along your foundation and lead to hidden mold growth.
It’s important to make sure that your gutters are clean and free of debris so that they can effectively drain all of the water from your roof and protect your home’s foundation. It’s especially important to get these areas cleaned up at least twice a year – once in the fall and once in the spring.
Cleaning your gutters is easy and affordable if you know what you’re doing, so it’s a great home maintenance project to do as part of your routine maintenance checklist. To get started, gather your tools: a ladder, a bucket, a gutter scoop (or a garden trowel), and heavy-duty work gloves.
The best time to clean your gutters is in the fall and spring. These are the two seasons when leaves, acorns, and other debris are most likely to accumulate. This ensures that you remove the most amount of debris from your gutters, which is ideal for preventing mold and mildew growth.
Once the yearly cleaning is done, it’s best to keep your gutters clean so that they can continue to direct water away from your house. This will help keep your siding from fading and your roofing shingles from wearing down.
You may want to consider having your gutters cleaned professionally by a local gutter specialist like Gutter Cleaning Jefferson City. A professional will have the proper equipment and experience to get the job done quickly and safely.
To prevent injuries, make sure you use a ladder stabilizer. A ladder that wobbles or shifts on a windy day could easily end up in your face. You should also practice ladder safety: always place your body between side rails, maintain awareness of your surroundings, and don’t stretch or overreach when you’re on the ladder.
If you have a steep roof, it can be difficult to access your gutters with a ladder. This makes it extra tricky for cleaners to clean your gutters, and this can add up to a lot of additional labor costs.
Keeping your gutters clean can also prevent pest infestations from thriving. Debris such as twigs and leaves can provide living spaces for bugs, including termites, ants, roaches, and mosquitoes. These creatures will also breed in a clogged gutter, and they can spread diseases like the deadly West Nile virus to your family members.
Another reason to have your gutters cleaned is so that they can keep your home looking neat and tidy. Dirty gutters can deteriorate the appearance of your roofing shingles and leave behind an unpleasant residue that may stain your siding.
