WOOOO! Looky here mate, that storm just a-came in here and made a right-o mess of the place, din’t it?
Well, ain’t it a good thing that you do a gutter cleaning regularly! (Maybe? Possibly?)
Here at Morris Family Windows, we hear you. Gutter cleaning is not the first on everyone’s mind when we see a storm coming in our weather app.
It is more like “grab the rain boots and umbrellas”.
But, what if we told you that regular gutter cleaning can actually save your home from certain damages during a rainstorm and flooding? And therefore, save your pocket book from unforeseen damage costs as well?
Because that is exactly what we are going to do. :-)
Let’s dive in, shall we?!
The Power of Storms vs the Power of Gutter Cleaning
Storms are quite powerful. According to this government article, for an inch of rain on half an acre lot, you will receive 13,577 gallons of water! And, in this article from Grosspointenews.com, it is estimated that Grosse Pointe received 8 inches of rain during the flood June 25th, 2021.
That is a lot of water!
Now, imagine blocked and damaged gutters trying to hold all that rain water away from your house. It's not going to happen, right? Especially in rains like we saw last month.
But, with a clean, well-maintained gutter, the rain water will not invade your house as easily or as quickly. With a regularly maintained gutter, this rain would run through and away from your home roof and siding.
Storms Can Cause Irreversible Damage
What happened the night of June 25th was definitely scary and not at all usual. The damaged caused by fallen trees and cut electricity is immense.
Many buildings were flooded or had severe water damage.
Storms, like what we had, are perhaps once in a lifetime. But, rainfall still occurs every year and every year, people still receive water damage due to faulty gutters. This is the point we are trying to make.
Now we can't all be as prepared as these youngin's in the flood. And by no means are we saying gutter cleaning prevents abnormal flooding.
But, you want your gutters to be able to operate effectively so normal or slightly above average weather in Grosse Pointe doesn't stretch your gutter system to its max.
Regular Gutter Cleaning is Small, but Mighty
You might be asking us, how can regular gutter cleaning stop such huge amounts of rainfall?
A gutter spout is that “pipe” that is close to the ground that shoots water away from your house. When it rains, the water falls into the gutter, along your roof, and makes it way through the pipes to that spout.
When the gutter isn’t cleaned, there can be lots of debris that block the water from making its trip away from the home. This can lead to water overflow affecting the roof and walls of your house.
If it does make it to the ground, it usually lands right next to your home causing the surrounding area to get flooded, which causes additional water damage to your house. We have seen this flood into the foundation and basement of Grosse Pointe homes.
Imagine flood waters every year, this is what blocked unmaintained gutters would cause if left untreated.
All these damages have high costs associated with them that regular gutter cleaning can help you avoid.
A gutter that does its job properly, is a gutter saving your home from additional damages.
Plan for the Future by Doing Regular Gutter Cleaning- Now.
We like to point out what is meant by REGULAR gutter cleaning. Cleaning the gutters once a year is fine and the typical recommendation across the US.
However, we live in Michigan. We have slightly more unpredictable weather, as we just saw, and it is best to be regular and habitual about gutter cleaning. We recommend twice per year, once in the spring and once in the fall.
This way, when there is a surprise storm, your gutters are perfectly ready to take on the “heat.”
When Should You Clean the Gutters?
Now that we discussed that gutter cleaning should take place regularly, you might be asking, when exactly does that mean?
We recommend spring as the biggest gutter clean-up, you can read more in this article.
However, whenever there is a change in the season, such as fall to winter, after all those beautiful leaves have fallen, we recommend another inspection and a brief clean-up before the ice rolls in.
We always recommend letting professionals handle gutter cleaning as it can be dangerous since cleaning the gutters can involve multiple ladders or the roof, but if you would like to learn more about what tools we use, feel free to check out our article about it!
If you have further questions about regular gutter cleaning or would like to set up an appointment to discuss your gutters more in-depth, make sure to contact us via our online quote form or by texting us: 313-752-1300.
We do offer specifics quotes per house per gutter project.