Fall Gutter Checklist for Southwest Missouri
Most of what grows around here is oak, hickory, and maple. Pretty in October. Hard on gutters. The leaves that come down between now and Thanksgiving are the main reason I get called out for gutter problems in January. This is what I'd check on any house before the first hard freeze.
Why fall is the one that counts
A gutter that's full in October turns into a problem in December. Wet leaves pack down and hold water. Then it freezes. Ice is heavy, and that weight pulls hangers loose and splits the seams on older sectional gutters. It also builds ice dams that push melt water back up under the shingles. Almost every winter repair I do started as a fall cleaning that didn't happen. You've got about six to eight weeks to get ahead of it.
The checklist
- Scoop the leaves out of the whole run
- Run a hose through and watch for standing water
- Make sure water comes out the bottom of every downspout
- Look for sagging sections or hangers pulling loose
- Check seams and end caps for drips
- Make sure downspout extensions point away from the house
- Clear the leaves out of the roof valleys above the gutters
- Do it again after the last big leaf drop
If water sits in the gutter
After you flush it, water should run to the downspout and be gone in a minute or two. If it just sits there, one of three things is going on. The gutter lost its slope, either because hangers let go or it was never pitched right to begin with. There's a clog farther down the run. Or the downspout itself is plugged. A gutter holding water in October is holding ice in January. That's where cleaning turns into repair.
The second pass
Cleaning the gutters the first week of October feels like you handled it. Problem is the oaks hang onto their leaves into November and sometimes drop the last of them with the first snow. One early cleaning usually means full gutters again by the time it freezes. Plan on going back after the trees are bare. If you're only going to do it once, do it late.
Don't want to be on a ladder twice a year? That's what gutter covers are for. We install LeavesOut gutter covers, which keep the leaves out so the water keeps moving. They come with a 90-day money-back guarantee. If you'd rather keep the gutters open and just have somebody else do the cleaning, we do gutter cleaning and maintenance too. Cleaning, a once-over inspection, and small repairs in one trip.
When cleaning won't fix it
If you go through the checklist and find sagging runs, seams coming apart, or gutters that overflow even when they're clean, the system is probably undersized or just worn out. Old sectional gutters leak at every joint. A seamless gutter is one continuous piece, so there are no seams to fail. And if you've got a metal roof or a lot of trees over the house, you may need the capacity of a 6-inch gutter. The 5-inch vs. 6-inch guide goes through how to tell.