Cleaning Aluminum Rain Gutters

If you have an old plastic kitchen spatula that works too and it won t damage the gutters.

Cleaning aluminum rain gutters.

Gutter scoops are available at the hardware store or a child s sandbox shovel also works just fine. Use some elbow grease or a power washer. Fortunately cleaning gutters and downspouts is a pretty easy job and a couple of cleanings each year should keep them flowing freely. For that mix half cup of household liquid detergent with a half cup of bleach in two gallons of water.

Cleaning your gutters means thoroughly removing any debris that may be on them such as leaves rocks and birds nests to name a few. Even for vinyl gutters liquid detergent alone cannot be used to clean the gutters properly. F 13 gutter grenade is a multipurpose gutter cleaner that s safe for all types of gutters. Use this solvent to scrub off the outer surface of your gutters with a stiff brush or a piece of cloth.

Flush the gutters with a garden hose. Make sure you have a sturdy extension ladder that is long enough to reach the edge of your roof and always follow safe practices when using a ladder. It attacks the oxidation and not the paint or material. Adjust the red tip depending on the height of the gutters.

Removing leaves by hand with a gutter trowel with your garden hose etc or it can be done with the help of machines like a pressure washer. To remove the gunk from the gutters use a small plastic scoop. Allowing a few dry days before cleaning your gutters will allow the debris to dry out making the chore much easier. You ll run out of cleaning solution really quickly if the water is on full blast.

When possible avoid cleaning gutters after a rain. For aluminum try gutter zap which removes electrostatic bonded streaks with little scrubbing. Start your gutter cleaning task near the downspout and work toward the closed end. This could be done through manual processes ie.

Carry the nozzle of the hose with you up the ladder to the gutters. You can also make a paste with a small amount of water and cream of tartar which will act as a cleaner and gentle buffing agent in one. Then turn the water to the hose on but not at full power. Spray the gutters toward each of the downspouts to rinse remaining debris out of the gutters.

Use a sprayer attachment if you have one to increase the water pressure. This job does however involve working on a ladder.