Tips From a Professional Gutter Cleaner

Cleaning gutters professionally is a great way to earn extra cash without a lot of start up investment.It is also a great add-on service for an existing company i.E.Window cleaning company, landscaping company, or property maintenance company.What you need to do to set yourself apart as a real professional and not just a neighborhood kid, is to understand the finer points of gutter cleaning.1) You need to ensure that you are not denting the customer's gutters with your ladder.The simplest way to do this is to line your ladder up with the gutter hanger.These supports are evenly spaced down the length of the gutter to give it support.If you place the ladder to far down from one of these supports, you ladder will bend the gutter.A better way, however, is to make sure the ladder doesn't even touch the gutter.By using ladder stand-offs, the ladder will rest on the roof instead of the gutters.I recommend using a stand-off called the Ladder Max.It is the only standoff designed to be put on the roof.2) You need to make sure you don't leave gutter debris all over the customer's property.Some companies will use leaf blowers to blow out the gutters.This will work if the contents of the gutter are dry.However, once you have blown all the dried leaves out, you need to make sure to rake everything up and cart it out - either to another location or to a compost pile with the homeowner's permission.I prefer to scoop out the gunk by hand (wearing rubber gloves, of course) and putting it into a bucket.I would not recommend spraying out the gutter with a pressure washer because it will make too big a mess - gunk stuck to the side of a customers house will not lead to future business.3) Checking to ensure the gutter's downspouts are functioning is key.The downspouts are the tubes running down the side of the house carrying the rainwater down and away from the roof.The true professional flushes these out with a garden house to make sure water can flow through.Another thing to consider is the wire mesh guard at the top of the downspout.These guards strain the water ensuring that the downspout does not get clogged by debris.If it is missing one, make sure to replace it.I always carry extra downspout filters in my van for this reason.4) Offer gutter whitening as an additional service.Conventionally, the term gutter cleaning refers to clearing out the inside of the gutter.But the outside of the gutter also requires cleaning - only for aesthetic reasons, though.The outside often gets coated with greenish algae and/or stripes of black algae known as "tiger striping." The easiest way to clean these is with an extension pole and a soft bristled brush.I mix up a bucket of water and simple green and dip the brush head into the bucket, then I reach up and scrub the exterior gutters with the brush.Finally, I rinse the gutters off with a hose.Some gutter cleaners use a specialty product for this such as "gutter zap" or "gutter grenade." I have used bleach in the past, but problems may occur when you are cleaning gutters over a wooden deck - the bleach can drip and discolor the wood below.Gutters are often cleaned twice a year in many parts of the country.A minimal yearly cleaning is recommended if the gutters aren't subjected to a heavy debris load.I hope this article has helped you get started in the gutter cleaning biz.

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