Manufactured home gutters are not glamorous.
They play the role of handling crucial tasks:
- collecting rainwater and channeling it to a water tank
- or simply drain it away from the basement.
This is very critical in keeping your home water-free and consequently protecting doors, windows, sidings as well as foundations from possible water damage.
Gutters do clog and get dirty with time due to the accumulation of material deposited on the rooftops. It is highly recommended to clean them at least once a year.
If not checked a cleaned, gutters could clog causing a massive water overflow.
This will in turn fall along the foundation of your building.
Once the soil under the foundation gets too soft, it will cause it to crack.
The result is a structural failure in a building that can lead to massive destruction of property and even fatalities.
How then, do you clean your manufactured home gutters?
Well, cleaning home gutters is a delicate procedure and if you are doing it for the very first time, you will find a tutorial worth reading to ascertain the right procedure of having the job done right. This is critical especially if you are handing chunky deposition of leaves and debris on small/narrow gutters. Some gutters are barely large enough to get your hand in. this calls for the right tools and extreme care.
When Should I Clean My Home Gutters?
Many professionals will recommend cleaning your gutters maybe once or twice a year; during the spring and in the fall.
Depending on the prevailing climatic conditions in your city, however, this may prove different.
It also depends on the number of trees near your home.
It goes without saying that you will be prompted to clean your gutters frequently if this is the situation.
This is exactly the case if you are living in a climatic zone that freezes during winter.
It’s equally a prudent idea to check your gutters after the storms since such conditions are occasioned with massive deposition of debris.
It may be too hard to keep up with but you realize spending about an hour checking on the conditions of your gutters matters.
So, honestly, you have to keep checking your gutters as frequently as possible.
Which Are The Best Gutter Cleaning Tools?
Most people put off gutter cleaning for as long as they can.
Considering the nasty job done to keep them clean, most of us don’t even get close to checking our gutters until it is too late.
Rest assured if you have these gutter cleaning tools at your disposal, it will prove a lot easier to get near those gutters and clean them.
There is a wide array of gutter cleaning tools. With them, you can clean your gutters whichever way suits you best.
Here is a list of the best gutter cleaning tools
- BE Pressure Washer Gutter Cleaner
- BE Pressure 24 Telescope Wand
- Gutter Sense Gutter Cleaning Tool
- Gutter Whiz
- Milo Telescopic Retractable Extension Pole
- Chomp Smop Gutter Tool
- Gutter Getter Cleaning Scoop
- Ladder-Max Standoff Stabilizer
- Water Rocket Downspout Gutter Cleaning Tool
6 Easy tips of Cleaning Manufactured Home Gutters
Honestly, if done the right way, cleaning out your dirty gutters isn’t a difficult task. It is just a matter of how efficiently you can do it. Here’s how to do it.
1. Have a good, strong, extendable ladder.
Make sure the ladder rests on a sturdy surface.
You have to be aware of the landscaping rocks at this base that may shift and cause a dangerous fall.
For guaranteed safety, opt to a ladder stabilizer.
Aside from ensuring your safety, it helps prevent potential damages on your home gutters.
Furthermore, it is a prudent idea to have someone to help you up just in case you drop something and need a helping hand.
2. Put on the right job attire.
Wear a long-sleeved shirt, rubber gloves and work pants.
Cleaning gutters is a pretty dirty job.
3. Use a small, plastic scoop to rid the gutters of gunk accumulation.
Hardware stores have gutter scoop which are vital tools for this job.
If this is not at hand, a child’s sandbox shovel does the job finely as well.
If you have an old kitchen spatula, you’re set to go.
It does a fine job too.
It poses zero damage to your gutters. Better yet, a gutter cleaning robot will do a perfect job for you.
4. Always spread a tarp underneath your working space.
This will help you collect dirt that falls on the space below.
It will help you maintain your lawn and landscaping tidy after the job.
5. Utilize A Hose
Once you are done removing dirt from the gutters, a garden hose will serve well to flush the cleaned gutters.
It serves well to flush out the remaining debris and finer dirt that may have been left in the event of cleaning.
Additionally, it will help you detect if your gutters had developed any leaks.
From then on, you can decide to do repairs or replacements and save the entire room from potential damage and risks.
6. Any Repairs?
Once your gutters are clean, do repairs on any sagging metal.
A gutter hanger does an incredible job as far as this is concerned.
Finally, if you are encountering cold weather, you will have to winterize your gutters.
How to Clean Small, Enclosed Manufactured Home Gutters
Cleaning enclosed gutters may seem a daunting task.
Indeed, it may prove difficult ousting debris like dry material on enclosed gutters.
However, with the right tools at hand, you will find this an easy task.
When dry leaves and crap deposit on and enclosed gutter, all you need to do is use a leaf blower.
A shop vacuum can also perfect the job. Get a screwdriver and use it to loosen hard and dry debris in the gutters.
Then proceed to blow or vacuum it.
To rid the gutter of the rest of the dry debris, run water through the gutter.
You will need to run water on it until the water is clear and clean. Birds can even build their nests on these spots. You will have to rid them too.
Also, consider using Dawn Dish soap and a brush.
Scrub it well and then use a hose to rinse it down. Insert a hose end on the opening and then push materials out till it is clear and clean.
Do I Have To Clean Covered Gutters?
There is no such thing as a maintenance-free gutter system.
Every gutter will call for clean-ups no matter the protection of it.
Whereas covers perfectly prevent debris from accumulating and filling up your gutters, smaller particles like seeds dropping from trees around the compound make their way through.
From experts, it is recommended to clean covered gutters at least once every two years. You will have to do it more often if your roof is under trees.
This may prompt you to get an expert since removing the guards and covers is a slightly delicate procedure.
A skilled technician knows exactly how to efficiently take off the guards and later on reinstall them.
A good gutter cleaner will go further and check your downspouts as well and ensure they are in proper conditions.
Five Gutter Cleaning Safety Measures
1. Protect your eyes
You never know what might fly into your unsuspecting eyes. So eye protection is a requisite.
There are real-life experiences of rats, frogs, wasps, bees and birds escaping at the slightest provocation.
The last thing you want them to do to you is an eye injury.
Appropriate eyeglasses and masked wears are highly recommended.
2. Clean the Roof
Clear all debris off the roof before you end your gutter cleaning job.
Else the next rains will wash them back to the clean gutters and reverse the whole thing clogging it up once more.
The deposition of debris on the roofs could also pose leaks problems on the roofs since water may log on them.
3. Put On Rubber Shoes
If your gutter cleaning will involve walking on rooftops, it is a nice idea to put on rubber-soled shoes.
They prevent potential slip since they adhere more strongly to the roofing.
It is also worth doing it after the sun is up since rooftops are often moist in the morning hours
4. Stay Aware Of Power Line Hazards
If you are cleaning gutters around a power cable, make sure it is not close to your body.
It is advisable to check it before you begin work to note if it has naked spots that may cause an electric shock.
If they are not fixed, do not dare clean they gutters till they are fixed
5. Protect Your Hands
Use gloves to protect your hands from dirt and rotten debris which may be infested by bacteria.
Gloves also protect your hands from potential cuts on the roof and gutters themselves.
Final Words
When filled will sticks, leaves and other debris, gutters get clogged and causes creeping of water under the roof and occasionally, into the foundation.
Worse still, ice dams build up on clogged gutters.
This has potential damage to the building and consequently poses life threats to the occupants of the building.
That’s why it is very important to keep your gutters clean and in proper conditions every so often.
It is also important in making your gutters more durable.
