Gutter Cleaning

Blocked gutters are one of those problems homeowners only think about when something goes wrong — usually a damp patch on an upstairs wall or water sheeting down the front of the house in a storm. By that point, the damage may already be costing more than the repair will. A scheduled gutter clean every year or two is one of the cheapest forms of building protection there is, and it takes us a fraction of the time you'd spend up a ladder doing it yourself.

We clear gutters, downpipes and outlets using high-reach industrial vacuum equipment, with cameras on the poles so we can see exactly what's coming out. No ladders against your walls, no risk of falling, and no muck dragged through the house — everything goes into the vacuum.

How our gutter cleaning works

Our gutter cleaning is done from the ground using telescopic carbon-fibre poles and an industrial wet/dry vacuum. The pole reaches up to around 12 metres comfortably, which covers the gutters of most three-storey houses. A small camera on the end of the pole feeds video to a screen at ground level, so we can see what we're doing and confirm the gutter is properly clear before moving on.

Anything in the gutter — leaves, moss, silt, ball-shaped nests, old roofing felt, the lot — gets sucked straight into the vacuum bin. There's no debris falling into your borders or onto your patio. Once the gutters are clear, we test downpipes by tipping water in and listening for the flow, or by using a pressure jet to clear any partial blockages further down.

Why gutters need clearing

Gutters fail when they overflow. The water that should run cleanly down to the drains starts spilling over the lip, running down the wall behind the gutter, getting under tiles, soaking into render and pooling against the foundations. The damage is usually invisible at first — staining on internal walls, peeling paint, a musty smell — and only becomes obvious months or years later when the cost is much higher.

Common causes of overflow are leaves and seeds (especially in autumn), moss falling off the roof (especially after we soft-wash a roof), nests, and slow build-up of grit and silt that turns into a moss-supporting layer.

What we check while we're up there

• Gutter sag — gutters slowly drift out of level over time, holding water in pockets.
• Loose joints — gutter junctions can leak; we report any that are dripping.
• Damaged brackets — broken or rusted brackets can let the gutter pull away from the fascia.
• Cracked sections — UV damage cracks plastic guttering after 15–20 years.
• Slipped tiles or missing flashing — we can't fix these but we'll flag them.
• Vegetation growing in the gutter — surprisingly common; small plants establish in the silt.

Downpipes and outlets

Downpipe blockages are the second biggest cause of overflow after gutter blockage. Leaves get sucked into the outlet at the top of the downpipe, form a ball, and water has nowhere to go but over the gutter lip. We clear downpipes by jetting from the top or by detaching and clearing manually if access allows.

Underground outlet pipes are a separate matter — see our drain unblocking page for full-length drain jetting.

How often should gutters be cleaned?

It depends on the property and the trees nearby. As a rough guide:

• Houses with no overhanging trees — every two years.
• Houses with mature trees within 10 metres — every year.
• Properties with overhanging trees or directly under woodland — twice a year (spring and late autumn).
• After a roof clean — always, because moss falls into the gutters during the clean.

We can set up a regular maintenance schedule and just turn up — no need for you to remember.

Commercial gutter cleaning

We carry out gutter cleaning on offices, schools, retail premises, factories and warehouses across the North East. For high-level commercial work we use cherry pickers, scaffold towers or rope-access teams as appropriate. We provide RAMS, public liability documentation and method statements for facilities managers and main contractors. See our commercial page for more.