November 27, 2015

Technical Gutter Cleaning – The Spoon

Gutter SpoonsWhat do we use? Gutter Spoons. Now this might look like its one step away from a salad spoon from the kitchen drawer, but it really is the most effective solution.  To use the spoon, you need to be above the gutter, so you have an unobstructed view of what is going on. Its much easier to ensure that the system is working. Second, it allows our technicians to quickly remove a large amount of material from a gutter, but with the added advantage of being able to reach deep into its corners and crevices. Finally, its light: we can use spoons while walking on the roof, or on top of a ladder. .

James & Gutter Spoon
Rocks in Roof Channel
September 22, 2015

We Know Your Pain! Success With Gutter Maintenance & The Service Call

As a property manager, I’m sure you’ve seen an urgent phone or email like this before:
“My building’s gutters are overflowing!”
You want to be a hero for your building, but you need the tools to provide the quick, painless solutions. You have questions: Who will take care of it? Can they come before the next storm? Can they investigate and report back with the result? What will it cost?
Some of you may know (or be on) ServiceMaster’s gutter maintenance program: it is the answer for all those questions. A crew will be dispatched to the problem before escalates further, where we will investigate situation and report back with a solution. You can have the confidence that it will be sorted out quickly, and the best part: the cost is included in the package. Thus you have cost certainty for the next 12 months.
We have revamped our gutter care program for 2015 & 2016 to now include a Standard Gutter Cleaning PLUS six Service Calls included for 12 months after the initial cleaning (A Potential Value $ 900.00). 
WHAT IS A SERVICE CALL? 
WE SEND OUT A CREW TO ATTEND & INVESTIGATE TO PROBLEMATIC AREAS THAT YOU REPORT TO US. GENERALLY LIMITED TO SPECIFIC AREAS, COVERS UP TO 1 HOUR ON SITE.

So what should you look out for when considering a gutter maintenance program? First use a contractor that has the ability & capacity to perform over 12 months, not a seasonal exterior cleaning business. Second, look for a contractor that uses technology in the field to provide real time information: this will help to ensure you get the fastest service possible. Finally you should look for a company who cares about the gutter health of your building and has a vested interest. We do all of those things, and that’s the ServiceMaster difference.

September 22, 2015

How will this year’s weather affect Gutter Cleaning at your buildings?

The weather this year has been unusual to say the least, with a summer drought leading to Stage 3 Water restrictions.  Because of this we are the proud owners of a 3000-gallon water tank that we used to assist with the cleaning we undertook over the summer.
So what does the unusual summer weather mean for gutter cleaning? Simple; we have a lot of very dry trees around the lower mainland, which have been further weakened by the recent storms. It is evident that more leaves and branches will fall this year than in previous years.
Many of our customers have thought that they should wait to clean our gutters until all the leaves have fallen to get the most value for money from their service. In some cases this is true and in most not. It is not because nobody can predict when heavy rains will come and when all the leaves will fall. This is especially true given we are in an El Nino year, which may lead to an warmer, wetter fall and winter. When the gutter system is not ready for the heavy rains, major problems occur: blockages, breakages, interior floods, and foundation problems. However, every building has different needs, which may not be easy to identify. Some gutters can be cleaned once a year and some need to be twice. It all depends on a host of factors, such as the system’s design, its integrity and the amount of foliage in the area.
So what should you do? Ask us. Our team has been cleaning gutters in the lower mainland for over 20 years and possesses deep experience in identifying a building’s requirement. We’ll put together a plan and give you an estimate, which will provide real value for you and the strata members that you represent.
December 10, 2014

Another Day in Vancouver, Success With Gutter Maintenance Programs

If you’re looking outside your window today in the Lower Mainland, chances are you are being treated to the effects of another pacific storm, which is dumping buckets of rain and blowing around anything that is not nailed down. Its goes without saying that we’re seeing more storms, with greater severity and longer durations.

Moreover in the last two years we’ve seen longer, warmer summers. That means trees often grow more foliage and they stay on branches for longer. Whereas Vancouverites once saw leaves drop from trees in September and into early October, now they may only start turning colours in October and drop in November (if not later.)

These climatic changes pose a serious challenge for strata buildings. Harsher storms create more debris, including nettles and broken branches that can create stubborn blockages in gutter downspouts. This means keeping your gutters clean now require more than just a one visit by a cleaner… several service calls are required to keep them clean.

Our gutter maintenance programs are tailored for the seasonal patterns in the west coast. We come once a year and do a full gutter cleaning around your building(s) and send you a report. Often we will identify problem areas where problems may reoccur. In addition, programs come with unlimited service calls, just in case new debris fouls the downspout again. We think this provides excellent value for money, as the cost of a cleaning + an unexpected secondary cleaning with another company is greater than our program with the service call. Its a little bit insurance that can be all the difference in the unsettled weather we face in Vancouver.

October 27, 2014

Customer Success with gutter maintenance programs!

customer_support_to_sucessOur job at ServiceMaster Clean Residential is to make our customers successful; end of story. However our “customer” is not a single entity. In reality there are two. The first is the property managers and then there are the buildings and their residents. While you are there to represent the interest of the buildings, they also have their own needs that must be taken care of.

ServiceMaster’s gutter maintenance programs are an example of how we enable both to have success when it comes to dealing with their gutter systems throughout the year. Lets go through many of the stories that we encounter. You ask us for a quote, you select the gutter maintenance option on behalf of your strata. For this your building benefits from a higher level of service, one of the benefits being service calls included after the initial cleaning of the gutters.

Our production team cleans the gutters at your building provides a completion report on the overall condition, which often includes some pictures or video footage. Unfortunately, gutter cleaning in the lower mainland is not a one-time event. As a rainforest with large numbers of coniferous and evergreen trees that shed needles year around, drains can become plugged all throughout the year. So its not uncommon to have someone from a building call a few months after a clean about a badly overflowing gutter, and how the world is going to end if its not dealt with ASAP.

Your next move is where the success truly happens for both you and that building.

You contact us, we respond within an hour and we dispatch a crew soon after. They attend to the area, rectify the problem and provide a report we then forward to you (and you can forward to the affected building). It should also be mentioned that you wont be getting an invoice for the service call, so at the end of the year your budget number will be your actual, not an initial service and multiple services afterwards.

This leads to success, for both you and the building you represent, which is what we are in the business to do.

For more information on gutter our gutter maintenance programs please click here

September 17, 2014

The Evolution of Gutter Cleaning Services – Gutter Cleaning Program Care

Overflowing GutterIn order to maintain a healthy business relationship, both sides must feel good about a service agreement; the purchaser and the service provider.  This can be especially challenging with gutter cleaning based on expectations for results of the service.  Can one visit in the fall to clean the gutters at a strata ensure that they are functioning properly until the same time next year?  Sometimes.  But often, this is not the case.  This is due to the differences between cleaning gutters and other services.   This has led to us to:

The Evolution of Gutter Cleaning Services

Most service providers offer a 1 X Gutter cleaning service.  In fact, in the GVRD, this is what most property  managers expect  is the only option that they are able to find for gutter cleaning.  However, in 2009, ServiceMaster Clean Residential introduced a higher level of service in order to meet the actual demands of gutter maintenance around the GVRD.  We believe this is the next step in the evolution of gutter cleaning service.  It has been met with great success over the years.

We realized that the same issues arose each year during gutter cleaning season and determined it was time to do something to address that.  So we took a look at what we routinely faced.  We found this necessary in order to ensure both we as the service provider and our customers felt good about the service arrangement.

We found the most common issues are:

-Small areas around a strata needing extra attention, or getting clogged up weeks or months after the initial service was performed.
– Minor issues that due to repair work needed rather than cleaning
-Strata’s not knowing what was done or not, as gutters can be difficult to see inside.
-Understanding what a ‘clean gutter’ is. (Click here for an article on what a clean gutter is)

We found that the approach most people had to addressing any issue with their gutters, was to phone our office and demand that we come back as we had ‘not done the job right.’

While everyone makes mistakes  and sometimes things might get overlooked during a service, we found that in the majority of these instances were related to one or more of the four issues outlined above.  So in many cases we would do a spot clean for the customer for free, or, clean the area but take photos proving it had been cleaned previously and then charging for the time, or, insist we needed to meet someone on site in order to show them that other problems existed that required repair and could not be fixed with cleaning.   No matter what both sides were not left feeling good about the way things unfolded.  And that’s not the way we want to do business.  We want our customers to feel great about using our company for services.  So what we needed was a way to address the reality of the situation so that everyone felt respected, valued, and treated fairly.  We did this by adding additional levels of service for low cost in our ‘Gutter Cleaning Maintenance Program’ offering.

Includes all Standard Gutter Cleaning PLUS

  • 6 SERVICE CALLS INCLUDED FOR 12 MONTHS AFTER INITIAL CLEANING (Potential Value $ 900.00)
  • INVESTIGATE and REPORT ON ANY ISSUES DISCOVERED
  1. SERVICE CALLS – By including 6 free spots cleans, our customers know we are dedicated to taking care of their ongoing needs, and that we understand a 1x visit to clean gutters does not always provide enough attention to keep gutters functioning properly throughout the year.  We anticipate that new clogs can and do happen, and are prepared to fix them as they come up over time.  We also look at the bigger picture to  determine how best to ensure that the customers gutter systems are maintained.

    Do new problems arise because a section of the strata has gutters in heavily treed areas?  Did the first service get done early in the season, and a lot of leaves fell after that service was complete?  Did a gutter get plugged up because some kids playing with tennis balls sent one up into the gutter that plugged the top of the downspout?  It doesn’t matter what the reason – we’ll take care of it, quickly, and at no additional charge when a strata has chosen a Gutter Maintenance Program.

    Does this mean we have less incentive to ‘do it right the first time’?  Absolutely not!  Every trip to a strata costs us in fuel and labour charges.  We don’t want to have to go back.  But we also want our customers resting assured that we will if necessary to take care of them.  That builds a stronger business relationship, and leads to approaching problem situations with a spirit of cooperation and understanding.

  2. Report Any Issues Discovered

This focuses primarily on providing information regarding the gutter system beyond our ability to address.  If there are areas that are off-slope and need to be adjusted, we can inform the strata.  We’re also looking for areas of heavy damage, areas which were not installed properly, or areas that are not functioning well due to overtaxing their capacity (may need another downspout installed, etc.)

This information can then be used if strata chooses to adjust their system so that its function is improved

So how can we afford to include all this extra work and service visits?

We charge a small amount more than for a regular gutter cleaning service, yet one additional service call could be $250-$475 at regular price.   We can afford to offer this to our customers because with such a large pool of customers each paying a bit more for the full maintenance plan, those who need it can benefit.  It’s like insurance; not everyone needs to use all of their service calls, and we can draw upon the pool to ensure our workers are paid for their time.  We also grow our business because our customers know we put them first, even if it may cost us a little.   That’s something very important to us; great customer relationships.

So if your strata’s haven’t considered a gutter cleaning maintenance program, they should take a look at the option.  It’s a solution to the real world issues faced during gutter cleaning to ensure that everyone wins.

September 17, 2014

What Is A Clean Gutter?

cleaned gutterGutters exist for function, not beauty. So when a service company is hired to clean the gutters on your building, it is to ensure that they are able to perform their function properly, not to ensure that they look good.

The challenge then for a strata when they hire a service provider like this Residential Roofing company in Denver to clean their gutters is: how do they know that they got good value for their money? What is a ‘clean gutter’?

Let’s consider all aspects of that as it relates to gutter cleaning and see if you agree.

Function

Gutters exist around the edge of building rooflines to direct the rainfall in a safe manner away from the home. If water fell all around the edge of the roof around the building, then landscaping would be ruined, and the foundation potentially damaged. You may then have to contact a home repair firm similar to the ones that provide foundation repair in Central Missouri or in your vicinity to repair the damaged foundation. So, in order to avoid this, the gutters help direct the flow of rainwater away from the building in a safe manner.

Cleaning a gutter allows for this function to continue.

Therefore, a dirty gutter or a gutter that requires service is a gutter that has its function impeded. Gutter cleaning is to remove those impediments to function.

When leaves and other debris fall into a gutter trough, they can restrict the flow of water through the gutter channel or possibly choke it off completely. This causes the gutter to fill with water and overflow, leading to the type of scenario the gutter was installed to eliminate in the first place. It can also clog downspouts with the same result. So the leaves, debris, and other items must be removed by the cleaning service such as Clean Pro Gutter Cleaning BIrmingham or a similar company in the required location, to allow the water to flow through the channel, down the downspout, and away.

If the debris has been removed and water can flow freely, then looking down into the gutter channel should reveal a gutter trough free of impediments; not necessarily a gutter trough that looks clean.

“Looking Dirty”

This is where a lot of confusion arises. Usually, when we clean something, it is to keep the area or item sanitary, and improve appearance. The challenge is that this is not the way we need to judge a gutter cleaning service. If all of the impediments to function have been removed from a gutter trough, it may still ‘look dirty’ (see pic above). There may be algae scum adhered to the sides of the trough, or a thin layer of silt or dirt still clinging to the inside. However, if the proper function of the gutter has been restored, the the gutter is ‘clean’, or ‘fixed’, or returned to its proper state. The aesthetic appearance doesn’t matter because it doesn’t affect the function of the gutter at all. Anything remaining in the trough may look dirty, but a gutter doesn’t need to be disinfected or look good to function well. And, if it were cleaned to the point where it does look good, then the extra labor time and cost to get it to that state is essentially wasted money on the part of the purchaser of the service. Why pay extra to over perform in an unnecessary manner? After all, rainwater will strike the roof surface and carry surface dirt and sediment down and into the gutter the next time it rains. In very short order, the gutter won’t look good again. But really, what does it matter? We don’t want to look out into our gutters, we just want them to work.

Value/Quality of Service vs. Function

Some stratas want the inside or outside of the gutters to ‘look good’. On the outside, this can make sense if it improves the overall appearance of the building. But this type of aesthetic clean should not be confused with what is commonly referred to in the industry as a gutter cleaning service (for function). Combining this type of cleaning with an inside clean or cleaning of siding may make sense, but don’t expect a regular gutter cleaning service to include an aesthetic clean. As discussed, it isn’t necessary, and so should be considered an additional option for which the purchaser is paying extra.

Here’s a suggested breakdown to look at gutter cleaning.

1x Cleaning Service For Function.

This is a ‘standard’gutter cleaning. It includes cleaning the inside of all of the gutter trough on the building for function. All impediments to rainwater collection and flow should be removed.

Additional Levels of Service

Additional cost should be considered for adding any of the following:

-Aesthetic clean of the inside of the gutter trough
-Aesthetic clean of the outside of the gutter trough
-More than one visit
-Repair work to gutters (refastening downspouts, recalling seams, realigning gutters that are no longer sloped properly to drain, etc.)

If a purchaser considers a standard 1x gutter cleaning should include any of the above, then the price would go up. If after accepting a quote for service, a purchaser insists that any of those items be included, then the provider will feel that they have underpriced the work, and not want to perform the additional work above the definition of a 1x gutter clean. Setting expectations before work begins is therefore paramount.

New Issues Arising After A Gutter Cleaning Service Is Complete

What about a clog or problem arising after a 1 x gutter cleaning service has been performed? If water is seen to be overflowing over the side of a gutter, does that mean that the service wasn’t performed right and the service provider should come back at their own cost to fix the problem? Does it mean the job wasn’t done right?

Perhaps. The answer is not yes in all situations however.

Factors to consider:

-time since the initial service was complete
-condition of the gutters (a repair may be necessary)
-slope of the gutters (trough may be sitting on an angle which doesn’t allow for proper drainage.

Time

If within days a gutter is overflowing again in heavy rainfall, then yes, a service provider should inspect the gutter system to ensure that nothing was missed. At the same time, the cause of the overflow should be discovered and reported so that the situation can be rectified.

If several weeks or months have passed however, and a gutter overflows, then it cannot be immediately assumed to have been a flaw with the original service. The gutter should be checked to see if a section was missed during the initial service. In some cases, the house owner may even require Gutters replacement services. However, in most situations, the cause will be that new debris has fallen into the gutter causing a clog. This happens because:

-trees shed their leaves at different times during the autumn
-most gutter cleaning services in our region cannot be timed perfectly between when all leaves have fallen and prior to water in gutters freezing, so there are always new leaves which may cause potential clogs in future.
-pine trees shed their leaves throughout the year, and can cause new gutter clogs at any time
-heavy wind, rain, and other inclement weather can blow debris onto roofs which then gets washed down by rain into the gutter system, causing clogs.

In order to address the issue of new problems arising around a strata after an initial service, ServiceMaster Clean Residential introduced our “Gutter Cleaning Program” service, which benefits our customers by including 3 free service calls for a year after the initial cleaning service, to address these issues when they arise. (See next article below for more details). Problem areas do present themselves periodically, and this has proven itself to be an effective method of addressing those issues.

So, a clean gutter is a gutter that is performing its function properly, based no being in good repair and free of impediments.

September 16, 2013

Gutter Cleaning “This Means War”

Gutter Cleaning – This Means War

multitude of gutter issuesWe talk strategy regarding scheduling your gutter cleaning. Pre-emptive strike, the full scale ‘storm the beach’ attack, or a customized plan to defeat the onslaught of rain this fall and winter.
Gutter cleaning.

It’s like a war, and although I don’t usually like talking in war metaphors, for the sake of this article, I’m settling in the trenches for some real, honest talk about the yearly battle against the onslaught of rain, and the efforts made by your strata’s gutter systems to keep it contained and flowing away from your building’s properly. After all, you don’t want it spilling over and digging trenches at the foundation, or attacking the decks and entrance ways of the units.

If it does, you’ll be sure to hear screaming from those unit owners on the front line.

So, let’s take a look at how we traditionally approach this, and what works and what doesn’t. After all, if you want to achieve success, it is better to have the proper plan in place to win the battle.

Standard Service – 1 X Cleaning

“Storm the Beach”

Usually, this doesn’t work well.

A one time gutter clean is like throwing all of your resources at the battlefront at one time, hoping to eliminate all possible enemies you’re combating and win the war in one rush. The problem with this strategy is that the enemy is fighting a 12 month battle.

Issues With The Plan:

Timing

If the timing is off, this is pretty much guaranteed not to work. For gutter cleaning, this means if your strike doesn’t happen once the majority of leaves that may fall and plug the gutters haven’t happened, your efforts may be defeated in the near future by more leaves falling and filling the gutters. Too late, and water in the gutter troughs may freeze, not only making it nearly impossible to pull the leaves and debris out, but expanding the trough and potentially causing damage due to the excess weight, and swelling on the joints which damages caulking.

Reserves

If there is anything being held back, your efforts will be defeated. If we picture the trees as the enemy, they don’t all drop their leaves at once; different species shed at different rates and temperatures, and pine trees shed their needles year round.

To gutters, that means if there are any leaves left on the trees waiting to fall, there are potential clogs that may happen once the service is complete. That is why it could be a good idea to call someone similar to Phoenix Arborist who can remove the tree–Remove The Cause , The Effect Will Be Automatically Gone!

Instead of cleaning the gutter every time a leaf falls from the tree, consider opting for a better strategy (maybe something like removing the tree)!

Honestly, isn’t it time for a new battle plan?

Counter with your own reserves & strategy

Gutter Cleaning Program Care

This is why our gutter cleaning program was created. To win this war, we have changed the strategy to maximize the success rate.

Our plan; clean the entire system. However, have in reserve the ability to call in pre-paid and agreed to additional spot cleans to deal with those new problems that arise. Ever see a war movie where those in the trenches are begging the guy with the radio back pack to call in an air strike to come to the rescue?

This is your air strike – And we give you three of them with the program.
(We can adjust and have more than 3 where we think certain buildings will need them)

We also provide minor repair work to ensure the system is maintained, and can give you photo reports of any issues found. You see, we want you to win this war, and if you choose to recruit us, we want to help put the best, most effective strategy to win in place.

That’s why we have our technicians waiting to rush back in and solve problems as they arise at stratas on a gutter maintenance program. Those that see the value of this battle plan can have us swiftly strike the areas and eradicate the issues, getting the system running smoothly again, and working with the strata to win the war; without strata needing to worry about the cost.

Isn’t it expense?

Not really. We typically add only a small amount, less than one service call, on to the cost of a regular one time gutter clean. (Typical added cost for a program vs one time is $ 200.00 to $400.00)

So why isn’t everyone doing this?

Good Question

Timing Of The First Attack:

Schedule the first attack of the gutter cleaning based on your strata’s needs ahead of the start of the war. Don’t play the waiting game, study the enemy so you know the nature of its’ attack, and plan accordingly.

RECCOMENDED CLEANING TIME

Foliage Above Gutter System
Low Early Fall (Sept, Oct)
Medium Mid Fall (Oct, Nov)
High Late Fall Winter (Dec, Jan)
Extreme * Early Fall and Late Winter
* Some buildings require two cleaning services due to high amount of foliage, and varying type of species which shed through out the year.

If there aren’t many trees able to send leaves down into your gutters, then most likely the accumulation that has happened throughout the year can be removed prior to the start of the heavy rains. Booking your service early in the season ensures it gets done before service providers are swamped and the strata is left waiting until late in the war, as the troops are engaged elsewhere. You want to avoid the freezing problem – get the cleaning done early.

However, on the other end of the spectrum, if there are a lot of trees, especially of different species poised to plug up your system, it is better to wait until later so that as many of those leaves have come down as possible.
This is no guarantee of success, but the odds are more in your favour.

So based on results we’ve all seen year after year, isn’t it better to have a more robust battle plan? Don’t expect to win the war with one rush, but consider a measured, calculated, repeat approach that will eradicate the enemy over time; consider a program.

September 18, 2012

“After All The Leaves Have Fallen” Timing Your Gutter Cleaning Service

A lot of property managers ask us to schedule cleaning of gutters at their stratas ‘after all the leaves have fallen’. While this is an understandable request (logic dictates it should minimize risk of re-plugging and reclogging gutters), actually, this request is often an impossible one.

Why?

Trees lose their leaves at different times.

Oak trees hang on for a long time, all other deciduous trees are impacted by direct environmental factors, evergreen shed their needles slowly year round)

When it can be considered to have happened may be different for every neighborhood around the GVRD.

 Trees on a street in kitsilano will at a different rate than those in Burnaby, clusters may lose their leaves more slowly than solo standing trees, trees in the shade faster than those on the sunny side of the buildings, etc.

By the time that ALL the leaves have fallen, any standing water in your gutter system may be frozen, preventing gutters from being cleaned.

 In late December or January, all the leaves may have fallen off finally, but now are embedded in ice in the gutter trough.

Supply and Demand

If several hundred stratas all wait, then demand to be cleaned at the same time, a lot of frustrated stratas around going to be waiting in line to get their gutter cleaning done. Those stratas that have scheduled their cleaning in advance will get theirs done first.  If you want the exactly same thing as everyone else, at the same time as everyone else, how likely are you to get it without standing in line? With demand that suddenly high, there is a strain on supply.

So how do we address this?

We all want the same thing, after all: happy tenants, proper functioning of gutter systems, so more serious problems don’t develop due to malfunction, the fewest headaches possible dealing with this situation.

At ServiceMaster, we’ve approached the challenge a few different ways, and so far here’s what we’ve found works:

Early Season Cleaners

Stratas with few trees around them can be serviced early. And the ‘unwritten rule’ in our office has been: in exchange for easing the strain on the schedule by letting us do your strata’s gutter cleaning early, if there are problem areas later in the fall we’ll come back free of charge and deal with it.   We’re happy to discuss this and confirm it on a case by case basis.

If you only have a minimal amount of trees around your strata, it is a good idea to get the gutter cleaning done early. That way you can be sure the system is functioning before the heavy rain hits. Any strata we do early, we are good about going back at no extra charge to address any issues from leaves falling after the service. You’re doing everyone a favour, we appreciate the easing up on our schedule, so we’ll take care of it.

If your strata is surrounded by mostly coniferous (evergreen) trees, get your gutters cleaned thoroughly in the early fall season. These trees shed their needles year round. There will be needles in the gutters in the early fall. If you’re forced to wait, the problem will only be worse after heavy rain. So be an “Early Season Cleaner” – let us service the system in October, and then if it needs a little extra later in the fall, call us and we’ll take care of it.

Gutter Cleaning Programs

This is like insurance. We offer a ‘program care’ gutter cleaning service which for only a small amount more includes 3 or more spot cleans at your stratas to address new issues that arise after a cleaning.  Since we have introduced this offering, it has met with tremendous success for stratas.

If you get a complete gutter cleaning service done, and a month later there is a new issue, this does not mean that the job wasn’t done properly. Rain carrying debris of the roof, wind, newly fallen leaves; any of these things can cause new issues quickly. With the program care we’ll come back and spot clean at no extra charge.

So, with a program, you don’t need to worry that every leaf around the strata has fallen. If something comes up, we’ll deal with it. No hassle, no problem, and promptly – at any time for a full year after the initial cleaning. Your minor repairs are covered as well. You can eliminate the guess work and just rest assured the gutter system will be looked after.

Priority Booking

Customers who have an Annual Service Agreement or Annual Project Agreement for their gutter cleaning services go into the schedule first. They’ve agreed to get their cleaning done at the same price as last year, and we book them in the priorty time slots before  everyone else thinks to call and get their work scheduled.  Latecomers end up going to the back of the line due to necessity: supply and demand.  When every gutter cleaning company is the GVRD is swamped, calling up and asking for the work to be done tomorrow really isn’t realistic.  We take care of those customers as best we can. However, if you want to jump to the head of the line, get platinum quality service, and have peace of mind, the best gutter cleaning service in the city would come from having a gutter program on an annual service agreement.

In summary: No One Knows The Date That All The Leaves Will Have Fallen.  It doesn’t really exist.  If it did, I’d point to it on the calendar and not even think about gutters unitl the day before.  But let’s be honest: this is a best guess scenario.  Often times, freezing water standing in the gutters isn’t taken into consideration for that guess.  So working with us to provide the best service possible for your stratas can be a strategic game plan, rather than a guessing game.   We invite you to strategize with us, and to make use of the tools we offer while striving to give you the best service possible.

Misaligned Gutters
February 23, 2012

Gutter Issues At Your Stratas

We find many examples of what causes leaking, overflowing, and plugged up gutters when performing gutter cleaning services around the GVRD. The majority of cases are what is most common; troughs clogged up with leaves. In some cases, because different species of tree shed their leaves at different times of the year, a spot clean was necessary. However, this first example below is what happens if a strata decides not to clean for a while.

Example Pics Series #1 – Why Gutters Should Be Cleaned Every Year.

Full Gutters At Strata

Example Pics Series #2 – Rusted Out Gutters

Rusted Gutters: something has eaten holes right through the metal of these gutter systems. Acid Rain? Aliens? What has caused this? The dripping water is obviously not related to the quality of the cleaning service.

Rusted Out Gutters

Example Pics Series #3 – Misalignment, Off-Slope, and Plugged Underground

At this strata, we found a variety of issues were troubling many spots. The pic on the top left has a misaligned downspout. Because of the structure built around below it, the downspout could not be realigned at the top and reconnected. We had no way to fix this issue, and whenever water runs through this part of the gutter system, it will leak out over the wall unless that wood is ripped out, the gutter fixed, and then the wall put back in properly. In the second pic with the red circle, water is bubbling up from underground. Because the downspout is behind a wall, we have no way to get into that area to try and unclog it. And in the 3rd pic on the bottom, the slope of this carport roof is so off, during a heavy rain the water flows over the corner rather than draining out the hole and down.

Misaligned Gutters

And last but not least – who has been throwing stones into the roof channel? Birds? Teenagers? How did these get up there?

Rocks in Roof Channel

Investigation into reoccurring gutter problems can reveal many things. We enjoy working together to identify the problem, solve those we can, and give recommendations in order to avoid the same headaches in the years ahead.