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 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.