Gutter Flushing Why is it Important
Gutter Flushing or downspout flushing is one of, if not the most important aspect of cleaning out gutters. We also recommend flushing all gutters completely at the end of the cleaning for a few reasons. To get granules out, ensure downspouts are clear, and fully clean so the next rain does not clog downspout. All this stems back to the damage that water can cause to your home if not addressed properly!
The Risks
Before we talk about why gutter flushing is important, we should explain why routine gutter cleaning is essential for your home.
- Preventing water damage: The primary function of gutters is to channel rainwater away from your roof and foundation. If your gutters are clogged with leaves, debris, or other materials, the water can overflow and cause damage to your home’s exterior, interior, and foundation.
- Avoiding insect infestation: Clogged gutters can also attract insects, such as mosquitoes and termites, that thrive in moist environments. These insects can be a nuisance and cause structural damage to your home.
- Maintaining the roof: Clogged gutters can also lead to water backing up under your roof shingles, which can cause damage and shorten the lifespan of your roof.
- Preventing mold and mildew growth: When water is not properly channeled away from your home, it can create a moist environment that promotes the growth of mold and mildew. These can cause health problems and damage to your home’s structure and surfaces.
Overall, regular gutter cleaning is an essential part of home maintenance to protect your home from water damage, insect infestations, roof damage, and mold growth.
Remove Roof Granules
Now that we have explained why gutter cleaning is important in general, we can go into why you should always flush gutters and downspouts. Roof granules are going to fall into the gutters over time. They can accumulate and weigh quite a bit, and eventually start to pull the gutter away from the fascia. This is a common problem we see in houses that do not have any trees around. As a result of not having trees it can be thought that
gutter cleaning is no longer necessary, and roof granules end up building up and pulling gutters away from fascia.
Ensure Downspouts are Clear
This is something we have discovered with experience and time gutter cleaning. Every once in a while, you will get a tricky downspout. If you flush directly on top of the downspout you can see the water come out the bottom, cleanly. This doesn’t always mean the downspouts are fully cleared. Often times it takes an excess of water to expose any clogs that may remain in the downspouts. What we mean by this is that just because water is flowing, doesn’t mean the entire downspout or elbow piece is clean. By running a lot of water down you can hear or see a back up in water and this will let you know that even though the water may be flowing, it is still backing up and needs to be addressed. This is why we always fully flush all gutters, because we have been able to identify clogs inside downspouts that we would have missed if we just put a little water down.
Remove All Debris
This one is just as important as the rest. If you clean out a gutter by hand or even blow it out, often times there is some debris, mud, or leaves laying in the gutters. There should not be a lot, but its not possible to get every last piece out by hand or blower. What is going to happen next time it rains? All the remaining debris is going to be flushed over to the downspout. Sometimes if it is not raining hard enough the debris will not be flushed all the way down but instead corrugate over the downspout, dry, and harden, resulting in a clogged downspout.
If you are searching for gutter flushing near you or a local gutter cleaning company it is our suggestion that you make sure they flush out gutters completely!! We believe this is one of the most important aspects of gutter cleaning. We have more videos that fully explain how we clean out gutters! We are a Overland Park Gutter Cleaning company wanting to serve all the KC Metro!
