Cleaning Out Your Gutters

Raise your hand if you like cleaning that nasty sludge out of your gutters and downspouts……

No hands then huh?

That’s because this job is beyond gross. Nobody in their right mind would want to touch that stuff even with a glove on. The problem is, sooner or later you have to do it, or pay someone else to. If those gutters go untouched for a long period of time, you will have big time trouble like leaky roofs, flooded yards, or even damage to your foundation due to moisture spilling over the sides of your gutters and settling around the base of your home, or even worse, seeping in. If you let it go until winter time, you will get humongous icicles, and if you are lucky, a large dam of icy snow at the edge of your roof that melts from underneath, and can lead to leaky roofs. Decaying leaves, roofing material, twigs, dirt and other debris are notorious for settling in your gutters. Once there is enough in there, it will block water flow and cause your gutters to fill and spill, rather than direct water along a path and down the downspout. Now you can’t see this debris from the ground, so most of us end up finding out that it is in there only after a clog is obvious.

Many of us avoid the hassle of gutter maintenance at all costs, but you can’t really blame us can you? It is a real pain, even on a standard house. Try it on a fancier design with multiple levels and roof portions, and it can be a whole day chore. You will need a large ladder to get every one clean, and most likely you will be spending a good portion of the time perched on the roof, or clinging to a wall. It is risky to say the least, and lots of us don’t even have a ladder to begin with. Of the folks that do, a portion are either afraid of heights, deterred by the nastiness, or otherwise unwilling to climb up on the roof.

Once you get yourself up there you are faced with only a couple of options. You either pull that muck out with your hands, or use some sort of tool to do the digging for you. Either way it is a time consuming and difficult task. Now if the dirt grime and leaves are new, it is not that bad of a job, but if it has been there for a while, you are in for a difficult mess. Some of you out there may be rich enough to get one of those gutter cleaning robots, or call in a professional cleaning company, but the rest of us are pretty much on our own when it comes to cleaning out the gutters. Lucky for us though, there is a tool that can make the job easier, save time, and prevent your fingers from feeling that squishy blockage.

The Ultimate Water Blaster ^[1] is an ideal tool for gutter maintenance, but the nice thing about it is  you will find many other uses for it too. Although it is nice to have the perfect tool for the job, it kind of sucks to be stuck purchasing a tool that you will only use once a year. That’s what makes this one so great. You can use it for blasting debris out of your gutters and downspouts, but also for spraying off sidewalks, decks and driveways, washing vehicles, powering dirt off your siding and so much more. It is a versatile sprayer that is powerful, telescoping, and able to angle water in any direction.

HOW TO USE IT
Simply hook it up to any standard garden hose and you are ready to clean. It has a valve at the base of the extension wand that allows you to adjust the flow, or turn the tool off. This means that you can turn the water on full blast at the spigot, but retain control as you move around your house. This will save water, reduce annoyances, and allow you to complete the job in less time. The long pole is made from sturdy aluminum, so it is strong, but lightweight. Anyone can handle it for long periods of time without straining or tiring out. It is a pretty long handle as is, but give it a twist and it can go even longer. When held in your hand at maximum length, you can reach gutters that are more than 15-20 feet away. This will allow you to reach your gutters without climbing on the roof or even using a ladder in most cases.

So why not just use a hose, or a regular old watering wand? Good question. That’s because we haven’t even talked about the best feature of this tool. The thing that really sets this device apart from the rest is the dual rotating heads at the end. Double spray nozzles deliver tons of water in a powerful fan spray pattern to cover lots of space, and allow you to clear gutters in little time. Each one is encased in rubber to protect what you are spraying as well as the nozzles themselves.

You will never scratch up or ruin anything, and you can be sure that the nozzles won’t get clogged or damaged as you work. With these rotating nozzles, you can stand on the ground to clean out your gutters. Just hold the Ultimate Water Blaster ^[1]up with the spray heads pointed down to deliver a powerful stream of water right down into your gutters. Leaves, sticks and other debris will fly out, or scoot along to wash out the downspout thanks to this powerful stream and your ability to angle it right where it is needed.

In order to completely free your gutters of any clogs, you will want to start at the downspout. Point the nozzles down over the spout to clear the hole, and force anything stuck in the pipe to wash out. Once the blockage is cleared from the downspout, you can proceed to wash out the remainder of the gutter. If you start at the other end, you will just be creating a bigger pile at the pipe, so the job can become more difficult. If you clear an exit first, you will be able to quickly wash down any debris along the full length of your gutters.

After the exit is cleared out, start at the opposite end, and begin spraying. You can adjust the angle of the spray depending upon the exact configuration and your height. For most gutter cleaning tasks, you will want to use it at full blast, so turn the lever to allow for maximum spray. Work from one end to the other with the blaster, and continue spraying until the whole thing is free of clogs, and the water running out of the spout is crystal clear. If you experience blockage during the cleaning process you can spray out the downspout again to break it up and allow water to flow again, and you can even spray up from the bottom if necessary. Put the nozzles right up next to clogs for maximum force, or back the nozzles away to get a different angle or cover more area.

The Ultimate Water Blaster ^[1] is one of the easiest and least messy ways to clean out your gutters. It makes the job quick and easy, and in many cases will allow you to do it without the use of a ladder. You will be able to reach any single story gutter while standing on the ground, and you will be able to get to those hard to reach ones that were unreachable even while using a ladder before. Forget about climbing on the roof, or sticking your arm in up to your elbow. This tool does all of the dirty work for you, so that you will have clean, free flowing gutters without calling in the professionals, or paying the neighbor’s kid to risk his life up on your roof.

Get this tool to have the easiest way to clean your gutters, but use it all year long for other jobs too. Turn the spray to just a trickle to water hanging plants or deliver water to the back of the garden without tromping plants. Use it to easily reach the top of vans and trucks for hand washing, or switch the angle to spray out underneath to remove mud or road salt. It works like a charm for washing vinyl siding. Simply turn it full blast to wash away dirtiness, and be able to reach every piece of your house thanks to the super long handle. Because it delivers a powerful spray in a fan pattern, this tool is also ideal for cleaning decks and washing down sidewalks and driveways. You will love to have it around for clearing out clogged gutters, but don’t think that it will just sit idle when that job is done. This is a powerful outdoor tool, that can make many jobs easier around your home.

Ultimate Water Blaster ^[1]