Once or twice a year, it's a good idea to put on your work gloves, get on a ladder and clean out your gutters and downspouts. If your gutters are clogged, rain runoff won't drain properly. Water can overflow the gutters and cause serious structural damage to your foundation over time. In addition, a gutterful of water is very heavy and can damage the fascia boards on your roof. Don't use a putty knife to clean your gutters: its sharp edges can gouge the gutter material. A rubber or plastic kitchen spatula works well, but the best tools are your hands. Dry gutters are fairly easy to clean. If your gutters are full of muck and mud, clean them with a homemade gutter scooper (figure A). To make one, cut the bottom off an empty 1/2-gallon milk jug, laundry-detergent bottle or other plastic container that has a handle. You'll need a place to put leaves and dirt from the gutter. What better place than a bucket that hangs on the side of the gutter (figure B)? To make a gutter bucket, cut a bucket handle in two, right in the middle, with wire cutters. Bend both ends over so you can hang the bucket on the gutter. When you're done cleaning, add the leaves to your compost pile. If you find an area that can't be easily cleaned, use a wire brush or a nylon scouring pad. Be sure to check for holes or other damage as you go along the gutters. When you've removed the majority of the gutter waste, rinse out the remaining debris with a garden hose (figure C). If it's been a while since you've cleaned your gutters, you probably have clogged downspouts (figure D). Use a plumber's snake (figure E) to clean out the downspouts if you can't reach the clog by hand. Start cleaning from the top of the downspout. If that doesn't work, try cleaning from the bottom. You may have to dismantle the downspout to remove the clog. When the downspout is clear, flush it with a garden hose. If you can't stand cleaning gutters, you can take some preventive measures. First, you can install a downspout guard (figure F), which prevents large debris from going down the downspout. Gutter protectors (figure G) are great for keeping out leaves and debris. Just clip them to the outer part of the gutter, fold them over, and tuck them under the shingles. Now that your gutters are clean, make sure they're draining properly. Use a plastic or concrete diverter (figure H) under the bottom of the downspout to prevent the water from eroding the ground below. You can also use flexible black drainage tubing (figure I) to route the water away from the house.
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