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My neighbor said my gutter cleaning method was flooding my foundation, so I switched to clearing them from the downspout up.
He pointed out that pushing all the leaves and muck down from the top was just compacting it into the downspout, and now I start at the bottom with a hose after every big storm in Ohio City.
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stellanelson5mo ago
Oh man, that's exactly what happened to me! I was just shoving everything down from the roof and wondering why my basement smelled damp. My brother told me to try the hose from the bottom first, and it was a total game changer. Last fall, I pulled out a solid block of wet leaves from the downspout base that was like a clogged drain. Now I check after every heavy rain, and it takes five minutes.
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patricialee5mo ago
Yeah, the bottom-up hose trick is KEY. But what really got me was checking the actual gutter slope. My house had a spot where water just pooled because the angle was off. It wasn't about leaves, the water couldn't even GET to the downspout. A few bent hangers and it drains perfectly now. Sometimes the problem is hiding in plain sight.
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milesbailey5mo ago
Ever think to just cut out the downspout base screen entirely? They're leaf traps. @stellanelson had the right idea blasting from the bottom, but that screen at the bottom just holds everything he pulled out. Mine kept clogging until I ripped it off. Now the water and whatever small stuff gets through just washes out onto the lawn. No more blocks.
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