Posted in : Blog: All About Gutters and Home Maintenance
Of course it depends on if you have a house with a steep roof or not. We suggest a good sturdy ladder with ladder standouts. Standouts for ladders help greatly with stability. A long pole with a gutter scoop so you can clean out at least 6' left or right of where your ladder is. And a bucket with a hook (so you can hang it on the gutter) to put the debris in.
Then it's just a matter of moving your ladder along to clean out the leaves and debris. It takes a bit of effort but it's not too bad once you get the hang of it. Never reach outside the width of where you're standing on the ladder as this is where you could lose balance and fall. For roof cleaning we always suggest you tie yourself on with a rope and harness. This equipment is called in the industry "fall arrest" and of course that's a little more intense.
There is of course people like us who do this for a living. On the impossible ladder access gutters we utilize a vacuum system which is done from the ground with long hose extensions. Most of the time we'll do it just like you would, by hand from a ladder. Roof cleaning is done by safely harnessing in and hand removing all moss and lichen by hand using a hard bristled brush and then spraying with moss/lichen killer. A good thing to remember is to not go beyond your limits. Don't try to get to areas which you're risking your safety. It's really not worth it. Hope that info helps. Happy cleaning!