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It can be a huge headache, but cleaning of gutters is a task that needs to be done and even more so when it’s a stained white gutter. Nobody want to do it, but everybody has to. If you happen to lack the required confidence to pull this off as it has to do with working at heights, then we’d strongly recommend that you get in touch with a reliable professional who can guarantee the best results for help and also save you some time and money from potential costly errors. In this post, we’re going to show you some of effective way in which you can tackle stained white gutters effectively.

Firstly, you’ll have to take out the ladder with a pair of rubber gloves. Simply position the ladder safely, climb up the roof and start removing the leaves and other debris clogging up the gutters. You can also make use of a garden trowel to remove the very thick debris. Once done, spray the gutter using a garden hose to flush out the dirt as this will make the stains visible. Then prior to cleaning, ensure to cover the plants or landscape underneath with tarp or plastic sheet since the cleaning solution may negatively impact the vegetation.

Start to clean by spraying an all-purpose cleaner on the stains and srub them off using a scrub brush. You can also try a mixture of 1/4 of water with 1 cup of bleach and 1 teaspoon of dish soap. Dip your scrub brush in this solution to scrub off the stains. The bleach mixture is guaranteed to eliminate any mold or mildew that growing on your gutters with ease.

In the UK, gutters are normally made from uPVC. It’s a hardy plastic that won’t rot, warp or tarnish very easily, which is why it’s so popular. It’s the same material that’s used for most homes’ windows these days; they don’t have to be the standard white as they can be made into a range of colours. Expect to pay an average of £500 for the supply and installation of uPVC guttering, and more if you require scaffolding.

Other materials that are popular for gutters include copper, aluminium and cast iron. These are much more expensive – you might be looking at around £1500 or more for the supply and installation – but they give a more polished look and are often used on period properties or those in a conservation area. If you're considering these types of gutters, make sure you get a few quotes from different roofline companies so you can compare the different materials.

In the past, gutters were made from wood, asbestos concrete or stone. They were often lined with lead to stop the water from seeping through. When it was discovered that asbestos was seriously harmful, it of course stopped being used. Wood was prone to rotting, even with lead lining, and stone is heavy and expensive. So when uPVC came along, it became an affordable and easy material to use for gutters so homeowners could be confident that rainwater will be kept away from the foundations of their properties. It’s important to keep gutters clear from leaves and debris, because if they become blocked, they can make water to fall against your property’s walls, causing damp.

Every year, various parts of your roof may need to be changed at one point or the other. Due to the fact that this event can occur at any time in a year, there’s the need to be fully ready. When it comes that being ready, you simply can’t overlook the importance of soffit and fascia boards in protecting your roof space and helping it maintain its clean and unique visual appeal. As a result, when your soffit and fascia boards need to be changed, you best do so as quickly as possible.

This task can be completed by anyone with basic DIY knowledge and experience, but if you lack the confidence to pull off then it’ll be advisable to hire a professional who can guarantee the best results for help.

✓ Remove the old existing boards. In order to install the new soffit and fascia boards, you’d have to remove the existing ones first. If necessary, you can make use of a Stanley knife to make the process much easier.

✓ Fixing soffit boards. Several soffit boards are made using uPVC. The boards are to fixed to the underside of your timber rafter ends. Make sure to use timber to close any gaps between soffit boards and also make sure that your soffit boards’ back are resting against the wall’s top.

✓ Fixing fascia boards. Many fascia boards are also made from uPVC and are usually installed in a similar way to soffit boards. Use a minimum of two nails to make sure they’re secure enough to hold weight of any roof tiles and also to prevent any buckling.

✓ Guttering and felt. To start the guttering, you’d have to screw any brackets into the facia board. You can use a spirit levelto make sure the alignment is perfect to enable the floe of water directly through your guttering system. Once done, you should also check for any rotting roof felt at the edges closest to the gutterin. If there is a rot, make use of eaves felt trays and tuck under existing felt and overlap into the guttering

Fascias and Soffits, just like any other components of a home, do not last forever. They can become tired and worn out over time which implies that you’ll have to replace them to prevent further damage. Getting this project completed can be quite costly, but it doesn’t have to be. Fitting soffits and fascias is very simple task which will leave you with both a modern and contemporary styling which requires little maintenance and also more savings. What’s more? You don’t have to worry about repainting the fascias and soffits on an annual basis, all you need to do is a gentle wipe down of the features with a damp cloth to have them look good.

If you’re a competent DIYer and confident enough to pull off this task, then all the better. However, if otherwise, we’d strongly recommend you hire the services of a reliable contractor who can guarantee the best results for help. Here are the steps you can follow to fit your fascias and soffits.

Fascias ( a 18mm fascia board)

✓ This is designed for a direct fix without a need for a timber substrate. Simply secure them directly to the rafters with the help of 2 x 65mm a4 stainless steel fixing nails per rafter.

✓ Ensure that the rafters are level.

✓ Cut the boards back 5mm per edge to enable expansion where any white corner trims, joint trims or angle trims is needed.

✓ Secure the guttering to all third rafter.

Soffit ( 9mm soffit board)

✓ Ensure that the preservative treatment to the structural timber has dried out.

✓ Fix all utility boards of about 100mm to 605mm in width at a maximum of 60mm centres.

✓ If ventilation is needed, there are some soffits that are available in 150mm to 605mm widths and also provides the 10mm air gap needed for roof with a pitch above 15 degrees

1. Hang a plumb bob from the outlet to the drain to use as a guide while you draw several marks on the wall with a pencil to show you where the downpipe will run.
2. Join the marks up with a straight edge, creating a line to show where the centre of the downpipe will be.
3. Position a downpipe clip at the top of wall, in the centre of the pencil line. Mark the position of its fixing holes on the wall. If you need an offset bend, put a downpipe clip directly below the bend.
4. Repeat the process down the wall. Make sure there is no more than 1.8 metres between pipe clips.
5. Refer to the guttering manufacturer’s instructions to see which drill bit is required. Use a drill to drill the fixing holes and insert wall plugs.
6. Fit the first piece of downpipe starting from the outlet and moving towards the drain.
7. If you need to add more downpipe, join the two pieces with a pipe socket and clip. Leave a 10mm gap between the end of the pipe and the bottom of the pipe socket, because it will probably expand. Then attach a pipe clip over the joint.
8. Continue attaching pipe clips down the length of the downpipe.
9. If you need to, fit a downpipe show to direct the water into the drain. Attach a downpipe clip directly below the socket of the shoe.

Knowing when best to clean your gutters can do a lot of good. Wile some people assume that fall is the best time for gutter cleaning after the leaves fall, others believe spring is the most appropriate time to clean the gutters before things start to grow there. The truth is, both camps are right. However, the best time to clean your gutters depend on a wide range of factors which are all unique to you. In order to help you make the most informed decision possible, we have created this post to help you figure out the right time to clean your gutters. Let’s take a look!

Where you’re located. What we get is four season in a year as well as as a good amount of rain. As a result, you may want to put into consideration cleaning your gutter at least twice a year - clean the gutters once in the spring and once in the fall. It’s important to make gutter cleaning a part of your normal spring schedule as well as part of your fall maintenance routines.

What surrounds your home. If you happen to have tree surrounding your home, then it’s more likely that dead leaves clog up your gutter pretty quickly. A single tree is enough as it’s going to shed leaves that will find their way into your gutter, accumulate and affect its performance and integrity.

What your gutter currently looks like. If you gutters already have an entire ecosystem of animal life and plants hamging over the edges, then the best time to clean the gutters is now rather than having to wait a particular season to act. A dirty gutter should be attended to immediately in order to prevent some unnecessary damages as well as expensive repairs.

A gutter is part of the system that takes rainwater away from a building. Every home will have some form of guttering system to stop water from dripping off the roof and into the walls. It’s important to keep your gutters clear because if water starts to seep into your home’s walls, you’re likely to get damp.

A guttering system consists of half pipes, troughs, bends and downpipes. They’re usually cylindrical in shape but they may be square on some homes and in countries outside of the UK. Technically, the gutter is the part that you’ll see across your roof that collects rainwater. The water will then feed into a downpipe from your roof’s edge to the base of your home, where you can collect it in something like a water butt, or it will be discharged to a surface water drain or soakaway.

In early times, gutters used to be made from lined wood or stone. Lead was often used as the liner to stop rainwater from seeping through the material, but you won’t see it used much anymore. These days, most homes have uPVC guttering as it’s a hardwearing plastic that should last a long time. But you’ll also see gutters made from aluminium, cast iron and copper, especially on period homes or those in a conservation area.

Every home needs a guttering system to ensure that rainwater doesn’t affect the foundations of the property. It’s also important to keep the gutters clear of debris like fallen leaves, as this will cause them to overflow, potentially causing water to soak into the walls and causing damp.

Gutters are a crucial component of any roofing system. They’re designed in such a way to protect your home or property from serious water damage, but keeping them clean and in good condition is something that’s almost always forgotten or ignored. Do not be deceived even when rain water is still running from them or they don’t appear to be clogged. Failure to clean maintain your gutters can lead to a wide range of outcomes and they aren’t so pretty. According to experts, gutter cleaning should be done twice a year - once in the spring and once in the fall. In order to help you realize the importance of cleaning your gutters, we’ll look at some of the possible outcomes of a neglected gutter.

• Leaky roof. If your gutters get clogged and cannot move water away from your home, it begins to build up on the roof and eventually lead to damages like rot and mold. As the damages spread, the end result could be a severe damage to the attic and supports.
• Damaged foundation. If the gutters are not functioning as they should, water saturation becomes a great threat to the foundation of your home or property. The concrete will crack or wood rots and you can also end up with mold.
• Creepy crawler infestation. Wherever you have stagnant water, there are also bugs. This is because they love the wet and moisture-filled gutters. You get unwanted visitors like carpenter ants, roaches and mosquitoes, just to mention a few.
• Driveway and path damage. When the downspouts aren’t directing the water to the appropriate spot, the excess that comes in contact with these surfaces can lead to cracks or sagging.