Most homeowners only think about their gutters when water starts pouring over the edge in a downpour. By that point a blockage has usually been building for months. Here is a straightforward guide to how often gutters actually need clearing, based on the sort of homes and trees we work around in Shirley and the surrounding parts of South East London.
For a typical property with no large trees nearby, a single clean each year is usually enough, ideally in late autumn once the leaves have finished falling. That timing means the gutters go into winter clear, which is when they do their hardest work and when a blockage causes the most damage.
If your house sits under or near mature trees, plan for two cleans a year: one in late autumn and one in spring. Spring catches the blossom, seed pods and moss that trees drop between March and May, along with anything birds have added while nesting. Around Shirley, Monks Orchard and the roads bordering Shirley Hills and Addington, the mature oaks and sycamores mean twice a year is the realistic minimum for a lot of homes.
Trees are the obvious culprit, but they are not the only one. Older concrete roof tiles, common on the 1930s semis found all over this part of London, shed moss steadily as they age. That moss slides into the gutter in clumps after heavy rain or a frost, and it compacts into a dense sludge that does not wash through like loose leaves do.
North facing roof slopes hold moisture longer and grow moss faster, so it is common for one side of a house to need attention more often than the other. Shallow gutter falls, undersized downpipes and previous repairs that left joints slightly misaligned all shorten the interval too.
A fixed schedule is a good habit, but the gutters will tell you when they are struggling. Water sheeting over the front edge during rain is the clearest sign. Others are quieter: green staining or algae streaks on the brickwork below a joint, plants actually growing out of the gutter, sagging sections where trapped debris and water have added weight, or a downpipe that gurgles but discharges very little.
It is worth acting quickly on these. Persistent overflow soaks the wall behind it, and on older solid wall properties that moisture tracks indoors as damp patches on bedroom ceilings and around window reveals. A gutter clean costing under a hundred pounds is far cheaper than replastering and redecorating a damp wall.
Clearing gutters yourself is feasible on a bungalow with good ladder access and someone footing the ladder. On a standard two storey house we would honestly steer most people away from it. Working at gutter height from a ladder is one of the most common causes of serious DIY injuries, and conservatories, extensions and sloping drives often make safe ladder placement impossible anyway.
Professionally, most firms in the Croydon and Bromley area charge somewhere in the region of £70 to £150 for a standard semi, with terraces sometimes less and large detached houses more. The final figure depends on access, height and how badly blocked the run is, so treat those numbers as a guide rather than a promise. Many companies, ours included, use vacuum systems with camera checks, which means the work is done from the ground and you can see the before and after. If a fascia or bracket problem is spotted while we are up there, it is far cheaper to fix at the same visit than as a separate call out later.
If you only clean once a year, late autumn is best, after most leaves have dropped and before winter rain arrives. Homes near large trees benefit from a second clean in spring to clear blossom, seeds and moss.
No. Guards slow the build up of leaves but fine debris, moss and roof grit still get through, and the guards themselves need clearing on top. Expect to reduce the frequency of cleaning rather than eliminate it.
Blocked gutters overflow against the wall, which over time causes damp internally, rotted fascia boards and eroded mortar joints. Standing water and debris also add weight that pulls brackets loose, turning a cheap clean into a repair or replacement job.
Tell us about the job and we will get a quote back to you, most days the same day.