Quick answer: Fall overflow usually means a clogged downspout, wet leaves damming the gutter, or a roof valley dumping into one corner. Clean in late fall, once most leaves are down, or the trees fill the gutters right back up.
The first big storm is a free inspection
A light drizzle trickles through a half-clogged gutter without a sign. The first heavy, steady rain of fall is what asks your gutters to move real volume. When it comes, grab an umbrella and walk the house from the ground: watch the gutter edges, the corners, and the bottom of every downspout. Stay off the ladder. A wet ladder on wet leaves is how people get hurt.
What the overflow is telling you
Where the water spills tells you why. A brief spill in a true downpour can happen to clean gutters; steady overflow in ordinary rain means something is blocked or pitched wrong.
When to clean gutters in the fall
Let the trees set the date, not the calendar. Around here maples, alders and cottonwoods drop most of their leaves from late October into November, firs shed needles all year, and cedars let go of older foliage in the fall. Leaves also pile up in roof valleys and wash down with every rain, so gutters keep filling for a while after the trees look bare.
- Late fall, once most leaves are down: the cleaning that carries the house through winter.
- Under heavy trees: an extra pass earlier in the fall keeps things draining through the first storms.
- Late winter or early spring: the second cleaning, for the needles, moss and grit that come down over the winter.
Do you still need to clean gutters with gutter guards?
Yes, just less often. Guards keep big maple leaves out of the trough, which helps on some lots. Fir needles and small leaf bits slip past most of them and mat into a layer that holds water, and leaves can sit on top of some guard styles and shed rain over the edge. If guarded gutters still overflow, the guards need clearing too, and so do the downspouts underneath.
Where else the leaves end up
- Roof valleys and shingles. Wet leaf piles hold moisture against the roof, and moisture feeds moss. More in our roof moss guide.
- Walkways, patios and decks. Wet leaves are slick, and leaves left sitting can stain concrete and decking. See pressure washing.
- Windows. Fall is the last good chance to get the summer dust and pollen off the glass before the gray months. See residential window cleaning.
If you’d rather stay off the ladder
On a single-story house you can do this yourself: scoop the trough by hand, then run a hose down each downspout until water comes out the bottom at full strength. Two stories, a steep roof, or slick fall ground are where most people call someone.
We clear gutters by hand, flush every downspout, and tell you about anything we notice along the way. Here’s what our gutter cleaning includes. Our gutter cleaning cost guide covers typical prices, and our fall cleaning page covers everything we do this time of year. To get on the schedule, request a free estimate or call (206) 228-5069.
