How do you clean gutter guards?
Short answer. Most gutter guards are cleaned from the top: brush or blow the debris off mesh and screens, rinse the surface with a hose to clear pollen film, and check that water still drops through. Foam and brush inserts and hood systems need more work, because debris gets inside them and they have to be pulled out or opened to clean properly.
By guard type
- Micro-mesh and screens. Use a soft brush, a leaf blower on low from a ladder, or an extension-pole brush from the ground. Then hose the surface gently, spraying down through the mesh, to wash off pollen film and fine grit that slows water entry. Avoid hard scraping, which can tear mesh.
- Perforated aluminum covers. Brush off leaves, then pick out needles lodged in the holes. A stiff nylon brush helps.
- Hood or reverse-curve guards. Clear debris from the front edge, then check the slot. If needles or grit got inside, the gutter has to be flushed with a hose from the high end, and sometimes the hood removed at the outlets.
- Foam inserts. Pull them out, knock and rinse the debris off, let them dry and reinsert, or replace them if they are breaking down.
- Brush inserts. Pull them out and shake or pick out the needles and leaves. This is slow work.
Check the gutter underneath once a year
Lift or unscrew one panel near each downspout outlet and look inside. Fine sediment, mostly shingle granules and pollen, builds up even under good mesh. If there is more than a thin layer, flush the run from the high end with a hose until the downspout runs clear.
Timing and safety
In Georgia, clean after pine pollen and oak tassel season in late spring and after leaf drop in late fall. Do not walk on the roof to reach guards, especially on hot days when shingles scuff easily; work from a ladder with a standoff. See our Georgia roof maintenance checklist and pine needles and leaves.