Spring Cleaning Guide for Siding and Gutters
Spring is an exciting time of year…especially when it comes to sprucing up your home’s exterior! The warming weather is perfect for getting outside and seeing how the Colorado winter treated your home.
It’s also the best time to clean your home and get it ready for the rest of the year. Here are some helpful spring cleaning tips for your gutters and siding, both of which are so important to the health of your home.
Spring Maintenance Guide for Siding
Like your roof, your siding plays a critical role in protecting your home from the elements. On top of that, it greatly contributes to the overall appearance of your home, so keeping your siding in top shape is important for curb appeal.
1. Inspect Your Siding for Damage
Before you get your hands dirty, take a walk around your house and inspect your siding for damage. Look for cracks, broken pieces, holes, etc. This kind of damage may not seem all that extreme, but bear in mind that pests, mold, and mildew don’t need huge openings to be able to cause serious damage to your home.
2. Replace Missing Pieces of Siding
Likewise, if you notice missing pieces of siding, schedule a time to have it repaired. Especially before spring and summer thunderstorms roll in and hit your house with strong winds, rain, and hail! You may want to take the opportunity to replace your siding all together.
3. Wash Siding With a Garden Hose
Don’t overthink washing your siding: a garden hose, mild detergent, and a brush are good enough to clean your siding in most cases. Vinyl siding, in particular, is pretty easy to spruce up with water and a little elbow grease. Be sure to follow best safety practices for climbing a ladder to reach the higher portions of your siding.
4. Power Wash Siding (if needed)
If your siding has been neglected for some time and could use a deep clean, you may want to use a power washer. However, be careful with a power washer — you want to ease in since the powerful stream can potentially damage your siding. Make sure to hold the wand at an angle that won’t pull your siding up and away from your home, which could introduce and trap moisture underneath the siding.
5. Repaint (if needed)
If after washing your siding you notice that it’s still not as clean as you’d like, you may need to repaint. This is a big task, but the reward is usually worth it! And springtime is the perfect time to paint your house before it gets too warm outside.
Spring Cleaning Guide for Gutters
Your gutters protect your home by directing water away from it, keeping your roof, siding, and foundation in good shape. Cleaning gutters can be a chore, but it’s one of the most important pieces of routine maintenance that you must perform on your home.
1. Inspect Gutters for Damage
Just like inspecting your siding for damage, take a walk around your house to inspect your gutters for visible damage from the ground. Cracks may be difficult to see, but you should be able to spot any holes or broken segments. From the ground, you may even be able to see where there are obvious backups of debris! Schedule a time to replace any broken or missing gutter pieces.
2. Remove Debris
There are multiple ways to clean gutters and remove debris, but the most common method is to do so by hand, safely from a ladder. You can also use a garden hose or a special gutter cleaning applicator, which is done safely from the ground.
3. Clear Downspouts
A common area for clogs to form in your gutter is where the downspout attaches to the gutter itself. After removing debris from the opening, you can flush it with water to make sure there are no clogs down the spout, particularly where it bends near the ground.
Don’t Forget About Your Roof
In addition to sprucing up your siding and gutter cleaning, you should also pay attention to what’s going on with your roof after winter storms. Springtime is when you should have your roof professionally inspected to make sure it’s ready for the hail storms that are so frequent in Colorado during the warmer months.
Call a Trusted, Local Company
J&K Roofing is one of Colorado’s best roofing companies, providing service throughout the Denver Metro, Front Range, Colorado Springs, and Northern Colorado areas. In addition to roofing, they offer windows, siding, solar, exterior painting and gutters.
Get in touch with us today for your free inspection. We also can help with your gutter and siding needs! Call 303-425-7531.