As many parts of the country head into the dry summer season, you may begin seeing reminders about fire prevention around the home. Common precautions include removing dried yard waste, trimming tree limbs that hang over your home and cutting back any shrubs around your air conditioning unit. Something many homeowners forget to include on a fire prevention checklist is cleaning gutters. Dried debris inside your gutters can easily become fuel for a fire.
Not only are twigs and leaves in your gutters unsightly, they are an easy way for a spark to grow into a life-threatening house fire. A spark from things like wildfires, barbeque grills, backyard fire pits or a neighbor’s house fire can land in your gutter and begin to burn the leaves. If your roof is also covered in more dried debris, you’ve given that spark the fuel it needs to quickly lead to disaster.
Fire-Resistant, Not Fireproof
Some homeowners mistakenly believe that because their home’s exterior is brick and their shingles are a Class A fire resistant material, their home can’t catch fire from the outside. Few materials are truly fireproof, and even if your home’s exterior materials are fire-resistant, that doesn’t mean fireproof. Because an ember from a forest or house fire can travel more than 5,000 feet, you don’t want to provide any fuel for a fire on your roof. Remember, your gutter is attached to your home’s roofline and your roofing system is partly constructed of wood.
Cleaning Your Roof & Gutters Is Simple
It’s not hard to clean your roof and gutters several times a year to prevent debris from piling up. All you need is a blower, garden hose, ladder and some rubber-soled shoes. The easiest way to get started is to blow any dried debris off your roof with the blower. Once you’ve removed anything that is loose, use your hose to rinse away stuck-on leaves. Don’t use too much pressure or you’ll risk damaging your shingles.
As you clear your roof, whatever has accumulated there will inevitably run into your gutters. The easiest way to clean your gutters is by hand. It’s not an enjoyable task for most, which is one reason why gutter protection systems are so popular. Rather than needing to clean the muck out of your gutters several times a year, aluminum gutter covers prevent debris from building up at all, even when you use a blower and hose to clean off your roof.
Consider Aluminum Gutter Covers
Because gutter protection systems keep your gutters clear, you won’t have dried leaves and twigs on your roof. You also won’t need to use your valuable time cleaning your gutters several times a year, or to pay someone else to do it for you. Gutter Helmet is a leading provider of aluminum gutter covers that help prevent the build-up of debris on a roof that allows house fires to grow and spread. Call (800) 824-3772 today to schedule your free estimate for a new Gutter Helmet® system.
