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Jonnywoo

  • Posts: 4
Gutter vac
« on: October 29, 2017, 05:48:32 pm »
Hi all. New to this site. Been windowing for a long time now with pole. Wanting to branch into ladder free/ish guttering. Looking at buying a gutter vac but not sure who to go to.  Is Kiam a good choice? I know to go no lower than 3000watt. Keep hearing about side entry system to avoid blockages. Any advice would be appreciated.  They're pricey to hire and don't want to spend more than £1000 initial outlay. But don't want to get it wrong too.
Cheers. Jonnywoo 👍

Spruce

  • Posts: 8466
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #1 on: October 29, 2017, 09:01:45 pm »
Hi all. New to this site. Been windowing for a long time now with pole. Wanting to branch into ladder free/ish guttering. Looking at buying a gutter vac but not sure who to go to.  Is Kiam a good choice? I know to go no lower than 3000watt. Keep hearing about side entry system to avoid blockages. Any advice would be appreciated.  They're pricey to hire and don't want to spend more than £1000 initial outlay. But don't want to get it wrong too.
Cheers. Jonnywoo 👍

Good place to start
http://www.guttercleaningsystems.co.uk/

The ability of the vac to do the job isn't totally dependant on the size of the motor/motors.

We went smaller as it isn't a service we go looking for any more. We have a 1500 watt single motor unit and that works fine in the majority of cases. There are times when we still have to go up a ladder.

If you fill your window cleaning bucket with water, dipping the end of your pipe into that usually clears any blockage. (We have only had 1 issue where we had to disassemble pipes to remove a piece of stick that jammed in the pipe.)

I don't know how others manage but cleaning the vacuum and pipes out when we get home takes me about 20 to 30 minutes on the front lawn. I hate that job.

Clearing gutter with a vac is certainly safer, but prearranging for a power point, set up time, vacuuming time, packing away and final clearup probably takes longer than doing it manually.

We have a camera system but the inbuilt camera battery won't do 2 gutter cleans. The battery is usually pretty low on charge at the end of the first clean. So if this was going to be a regular add on, then we would have to consider a better camera and monitor. (The camera is great and the pictures are also excellent; its just the longevity of the charge, especially the one in the camera just isn't good enough.)

Our setup didn't come from the company in the above link.
Success is 1% inspiration, 98% perspiration and 2% attention to detail!

The older I get, the better I was ;)

JandS

  • Posts: 4272
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #2 on: October 29, 2017, 09:41:47 pm »
My set up cost £995 from the firm in the above link.
3kw machine....6 carbon poles...tools and camera....you will need a decent triple ladder as well....sometimes it is quicker to nip up and drag half a lawn out by hand than p about with the vac...also don't use camera like to nip up ladder and have a look see if anything missed.
Impossible done straight away, miracles can take a little longer.

Shrek

  • Posts: 3931
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #3 on: October 29, 2017, 10:28:42 pm »
Go for the best as you get what you pay for


https://guttercleaningmachines.com/index.asp

The camera system lasts many gutter cleans without charging and the vac is very powerful. No point buying cheap and then having to risk you @ss up ladders as well

The Jester of Wibbly

  • Posts: 2162
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #4 on: October 29, 2017, 11:12:50 pm »
I use the 1800w system from the said link. It does the job well without risk of blowing a fuse. Easy to move around. 

At times  I think i miss the extra power on harder jobs and to avoid blockages.

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Plankton

  • Posts: 2441
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #5 on: October 30, 2017, 01:08:46 pm »
I wouldn't be paying that for a camera. Get a GoPro or similar and hook it up to your phone and when your off on holiday etc you can make use of it aswell.

Jonnywoo

  • Posts: 4
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #6 on: October 30, 2017, 10:55:54 pm »
Thanks all for the input. There's mixed reviews but got lots out of it 👍

Jonnywoo

  • Posts: 4
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #7 on: October 30, 2017, 11:20:03 pm »
1 more thing. Sites are going on about this side entry that reduces blockages more than a front entry. Anyone using a front system do you find you get blockages at the vac?
Big thanks. Jonnywoo

nathankaye

  • Posts: 5366
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #8 on: October 30, 2017, 11:54:26 pm »
Dont know why people cant man up and use a ladder!
 ;D

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1NKServices.co.uk

rosskesava

  • Posts: 17015
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #9 on: October 31, 2017, 02:05:16 am »
Good place to start
http://www.guttercleaningsystems.co.uk/

The ability of the vac to do the job isn't totally dependant on the size of the motor/motors.

We went smaller as it isn't a service we go looking for any more. We have a 1500 watt single motor unit and that works fine in the majority of cases. There are times when we still have to go up a ladder.

If you fill your window cleaning bucket with water, dipping the end of your pipe into that usually clears any blockage. (We have only had 1 issue where we had to disassemble pipes to remove a piece of stick that jammed in the pipe.)

I don't know how others manage but cleaning the vacuum and pipes out when we get home takes me about 20 to 30 minutes on the front lawn. I hate that job.

Clearing gutter with a vac is certainly safer, but prearranging for a power point, set up time, vacuuming time, packing away and final clearup probably takes longer than doing it manually.

We have a camera system but the inbuilt camera battery won't do 2 gutter cleans. The battery is usually pretty low on charge at the end of the first clean. So if this was going to be a regular add on, then we would have to consider a better camera and monitor. (The camera is great and the pictures are also excellent; its just the longevity of the charge, especially the one in the camera just isn't good enough.)

Our setup didn't come from the company in the above link.

I have a skyvac (£650 and one motor) and no camera. At first I thought I should have bought the camera but now having done maybe a dozen or more jobs I've realise that you can tell if you've got all the muck out the gutters by how the vac sounds as you go along the gutter.

For the first 6 or so jobs I checked afterwards using a ladder and was surprised at how clear the gutters were.

As for long lengths of grass or other plants growing along the gutter, it's not a complication or something that's easier with ladder. Just watch any of the many youtube videos about how best to deal with that.

It's the same as with wfp, from the ground is much safer and quicker.

I charge the same for clearing gutters as I did with when using ladders and it takes a fraction of the time. In fact sometimes I now do the job slowly because I feel a bit embarrassed to go round a whole house in under 15/20 minutes and charge £60 to £80. Including setting up and packing away maybe 30 to 40 minutes. Including chatting to the customer, maybe an hour. If the customer is not there and has an outside power point, 30 minutes max.

I've also yet to have a problem using the customers power point.

And yes, for the first few jobs, setting the vac up did take longer than the job itself but now having learnt what works and what doesn't it takes no time at all.

What is a bit of a chore is emptying the vac out and cleaning it, to stop it smelling, and cleaning the filter but even that takes less time each time as you learn what works best and what doesn't. To clean the pipes/tubes out, just suck up a bit of clean water. Again, maybe watch a few youtube videos. There's enough of them that covers almost every problem you're likely to encounter.

Just chant..... Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. It's beats chanting Tory Tory or Labour Labour.

lal

  • Posts: 1113
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #10 on: October 31, 2017, 11:46:52 am »
Good place to start
http://www.guttercleaningsystems.co.uk/

The ability of the vac to do the job isn't totally dependant on the size of the motor/motors.

We went smaller as it isn't a service we go looking for any more. We have a 1500 watt single motor unit and that works fine in the majority of cases. There are times when we still have to go up a ladder.

If you fill your window cleaning bucket with water, dipping the end of your pipe into that usually clears any blockage. (We have only had 1 issue where we had to disassemble pipes to remove a piece of stick that jammed in the pipe.)

I don't know how others manage but cleaning the vacuum and pipes out when we get home takes me about 20 to 30 minutes on the front lawn. I hate that job.

Clearing gutter with a vac is certainly safer, but prearranging for a power point, set up time, vacuuming time, packing away and final clearup probably takes longer than doing it manually.

We have a camera system but the inbuilt camera battery won't do 2 gutter cleans. The battery is usually pretty low on charge at the end of the first clean. So if this was going to be a regular add on, then we would have to consider a better camera and monitor. (The camera is great and the pictures are also excellent; its just the longevity of the charge, especially the one in the camera just isn't good enough.)

Our setup didn't come from the company in the above link.

I have a skyvac (£650 and one motor) and no camera. At first I thought I should have bought the camera but now having done maybe a dozen or more jobs I've realise that you can tell if you've got all the muck out the gutters by how the vac sounds as you go along the gutter.

For the first 6 or so jobs I checked afterwards using a ladder and was surprised at how clear the gutters were.

As for long lengths of grass or other plants growing along the gutter, it's not a complication or something that's easier with ladder. Just watch any of the many youtube videos about how best to deal with that.

It's the same as with wfp, from the ground is much safer and quicker.

I charge the same for clearing gutters as I did with when using ladders and it takes a fraction of the time. In fact sometimes I now do the job slowly because I feel a bit embarrassed to go round a whole house in under 15/20 minutes and charge £60 to £80. Including setting up and packing away maybe 30 to 40 minutes. Including chatting to the customer, maybe an hour. If the customer is not there and has an outside power point, 30 minutes max.

I've also yet to have a problem using the customers power point.

And yes, for the first few jobs, setting the vac up did take longer than the job itself but now having learnt what works and what doesn't it takes no time at all.

What is a bit of a chore is emptying the vac out and cleaning it, to stop it smelling, and cleaning the filter but even that takes less time each time as you learn what works best and what doesn't. To clean the pipes/tubes out, just suck up a bit of clean water. Again, maybe watch a few youtube videos. There's enough of them that covers almost every problem you're likely to encounter.

Hi Ross, everything you have said about using the SkyVac or any gutter vac as a newbie is spot on, I've had a skyvac
over 3 years now and done loads of jobs with it, its a learning curve, 2 good tips is using a bucket full of water to use to flush
out the poles & hose of silt etc,   plus using the customers waste  Bin to empty contents from gutter vac is an absolute must,
otherwise trying to get a full vac into the van on your own can prove very difficult if not impossible.
Lal

Spruce

  • Posts: 8466
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #11 on: October 31, 2017, 12:16:18 pm »
Good place to start
http://www.guttercleaningsystems.co.uk/

The ability of the vac to do the job isn't totally dependant on the size of the motor/motors.

We went smaller as it isn't a service we go looking for any more. We have a 1500 watt single motor unit and that works fine in the majority of cases. There are times when we still have to go up a ladder.

If you fill your window cleaning bucket with water, dipping the end of your pipe into that usually clears any blockage. (We have only had 1 issue where we had to disassemble pipes to remove a piece of stick that jammed in the pipe.)

I don't know how others manage but cleaning the vacuum and pipes out when we get home takes me about 20 to 30 minutes on the front lawn. I hate that job.

Clearing gutter with a vac is certainly safer, but prearranging for a power point, set up time, vacuuming time, packing away and final clearup probably takes longer than doing it manually.

We have a camera system but the inbuilt camera battery won't do 2 gutter cleans. The battery is usually pretty low on charge at the end of the first clean. So if this was going to be a regular add on, then we would have to consider a better camera and monitor. (The camera is great and the pictures are also excellent; its just the longevity of the charge, especially the one in the camera just isn't good enough.)

Our setup didn't come from the company in the above link.

I have a skyvac (£650 and one motor) and no camera. At first I thought I should have bought the camera but now having done maybe a dozen or more jobs I've realise that you can tell if you've got all the muck out the gutters by how the vac sounds as you go along the gutter.

For the first 6 or so jobs I checked afterwards using a ladder and was surprised at how clear the gutters were.

As for long lengths of grass or other plants growing along the gutter, it's not a complication or something that's easier with ladder. Just watch any of the many youtube videos about how best to deal with that.

It's the same as with wfp, from the ground is much safer and quicker.

I charge the same for clearing gutters as I did with when using ladders and it takes a fraction of the time. In fact sometimes I now do the job slowly because I feel a bit embarrassed to go round a whole house in under 15/20 minutes and charge £60 to £80. Including setting up and packing away maybe 30 to 40 minutes. Including chatting to the customer, maybe an hour. If the customer is not there and has an outside power point, 30 minutes max.

I've also yet to have a problem using the customers power point.

And yes, for the first few jobs, setting the vac up did take longer than the job itself but now having learnt what works and what doesn't it takes no time at all.

What is a bit of a chore is emptying the vac out and cleaning it, to stop it smelling, and cleaning the filter but even that takes less time each time as you learn what works best and what doesn't. To clean the pipes/tubes out, just suck up a bit of clean water. Again, maybe watch a few youtube videos. There's enough of them that covers almost every problem you're likely to encounter.

Hi Ross, everything you have said about using the SkyVac or any gutter vac as a newbie is spot on, I've had a skyvac
over 3 years now and done loads of jobs with it, its a learning curve, 2 good tips is using a bucket full of water to use to flush
out the poles & hose of silt etc,   plus using the customers waste  Bin to empty contents from gutter vac is an absolute must,
otherwise trying to get a full vac into the van on your own can prove very difficult if not impossible.
Lal

We do a bit of window cleaning paid for by the local council, so they know us as window cleaners.

We got a letter from them a few years ago stating that if we remove any waste (they specified such as from gutter clearing), no matter how small, we need to apply for a waste carriers licence. To obtain that we had to show how we would dispose of that waste.

So now all gutter clearings get put in plastic bags and put next to the customers dustbin/wheelie bins. They can then see that we have cleared the gutters and its up to them to dispose of the waste how they see fit.

We did this before we received the letter from the council anyway. We had a drama with one customer who wasn't in when we cleared his gutter contents and removed them from his property. He challenged us to prove that we had done the job. I offered to get the ladders off the van for him to check himself, but he refused.  We eventually got paid for doing the job and have never been back. We also started to take before and after photos of each property we did. The shots were at an angle that showed the customer's driveway, pot plants, car etc., so they couldn't challenge they were from another job.
 
Over the years we stopped taking photos as the plastic bag evidence has been sufficient.

BTW, we still do take photos. If we put our A frame step ladder over a customer's locked gate we always have 1 photo on record of us doing that for future reference if we are ever challenged. We also take photos of any damage at a customer's property we see before we start the job. That has 'saved' us on a couple of occasions.

.
Success is 1% inspiration, 98% perspiration and 2% attention to detail!

The older I get, the better I was ;)

The Jester of Wibbly

  • Posts: 2162
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #12 on: October 31, 2017, 01:48:11 pm »
I always insist on customers being home when gutter clearing due to needing and electrical point. Even if it's an outside plug in still ask them to be home in case a fuse blows ( probably not an issue but just a saftey precaution)  I also show them the contents of the waste before I throw it away.  I use this as an opportunity to seek permission to use their bin.
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Oliver James

  • Posts: 210
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #13 on: October 31, 2017, 03:04:08 pm »
Started offering gutter vacuuming in the spring.

Couple of tips:

1. Use Gardiner's 'gutter spike agitator' to agitate the dirt in the gutters prior to vacuuming. Also use the gutter spike agitator to remove plants without having to up a ladder. Have a spare quick lok head with you in case it breaks.

2. Take a piece of plywood board with you. You can use this as a base for a small pointer ladder if you have clear gutters by hand above a flat roof (and not have the hassle of taking the vac onto a flat roof.

3.  Hand gutter clearing tools are useful, including a snaplink for tieing the bucket onto the ladder when hand clearing and also a gutter clearing tool that you screw onto a pole.

Delta

Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #14 on: October 31, 2017, 03:14:00 pm »

mufcglen

  • Posts: 1507
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #15 on: October 31, 2017, 04:47:57 pm »
This seems good value.

https://guttercleaningmachines.com/skyvac-atom.asp

i looked at the atom when i was looking for a guttervac set up and turns out those poles arent full carbon and theyre the smaller 38mm bore poles, having bought and used my gutter vac set up i wouldnt go less than the 51mm bore with the leaves and crap you pull from gutters.
im selling my set up coincidently in the for sale section if anyones interested lol, im only getting rid due to stopping the gutter clearance service and sticking to the windows now im just too busy, i thought i'd jump on the gutters when its raining too heavy but i just ended up taking the day off instead!!!

NWH

  • Posts: 16952
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #16 on: October 31, 2017, 05:06:59 pm »
Regardless of what you buy I would always look at the gutters from above if it means going inside do it,some gutters are so badly fitted there’s no room for any tool to go in them even on newish houses.

JandS

  • Posts: 4272
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #17 on: October 31, 2017, 07:04:59 pm »
Yes had to do a couple by hand this year due to tightness of gap.
Impossible done straight away, miracles can take a little longer.

NWH

  • Posts: 16952
Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #18 on: October 31, 2017, 07:13:00 pm »
I have the grippa one I think they’ve improved it a hell of a lot since I got it I had one of the first ones a few years ago,the best one I’ve seen well poles anyway were the skyvac ones they look a lot better than mine but they are thinner in diameter which could be an issue.

Og

Re: Gutter vac
« Reply #19 on: October 31, 2017, 07:19:15 pm »
I find the slates always come to far over the gutter and hinder the vac.
Only use the vac over long conservatories etc now. Waste of time on most jobs.