[groundhog]

I pulled up at a customers house this morning at about the same time as a van pulled up on the opposite side of the road, it was a company called Sure Seal (gutter specialists). Anyway I didn't take too much notice until this chap pulled a power pole out of the back of his van, I then noticed that it had a large vacuum hose running along it, this should be interesting I thought as I have never seen a gutter vac in action.

Next thing a couple of blokes in suits and clipboards turn up, I think these were the blokes bosses as they were very interested in how the guttervac was working. Anyway they eventually got it set up and up to the guttering and switched it on, he poked it in and tried to get the crap out of the incredibly blocked guttering, it was full almost to the top with moss and muck and even had grass growing out of it, he poked and prodded it but he couldn't get it to suck up anything, by now a large crowd was gathering to see the spectacle. I felt sorry for this poor bloke who looked like he didn't have a clue what he was doing as his bosses and a large crowd + me watched him fail miserably to clear anything out of the gutters with his flash new machine!

Anyway by now he was obviously getting fed up and he started to try to break up the muck in the gutter with the end of the guttervac, with this the attachment on the end fell off into the gutter and try as he might he couldn't get it to slide back on, so out come his ladders and up he goes to retrieve it, then they were spending some time getting it re-attached so I thought I better get some work done so I cleaned the windows on the house I'm at.

20mins later and I've finished, I come round the front of the house and there he is again, up the ladder this time with a bucket and trowel! The gutter vac was lying on the ground in the garden and the suits + the crowd had dispersed, I wandered over and couldn't resist shouting up to him 'You can't beat the old methods can you' He just glared at me and didn't reply

[Neil Williams]

I've had this type of arguement on various forums. What if there is a big clump of grass growing in the gutter/downpipe.
I've done one job in the past where there was a 2 foot tree growing out of the downpipe, now you tell me what sucky machine is going to get that out.
These machine are great if there is only dry loose material (builders clean type thing) other than that the manual method works best.

[Russell Macdonald]

I have a petrol power washer & pole with getter attachments from Northern Tools.

Fantastic bit of kit, cleans the down pipe out & all the gutter no problem even if full. I've had it over a year now so i've got it down to a fine art now. Very little comes over but what does is only a quick rince & the only time i go up the ladder is to check the gutters are clean like new.

The best bit, i'm not risking my neck cleaning the gutters by hand up a ladder & it's 10x quicker & the getters look like they have been polished.

'You can't beat the old methods can you' ;

Yes you can mate, invest in equipment that does the job. 

[Chris Cottrell]

Yes you can mate, invest in equipment that does the job. 

here here

[rosskesava]

I havn't cleaned gutters for ages but the last time, when I worked in a partnership, we used the lance from Nothern Tools which worked brilliantly.

The gutters did clean spotless.

Problem was the muck went everywhere. Down the walls, over the windows and all over the ground around the the house.

We then spent ages tidy up and jet spraying all the walls and paths around the house and cleaning their windows.

Next job, we went back to using ladders, a modified trowel and a bucket on a piece of rope.

[pjulk]

I also have an extendible lance with gutter attachment from northern tools.

Like already said on here is does a really good job but does make a mess and you spend a while clearing everything up.

I gave up on it to much mess for my likings and now use my ladders for gutters.

Paul

[Russell Macdonald]

Ross, that's what i use, not a problem.

Clean the gutters in meter sections to the down pipe. Holding the lance at about 30degree angle & slightly in front of you.

Macc

[windowwashers]

I also have an extendible lance with gutter attachment from northern tools.

Like already said on here is does a really good job but does make a mess and you spend a while clearing everything up.

I gave up on it to much mess for my likings and now use my ladders for gutters.

Paul

What is there website address?

[windowwashers]

I pulled up at a customers house this morning at about the same time as a van pulled up on the opposite side of the road, it was a company called Sure Seal (gutter specialists). Anyway I didn't take too much notice until this chap pulled a power pole out of the back of his van, I then noticed that it had a large vacuum hose running along it, this should be interesting I thought as I have never seen a gutter vac in action.

Next thing a couple of blokes in suits and clipboards turn up, I think these were the blokes bosses as they were very interested in how the guttervac was working. Anyway they eventually got it set up and up to the guttering and switched it on, he poked it in and tried to get the crap out of the incredibly blocked guttering, it was full almost to the top with moss and muck and even had grass growing out of it, he poked and prodded it but he couldn't get it to suck up anything, by now a large crowd was gathering to see the spectacle. I felt sorry for this poor bloke who looked like he didn't have a clue what he was doing as his bosses and a large crowd + me watched him fail miserably to clear anything out of the gutters with his flash new machine!

Anyway by now he was obviously getting fed up and he started to try to break up the muck in the gutter with the end of the guttervac, with this the attachment on the end fell off into the gutter and try as he might he couldn't get it to slide back on, so out come his ladders and up he goes to retrieve it, then they were spending some time getting it re-attached so I thought I better get some work done so I cleaned the windows on the house I'm at.

20mins later and I've finished, I come round the front of the house and there he is again, up the ladder this time with a bucket and trowel! The gutter vac was lying on the ground in the garden and the suits + the crowd had dispersed, I wandered over and couldn't resist shouting up to him 'You can't beat the old methods can you' He just glared at me and didn't reply

LOL, sounds to me they chraged alot for a service that clearly does not work, go get a extend pole a gutter attachment and away you go.

I saw the same sort of thing today with a bloke trying to van a drain, I loked at him and smiled. Did not get a smile back so i thought i would wait and see, i done a house about 30 mins with me and a guy and when i came back he was still there, only now there was to of them. I cleaned about 4 houses and drove past the same spot and there they was doing it still. as i pasted I said "maybe you want to try a jetter" the reply was: We no that tell are boss. and they charged over £300 for a job that I could have done in 20 mins with a jetter, what is this world coming to.... and people moan at £10 a house (I say welcome to the real world)

[Russell Macdonald]

www.NorthernTool.com

[windowwashers]

Christ technophobs say my site was a little hard to read (it's easy compared to this one), can you add the link to the thing your talking about?

[Russell Macdonald]

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200314015_200314015

[jouk45]

is this what your looking for, CLICK ON THE PIC TO SEE THE VIDEO,


http://www.upkeeper.com/gutterkeeper.html

[Russell Macdonald]

The lance is £99.99 + vat
gutter attachment is £9.99 + vat
washer nozzle £30 +vat.

The nozzles are a must & there are 5 different ones in the pack.

[Russell Macdonald]

is this what your looking for


http://www.upkeeper.com/gutterkeeper.html

Would love one but the cost 

[jouk45]

is this what your looking for


http://www.upkeeper.com/gutterkeeper.html

Would love one but the cost

is this what your looking for


http://www.upkeeper.com/gutterkeeper.html

Would love one but the cost

so would i macc, sometimes it seems ,  ridiculas here we are preaching the safety to customers about height, and regulations, and this is why we now use warter fed poles ect, we got the job of cleaning out their gutters, and out comes the ladders and bucket lol,

[Russell Macdonald]

That's why i invested in the lance, i could see i made myself looking like a plank. LOL

Also my days on ladders are over. I've spent my life on them & it's
taken it toll on me, i'm getting old. LOL

[jouk45]

how do you deal with over grown plants in gutters with your system, the gutterkeeper shows it sucking it up,    i know its rare to see plants like that,  so how would you deal with that from ground level,

[windowwashers]

from what i see no change at all. We clean gutters every day, and the system I see would not work, when gutters are blocked they are blocked. a lance may move stuff but would not solve the problem, gutters cannot be freeded without a ladder in most cases. If I am wrong let me know as I am always looking to work smarter and safer.

Reasons why: blockages ( cannot allot of the time be unblocked by a lance)
2, if a gutter is blocked alot of the times its because the down pipe it jammed or a tennis ball is blocking it(lance cant fix this can it?) simple hand grab (this works most of the time) if not take down the blocked pipe and free from floor level
3 Pressure jetting a gutter: (I wouldnt do it) asking for water on any ceiling in the house (gutters are made to catch rain water) not to get water blown at them from below (no brainer really)
4, lance from floor level (you  cant see the gutter therefor you do not know if it is empty or full still !!!!!!!) god i am saying obvious stuff here (forgive me if i am wrong) but that just common sence....

[windowwashers]

how do you deal with over grown plants in gutters with your system, the gutterkeeper shows it sucking it up,    i know its rare to see plants like that,  so how would you deal with that from ground level,

that is not rare at all where i am living, i see it day in day out, i had a customer the other day asking me for that service, they had a gutter company round charged them £300 for stopping a leak (that never stopped) I charged them £80 (and emptied the problem) and stopped it straight away, they had a plant (should I say tree) growing out of the gutter, it dont take to many brain cell  to say the plant would  go to the weakest joint and come though (which it did)