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Gutter Cleaning
A clean gutter plays a key role in the protection of your home. Clogged gutters can cause water leakage into your home. It can also cause erosion and damage to your valuable landscaping. Let us clean & flush your gutters, while we are up there we can also change your outdoor spotlight bulbs.
Finally, what about wet basements? I grew up in Southern California and didn’t see a basement (or radiator for that matter) until we moved out of state. Now, we have both. And damp basements are a big topic of conversation.
Beware, beware, beware, yet again, of scams, say the experts.
Many people think — or are told — that their basement is wet because of a rising water table and need expensive drains installed.
But, “nine out of 10 times when a basement leaks, it’s after a rainstorm or big snow melt,” said Tom Kraeutler, co-host of the nationally syndicated program, “The Money Pit Home Improvement Radio Show.”
Therefore, it is far more likely to be a problem of clogged gutters, misplaced downspouts or poor landscaping than a rising water table, he said.
People often get quotes for $10,000 to $15,000 to tear up their basement and install drains, said Carmen Santora, executive director of the New York watchdog group Better Contractors Bureau.
“But we go out and inspect and we can take that estimate down to $1,000 or even less,” Mr. Santora said.
Often, Mr. Kraeutler said, all that is necessary is to check that your gutters aren’t stopped up and that downspouts are at least four feet from the house, so that rainwater doesn’t seep into basement walls or the foundation.
Also, make sure that soil hasn’t eroded around your basement so that the ground slopes toward your home.
Mr. Kraeutler’s co-host, Leslie Segrete, remembers when her basement was saturated after a downpour because a gutter was disconnected from a pipe and a downspout was clogged.
Once those problems were resolved, the basement never flooded again. “Now I pay someone to clean those gutters five times a year,” she said.