Is your gutter actually blocked? How to check safely

Melbourne's deciduous trees are hard on gutters — planes, elms and oaks all shed leaves that pack into valleys and downpipes right before the wet season hits. Most of the time you don't need to climb a ladder to find out if that's your problem.

Checks you can do from the ground

• Watch the gutter edge during rain: If water is spilling over the front instead of running into the downpipe, something's blocking the flow behind it.
• Look for sagging or pulling gutters: Extra weight from trapped leaves and wet debris can pull a gutter away from the fascia over time.
• Check for staining below the gutter line: Dark streaks on brick, render or timber below the gutter usually mean it's been overflowing for a while.
• Listen at the downpipe during rain: A healthy downpipe gurgles and flows freely — silence or a weak trickle often means a blockage further up.

Signs it's affecting the inside of your home

• Damp patches on ceilings near the roofline: Especially ones that get worse after every rain, rather than a one-off stain.
• A musty smell in the roof space: Trapped moisture from an overflowing gutter can sit in the roof cavity for a long time before you notice a stain.
• Fresh damp marks around downpipe joints: Water backing up in a blocked gutter can force its way out at weak points lower down.

What not to do

1. Don't climb onto a wet roof to check: Melbourne roofs get slippery fast after rain, and this is one of the most common ways people get hurt doing their own gutter checks.
2. Don't force a blockage with high water pressure: It can push debris further into the downpipe rather than clear it.
3. Don't ignore a sagging section: That's a sign of a bigger problem than leaves — brackets or fascia may need attention, not just a clean-out.

What Paul recommends

If you're seeing overflow, staining, or damp patches, that's enough to justify a proper look. Paul checks gutters, valleys and downpipes safely for a $140 call-out fee, with a clear price ($120/hour plus materials) before any work starts.