Service · From $145
Gutter cleaning, Grand Rapids.
Gutter cleaning in Grand Rapids costs from $145 flat-rate for a single-story residential home. We remove debris from every gutter run, flush every downspout to verify free flow, and (optional) soft-wash the exterior gutter face to remove the black tiger-striping that builds up year over year. Photo-log of every gutter section so you can see what we pulled out. Most jobs take 60-90 minutes. Text 616-254-9465 with a roofline photo for a same-day quote.
What an actual gutter cleaning looks like
- Walk-around. Photograph every gutter section visible from ground; note any damage or sagging runs.
- Ladder to the first gutter section. Two-person ladder safety standard for anything above the first floor.
- Hand-remove debris — leaves, twigs, helicopter seeds, asphalt granules, the occasional tennis ball. Into the contractor bag.
- Flush each gutter section with the hose to clear any remaining grit and silt.
- Flush each downspout from the top to verify free flow out to the splash block or drain.
- Move ladder, repeat — typically 4-8 sections on a single-story home, more on a two-story.
- (Optional) Soft-wash exterior gutter face for tiger-stripe removal — $95 add-on.
- Walk-around with you — photos of every section before and after, flagged damage notes. Debris bagged and removed.
Why downspout flushing matters
Clean gutters with clogged downspouts still overflow in heavy rain. The flush step is what makes the cleaning actually work — you watch the water hit the ground at the splash block at full flow, that's the verification. We do this on every job.
Below-ground drain-tile clogs are a separate issue. If your downspout terminates into a buried drain that's clogged, the water backs up regardless of how clean the gutter is. We'll flag this; specialty drain cleaning is a referral to a different contractor.
Gutter guards
We work around most gutter guard types. Notes on the common ones:
- Clip-on micro-mesh (LeafFilter, Gutter Helmet, etc.) — clips off, cleaning happens, clips back on. Adds 20-30% to job time.
- Reverse-curve guards (LeafGuard, Gutter Topper) — usually no removal needed; we clean what does get in.
- Foam inserts — pull out, dispose if old, replace with new ($25/section) if customer wants. Or leave out.
- Wire / nylon screens — lift off, clean, replace. Easy.
- No guards — standard cleaning. Most common.
If you're considering installing guards as part of the cleaning visit, we can coordinate with a guard installer — typically a follow-up visit since the install is a different skill set.
Tiger-striping (exterior gutter face wash)
The vertical black streaks on the outside of the gutters get worse year over year. Caused by water and pollutants running down the gutter face during rainstorms. Standard gutter cleaning doesn't remove this — it's a surface stain on the gutter exterior, not interior debris.
Soft-wash removes it. We do this as a $95 add-on when requested. Results are dramatic on white aluminum gutters; less obvious on dark gutters but still meaningful.
Combine with house wash for a discount. Gutter cleaning + house wash + tiger-stripe in one visit is usually 15-20% less than the sum of the individual services. Same drive, same setup.
What we won't do
Pressure-wash inside the gutter. High pressure inside gutters can damage seams and split sealed corners. Hand-removal + low-pressure flush is the right method.
Walk on roofs unnecessarily. Most cleaning happens from the ladder. Walking on shingles to access difficult sections is sometimes unavoidable but minimized.
Repair gutters. We'll flag damage; gutter repair is a different specialty.
Service area
Same 18-city Grand Rapids metro: Grand Rapids · Wyoming · Kentwood · Grandville · Walker · Forest Hills · Cascade · Caledonia · Hudsonville · Jenison · Byron Center · Rockford · Comstock Park · Cutlerville · East Grand Rapids · Ada · Allendale · Belmont.
Book gutter cleaning
Text 616.254.9465 with a roofline photo. Single-story vs. two-story affects the quote.