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Gutter cleaning cost calculator

Gutters are the one job on this site priced by the foot rather than the square foot, and the one where two completely different services get sold under one name. Clearing the trough is a hands-and-scoop job. Stripping the black tiger-stripes off the face is a chemical job. Quote them as two lines or you will be doing the second one for nothing.

Gutter estimate

Estimated price range

$207 - $518

180 lin ft · one service

Guard removal, three-storey work and detached garages are separate lines. Brightening is a chemical job, not a pressure job — oxidation does not rinse off.

Photograph-style gutter and downpipe, algae-streaked along one side of the diagonal and washed white along the other
Linear foot work
A gutter corner and downspout head, streaked on one side and bare white on the other.

PSI & nozzle quick reference

0 degRed
Spot jet. Etches most surfaces.4000 PSI
15 degYellow
Stripping bare concrete.4000 PSI
25 degGreen
General concrete and walkways.3500 PSI
40 degWhite
Siding, wood, vehicles.1500 PSI
~65 degBlack
Detergent draw, low pressure.500 PSI

Measuring the run

The gutter run is roughly the perimeter of the roof edge, not the perimeter of the house — overhangs and a detached garage add to it. Count downspouts separately: each one is a flush and a check, and a blocked elbow is where the real time goes.

HouseTypical runDownspouts
Single storey, simple hip140–1704
Two storey with dormers180–2406
Plus detached garage+60–90+2

Why brightening is not a pressure job

The vertical black stripes on an aluminium gutter face are oxidised aluminium bonded with road film and pollen. Pressure does not shift them, and enough pressure to try will dent the trough and drive water into the fascia. It is a dedicated gutter-brightening surfactant, a brush, and a rinse — slow, manual, and worth charging for.

Guards change everything

Leaf guards, screens and helmet systems have to come off and go back on, and some clip systems break on removal. Price guard removal as its own line and say in writing that brittle clips are the homeowner’s risk.

Debris is yours to remove

Leaving bagged gutter sludge on the drive is how a five-star job becomes a complaint. Haul-away is part of the quote — and it is one more reason the call-out floor exists.

Worked example

A 180 ft run on a two-storey, clear-out plus brightening, moderate debris, awkward access. Both services together run $1.00–$2.50 and $1.00–$2.00 per foot, so 180 ft at the combined band with a 1.15 access multiplier lands near $414–$932. Two people, most of a day, ladders moved forty times.

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