Hancock County, Illinois
Gutter cleaning, repair and new gutters in Carthage, IL
A normal year in Carthage brings about 41 inches of rain; on roughly 11 of its days, an inch or more comes down at once. The wettest season is summer (June to August), with about 13.5 inches; the driest is winter (December to February), with 5.9. That is about 25,600 gallons a year off each 1,000 square feet of roof, every drop of it through a gutter and a downspout.
Call (866) 228-6229 free call to a gutter contractor serving CarthageCarthage: rain and roofs
NOAA station USC00111316, 0 miBars to one scale; the longest is summer (June to August).
Counting days with an inch of rain or more, Carthage sits 96th for heavy-rain days of the 695 places in Illinois on this site (11.4 a year). By house age it falls 107th oldest by median year built of the 695 places in Illinois on this site (half built by 1956). By first frost it falls near the middle of the 695 places in Illinois on this site (October 22).
When to clean gutters in Carthage
The first fall frost comes around October 22 in a typical year here, and the last spring frost around April 13 (median dates, NOAA normals). Booking the fall cleaning after the first frost, once the trees over the roof are bare, catches the season’s drop in one visit; the spring cleaning comes after the pollen and catkins are down.
When to clean gutters explains how the trees over a roof change the schedule.
Gutter and downspout size for Carthage rain
The short, hard downpour is what a gutter is sized for. In Carthage the five-minute rain expected about once in ten years falls at 7.78 inches an hour (NOAA Atlas 14 Volume 2). At that rate one 2-by-3-inch downspout drains about 930 square feet of roof and one 3-by-4-inch downspout about 1,850, by the rule in the Copper Development Association’s design handbook. Try your own roof in the gutter and downspout calculator, which starts from this figure.
The houses in Carthage
Half the homes in Carthage were built by 1956, 77% before 1980 (ACS 2020–2024). Houses that age have often had their gutters replaced once already; if not, the original runs and the boards behind them deserve a close look. On a house built before 1978, replacing more than 20 square feet of painted fascia or trim falls under the EPA’s lead-safe rule, so ask whether the crew is certified.
71% of households own their home, and 74% of homes are detached houses. If an association maintains the exterior, the gutters may be its job rather than yours; check before calling.
Hiring in Illinois
Licensing for gutter work differs from state to state; ask a contractor in Carthage which license or registration they hold in Illinois, and for proof of liability insurance. Hiring a gutter contractor
Gutter work in Carthage
With half the homes built by 1956, replacement gutters and the fascia behind them come up more often here than in newer suburbs. The line takes all of it: