Gutter cleaning, repair and new gutters in Long Beach, MD

When to clean gutters in Long Beach

The first fall frost comes around November 26 in a typical year here, and the last spring frost around March 22 (median dates, NOAA normals). A fall cleaning set for the weeks after that frost, when the branches over the house are bare, gets the year’s leaves in one trip; a spring visit follows once the pollen and catkins have come down.

When to clean gutters explains how the trees over a roof change the schedule.

Gutter and downspout size for Long Beach rain

Gutters are sized for the worst few minutes of a storm, not for the year. In Long Beach the five-minute rain expected about once in ten years falls at 6.91 inches an hour (NOAA Atlas 14 Volume 2). At that rate one 2-by-3-inch downspout drains about 1,040 square feet of roof and one 3-by-4-inch downspout about 2,080, 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 Long Beach

Half the homes in Long Beach were built by 1985, 44% before 1980 (ACS 2020–2024). At that age a gutter has seen decades of leaves and storms, and the fascia it hangs from has too. 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.

90% of households own their home, and 100% 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 Maryland

Maryland requires a Maryland Home Improvement Commission license for home improvement work of any amount, gutters included, and a contractor may not take a deposit of more than one third of the contract price (Business Regulation § 8-617). Look the license up before signing, and keep the deposit to one third or less.

Source: Maryland Business Regulation § 8-101. Look-up: Maryland Home Improvement Commission, public query.