Ahhhhh the joys of fall, the leaves are falling, it’s not too hot, and it’s not too cold. Just a perfect time to enjoy working outside. Unless you work in the exterior cleaning industry, because if you clean windows or offer soft washing and pressure washing, you probably offer gutter cleaning as well. I have a weird relationship with gutter cleaning, a love-hate relationship at that. On the one hand, I wouldn’t say I like gutter cleaning and want to run as far as possible from any house with trees nearby. Then, on the other hand, I find gutter cleaning to be one of the most profitable add-on services in the business.

“Gutter cleaning can be what you make it, as always offer what you are worth.”

Credit: Lezlie Tiarks

I’ve had some jobs where gutters added an extra 500 bucks on top of the bill. The great thing about owning your own business means you don’t have to take every job. You can run this business however you want. Trust me. I have had my fair share of pulling up 4-foot carrot roots, roaches, snakes, even a rat out of gutters. That was a fun gutter cleaning. But you don’t have to take these jobs. Let’s go ahead and bite the bullet and shoot the elephant in the room. Gutter cleaning sucks, BUT gutter cleaning is SUPER profitable. We charge a dollar afoot for a single story and 2 dollars a foot for 2 stories. Make gutter cleaning worth your time. Trust me; You’re going to get super messy wet, and gross, so make it worth it. I have to steal an idea a friend of mine shared with me. I’m sure you know him, Jersey over there from XYZ window cleaning. (lol); that idea was the float board; gutter cleaning can come in very handy with something like the float board. What is a float board? I’m glad you asked. It is a board filled with jobs of the sqft, price, etc., so that when the schedule gets messed up with cancellations or weather delays, you can throw one of those float board gutter cleanings on there, and BOOM, you are making money again.

Gutter cleaning is also a VERY profitable add-on service

I know some companies that only clean gutters. That’s how profitable it is. When you are on a job site doing gutters, obviously you paid for the lead and the gas to get to the job, BUT you are only paying for trash bags, a bucket and a rake, sometimes a blower. But other than that, the whole job is a profit. I love package deals. When you wash a roof, it makes so much sense to clean the gutters first, right? Now that’s an extra 500 on the tab, and it is super straightforward work.

All gutters are different, but an average gutter cleaning should average 100 bucks an hour for you. Another great thing about gutter cleaning is the customer doesn’t have to be home. I’m not sure about you, but those are my favorite jobs. Just me, the house, some music, and the paycheck at the end. I prefer all cleanings to be this way since people are very hard to deal with nowadays, but I digress. Gutter cleaning is a great add-on service to boost your profit margins, new techs can jump right in with no training needed, and experienced techs can fly by without a second thought. If you haven’t added gutter cleaning to your arsenal, give it a go on a few houses and see how much money you bring in.

Even a tool for gutter cleaning helps you pull the debris with a pole under the rungs all from the top of the ladder, so you don’t have to move the ladder as often. Of course, they are available at windowcleaner.com. Some company’s even sell gutter vacuums for 2-3-4story gutter cleanings, times are changing, and technology is growing in the industry.

If you still haven’t thought about adding gutter cleaning to your services, your sign is to do so.

-By Austin Grubbs