Sure those leaves are beautiful in Northern Illinois, but that doesn't make it any safer when someone has to climb a ladder to clean the leaves out of the gutters.

For many Northern Illinois residents, autumn is their favorite season. The weather in Northern Illinois is generally cool but not too cold. The bugs are generally less prevalent and, above all, the leaves are incredible. People check for the optimal times to take trips where they can see the fall colors in their full splendor. The autumn colors are a wonder of the world. They are beautiful beyond words. And yet, those beautiful leaves are also a major pain in the neck.

Wouldn’t it be nice if the leaves were brightly colored with reds, yellows, oranges, browns and greens the year round – that they never fell from the trees? But, here in Northern Illinois, they do fall and when they fall they create a mess for homeowners and businesses. There’s all that raking. But the leaves don’t just fall on the ground.

When the autumn leaves fall, they don’t just land on the ground. Any obstacle between the branches and the ground is a potential resting place for falling leaves. That includes buildings – homes and businesses. With wind and rain, the leaves work their way down from the roof and into the gutters.

Think about it. If a modest home has a roof area of 2,000 square feet (50 X 40), that’s the equivalent of a small yard’s worth of leaves waiting to work their way into the gutters. Yes, some will blow over, particularly when the gutters and full and bulging with leaves. In no time at all, the gutters are busting at the seams with leaves.

A gutter full of leaves is a gutter that doesn’t work. Working, a gutter moves water from the roof through downspouts and away from the home or office. Full of leaves, a gutter is completely useless. If you’ve ever seen a home without gutters, you’ve seen how the water spills directly off the roof digging a small ditch line around the structure.

Without gutters, the water builds up in the wrong area and, once frozen later in the next season, presents a serious hazard with the potential to cause falls. The water also has the potential to work its way into the basement of the building.

More than just creating a situation where the gutters don’t work properly, when the gutters are full of leaves, ice and snow build up on top of the gutters. The weight can cause the gutters to break. This presents another hazard and an expense.

Without gutters, the roof will also create an army of icicles, all in a row. This is another falling hazard.

The solution is to clean the gutters every fall. It’s a good idea to wait until the leaves have fallen but, once they have, it’s time to make sure the gutters can do their intended job.

You can clean the gutters yourself but safety is a big factor. It requires working off a ladder and, to some degree, reaching out from the sides of the ladder into the gutter. It’s a messy and hazardous job. Better yet, why not just hire someone to clean the gutters for you?

If you do opt on having someone else clean your gutters, be sure to hire someone who knows what they’re doing – they’ve done it before. Also, and this is essential, make sure they’re insured. The risk of a fall is all the greater with some novices doing the work. But, either way, you want to make sure that, if someone does fall when cleaning your gutters, they don’t leave you holding the bag.