How to check your gutters without a ladder

1. Watch them in heavy rain

This is the best check there is, and it costs nothing. Cadw, the Welsh Government's historic environment service, puts it simply: "Next time there is a good downpour, grab an umbrella and stand in the rain. You may get wet, but it is the best time to check your gutters and drains."

Walk round the whole house. Look for water coming over the front edge, dripping from joints, or running down the wall behind the gutter. Then look at the bottom of each downpipe. A pipe that's barely running while the gutter above it overflows is blocked.

2. Read the signs from the ground

3. Look down from an upstairs window

Lower gutters are often easiest to see from inside. From an upstairs window you can usually look straight into the gutters over a bay, a porch, a kitchen extension or a garage. Those lower roofs catch whatever washes off the main roof above them, so they block easily.

4. A phone on a pole

This is the trick most people don't think of. Set your phone to record video, fix it to a selfie stick or an extending pole, raise it a little above the gutter and walk slowly along the run. Play it back and you'll see exactly what's inside.

On a MoneySavingExpert thread about checking gutters by selfie stick, one homeowner's stick was "attached to extending poles from a window cleaning kit". Their verdict: "Bit 'Heath Robinson' - but it worked!" Keep the pole well away from overhead power and phone cables, and don't lean it against the gutter.

5. Check the bottom of the downpipes

The bottom of a downpipe tells you about the top. If the gully or drain it empties into keeps filling with leaves, moss or grit, that material is coming down from the gutter, and more will be sitting up there. Water pooling at the foot of the pipe after rain can also mean the drain below is blocked. The Department for Communities in Northern Ireland, in its technical note on roof drainage, advises checking that water runs freely in gutters and pipes before looking for any other cause.

6. A drone, if you have one and know the rules

A small drone gives a perfect view of gutters and roof slopes. But the rules changed on 1 January 2026. As TechRadar reported, you now need a Flyer ID for drones of 100g or more, and an Operator ID for any drone of 100g or more with a camera. Think about your neighbours too. As one MoneySavingExpert user put it: "The neighbours would not like a drone buzzing near their house."

Why not just pop up the ladder?

Because gutters are exactly where ladders go wrong. Safety guidance from the Ladder Association, written with the Health and Safety Executive, says a leaning ladder should be at about 75 degrees, using the "1-in-4 rule", and that you should "maintain three points of contact when climbing". It warns: "Do not rest a ladder against weak upper surfaces such as glazing or plastic gutters." It also says "don't overreach – make sure your belt buckle (or navel) stays within the stiles", which is hard to do while scooping out a gutter at arm's length.

If you can't check it safely from the ground, you don't need to check it at all. That's our job.

What to do with what you find

• Gutters clear and water running freely: nothing to do. Check again after the leaves have fallen.
• Plants, moss or overflow in one place: send us a photo or your video. We'll tell you whether it needs clearing now or can wait until after leaf fall.
• Overflowing all round, or a damp patch inside: book a clear before the worst of the winter rain.

We clear gutters by hand, test every downpipe and send you before and after photos of each run.

Written by Hawkes Roofing, roofers based in St Albans who clear gutters by hand across Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and north-west London. Last reviewed 26 October 2026.