What Warrnambool throws at its gutters
Storms that bring trees down
After the storm of 8 September 2023, clearing fallen trees across Warrnambool was expected to take up to three weeks. Branches and leaves end up in gutters and valleys long before anyone gets to the trunk on the lawn.
South-easterlies and southerly weather
The city is exposed to strong south-easterly winds, and Lady Bay's beaches take the southerly weather. Wind piles leaves into whichever gutters face away from it, so one side of the house can fill faster than the other.
Steady rain to carry it all
The airport averages 729.7 mm a year over 116.0 days with at least 1 mm, and the old post office records from 1897 to 1983 tell the same story at 741.9 mm. Blocked outlets get tested often.
Salt near Logan's Beach and Lake Pertobe
Homes near the beaches are in the salt zone. A gutter packed with wet leaves holds salty moisture against the steel for weeks, and BlueScope already counts the underside of eave gutters among the spots that need regular hosing near the sea.
Why a clean gutter lasts longer here
Monier lists blocked gutters, downpipes and valleys among the common sources of roof leaks and recommends cleaning them at least once a year, more often under trees. In Warrnambool there's a second reason: corrosion. Steel that dries out between showers fares better than steel left sitting in wet, salty sludge.
If a clean turns up rust holes, the replacement needs to suit your distance from the surf. BlueScope recommends COLORBOND Ultra for eave gutters, downpipes and fascia from 100 m out, and standard COLORBOND or ZINCALUME beyond 200 m. Our gutter replacement page covers the job.
Signs your gutters need attention after a storm
- Water pouring over the front edge instead of down the downpipe
- A downpipe that stays dry while it's raining
- Branches or leaves visible above the gutter line from the street
- A gutter sagging away from the fascia, or brackets bent by debris
- Rust streaks or drips at joins on the side of the house that faces the sea
- New stains on the eaves lining or ceiling near the edge of the house
Questions to ask a Warrnambool gutter cleaner
- After a storm, will you clear branches from the roof valleys as well as the gutters?
- Will you hose the gutters through and rinse off salt while you're there?
- Can you tell me if any section is rusting through, and photograph it?
- Are bent brackets or storm damage repaired at the same visit, or quoted separately?
Our take
We'd clean every autumn before winter, and again after any storm that brings branches down. Near the beach, we'd ask the cleaner to hose the gutters through afterwards, so salt isn't left sitting in them. If cleaning keeps turning up rust, we'd stop paying for cleans and price a surf-rated replacement. For DIY and ladder safety, see gutter cleaning.
Want a roofer to take a look?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match it with a Find My Roofer certified roofer who specialises in that kind of work, and they call you to quote. Your number goes to them alone.