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Clear Ottawa Windows Get Gutter & Window Cleaning in Ottawa! We're rated the #1 Window Washing company in Ottawa by Homestars.

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Anthocyanins, the pigments that turn Ottawa's maples red are produced as the tree withdraws nutrients from leaves before...
10/23/2026

Anthocyanins, the pigments that turn Ottawa's maples red are produced as the tree withdraws nutrients from leaves before dropping them.

By the time a leaf is fully red, the tree has pulled almost all its chlorophyll, nitrogen, and phosphorus back into the branch. What falls into your eavestrough is a desiccated, lightweight, tightly packing organic material.

Red leaves compact faster and more densely than green ones. A channel that handles green leaf load in September can become fully restricted under the same volume of red leaves in October.

Gatineau Park hits peak colour this week. The leaves that look most beautiful from the parkway are the ones that pack most tightly into the trough channel when they drop.

One clean before the peak. Then one after. That's the fall eavestrough protocol.

→ clearottawa.com · 613-686-1739

A standard eavestrough inspection assesses what is visible: the trough channel, the joint connections, the hanger hardwa...
10/21/2026

A standard eavestrough inspection assesses what is visible: the trough channel, the joint connections, the hanger hardware, the debris load.

What is not visible from standard inspection: the inside of the downspout column.

Downspout columns are typically 3–4 inches square and run 2–3 metres from the trough connection to the exit point. Blockages within the column compacted debris, wasp nest material, or in Ottawa's older homes, collapsed internal corrosion cannot be identified without either flushing the column and observing the exit or using a flexible camera system.

The compact waterproof cameras now used in professional eavestrough inspection can navigate a 3-inch downspout column and image the full interior. Common Ottawa downspout findings:

→ Collapsed section in older galvanised steel downspouts where internal corrosion has buckled the material
→ Wasp nest material that has hardened over multiple seasons into a solid internal plug
→ Debris compaction at a reduction in the downspout internal dimension (typically where sections join)

A downspout that appears to drain correctly from outside can have an internal restriction at 60–70% that standard cleaning misses.

This is not standard across every Ottawa cleaning company. It is standard at Clear Ottawa — Ottawa's Exterior Home Doctor.

10/20/2026

These three beliefs are genuinely common in Ottawa.

They’re also responsible for a significant portion of the foundation damage, fascia rot, and ice dam claims we see every spring.

One myth is understandable. One is partly true. One is completely wrong and costs the most.

clearottawa.com · 613-686-1739

Exterior home deterioration is not primarily age-driven. It is maintenance-driven.Two Ottawa homes built in 2005 same co...
10/19/2026

Exterior home deterioration is not primarily age-driven. It is maintenance-driven.

Two Ottawa homes built in 2005 same construction standards, same materials, same neighbourhood microclimate can look dramatically different by 2026 based entirely on maintenance history.

The variables that drive visual and structural deterioration:

→ Eavestrough blockage → fascia rot → paint failure on siding → moisture infiltration pattern visible from street
→ Window track neglect → frame mold → paint adhesion failure on frames → visual aging of window openings
→ Concrete and hardscape neglect → biological staining → spalling acceleration → surface age appears 10+ years greater than actual

None of these are weather events. None require exceptional circumstances. They are the predictable, documented outcomes of deferred maintenance applied consistently over time.

The house that looks older is not older. It is less maintained.

— Clear Ottawa · Ottawa's Exterior Home Doctor

The gap between recommended maintenance frequency and actual maintenance frequency is one of the most significant and le...
10/18/2026

The gap between recommended maintenance frequency and actual maintenance frequency is one of the most significant and least-discussed factors in Canadian home deterioration.

Industry bodies in Canada recommend:
→ Eavestrough cleaning: twice yearly
→ Exterior window cleaning: twice yearly, minimum annually
→ Pressure washing of hard surfaces: annually
→ Siding inspection: annually

Survey data suggests the average Canadian homeowner undertakes professional exterior cleaning once every several years if at all.

The consequence is not dramatic failure. It's gradual degradation:
→ Joint sealant that fails after 8 years rather than 15
→ Fascia boards that rot after 12 years rather than 25
→ Concrete surfaces that spall after 10 years rather than 30
→ Window seals that fail after 12 years rather than 20

The shortfall isn't catastrophic. It's the quiet subtraction of years from the lifespan of every exterior component.

Look at the photograph carefully before reading on.Signal 1 — The rust band below the joint: Water has been escaping at ...
10/17/2026

Look at the photograph carefully before reading on.

Signal 1 — The rust band below the joint: Water has been escaping at this connection point for at least two rain cycles. The rust is mineral transfer from the eavestrough material to the fascia it stains because the water carries dissolved metal with it.

Signal 2 — The paint bubbling at the siding base: The bottom 15cm of siding shows a horizontal band of bubbling. This is the capillary rise height water wicking upward from ground-level saturation. The source: the downspout exit is discharging too close to the foundation.

Signal 3 — The soffit stain: A darker patch on the soffit directly above the joint rust stain. Water has been entering the soffit cavity the joint failure is older than it appears at surface level.

Signal 4 — The green line at the eavestrough base: Algal growth along the front lip of the trough a sign that water regularly sits at this level inside the channel. The system is holding water rather than channelling it. A blockage downstream is confirmed.

Four signals. One photograph. One home telling its story to anyone who knows the language.

Before the late 19th century, residential buildings managed roof water through wide roof overhangs extended eaves that t...
10/16/2026

Before the late 19th century, residential buildings managed roof water through wide roof overhangs extended eaves that threw water clear of the foundation and sloped grading that directed surface water away from structures.

As urban density increased in cities like Ottawa, lot sizes shrank. Narrower lots meant neighbours were closer. Wide overhangs shed water onto adjacent properties. Building codes began requiring controlled roof water management.

The eavestrough then called a "rain gutter" or "roof gutter" provided a solution: capture the water at the roof edge and direct it to a controlled discharge point.

The critical element that made the system work: the downspout, and where it discharged. Early Canadian building standards required downspouts to discharge to municipal storm drains. As Ottawa expanded into suburban areas with clay-heavy soil, the standard evolved to require surface discharge at a minimum distance from the foundation because clay soil retains water rather than absorbing it.

The system was designed with one assumption built in: that it would be maintained.

Remove the maintenance allow debris accumulation, joint failure, or downspout misdirection and the system doesn't just stop working. It actively directs water toward the foundation it was designed to protect.

10/15/2026

Ottawa gets 4 hours of sunshine per day in October.

Seasonal Affective Disorder affects up to 15% of Canadians.

The connection between dirty windows and winter mental health is real, documented, and almost never talked about.

This reel covers the research and the one change that costs almost nothing.

clearottawa.com · 613-686-1739

A ladder, a garden hose, and a willingness to climb will clear visible debris from the top of an eavestrough channel.Wha...
10/14/2026

A ladder, a garden hose, and a willingness to climb will clear visible debris from the top of an eavestrough channel.

What DIY cleaning does not typically address:

Downspout entry blockage. The single most common blockage point in Ottawa eavestroughs is where the trough meets the downspout entry packed with shingle grit and fine debris. This is almost never visible from a ladder position.

Joint inspection. Detecting a failing joint requires applying pressure and observing the response not possible while managing a ladder on the exterior of a house.

Hanger integrity check. Each fastener should be physically tested for movement. This requires two-handed attention at height not safely achievable during self-service cleaning.

Downspout flush and exit confirmation. The downspout channel should be water-flushed and the exit point confirmed to be discharging correctly. This requires a helper at ground level while flushing from above.

Written documentation. Condition notes, photographs of any damage, and a maintenance timeline recommendation cannot be produced while managing the physical clean.

DIY cleaning maintains a system that is already functioning. Professional inspection discovers what isn't.

10/13/2026

Ottawa's first frost arrives around October 19 on average.

What happens inside a debris-filled eavestrough when that temperature hits is something most homeowners have never thought about and it explains why October damage is always more expensive than September prevention.

This reel shows the exact mechanism. No sales pitch. Just physics.

clearottawa.com · 613-686-1739

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532 Montréal Road
Ottawa, ON
K1K4R4

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