In the older streets around the town centre — Caldmore, Palfrey, Chuckery and the roads off Lichfield Street — most houses are Victorian or Edwardian terraces with slate roofs and cast iron or early plastic gutters. The fronts are close to the pavement and the backs open onto narrow entries, so a vacuum that works from street level saves a lot of hassle. The usual problem here is not leaves but roof moss and grit from old slates, which settles as a thick sludge and blocks the outlets.
Further out, trees are the issue. Homes around the Arboretum, the edge of Sutton Park in Streetly, Pelsall Common and Barr Beacon catch heavy leaf fall from October onwards, and the larger detached houses in Aldridge and Streetly often have long runs over garages, porches and conservatories. When these overflow you get green streaks down the render and puddles along the patio — usually the first sign people notice.
Across Bloxwich, Beechdale, Willenhall and Darlaston there are many 1950s–70s homes with uPVC gutters that are now 30 to 40 years old. The brackets loosen, the joints start to drip and the runs sag in the middle, so water sits in the low point and fills with silt. We clear the run, flush the downpipes and send photos that show exactly where any joint or bracket needs attention.