There are more exciting ways to spend £50 than paying somebody to remove wet leaves from your gutter.

Unfortunately, wet leaves don't care.

Once a gutter is blocked, rainwater still has to go somewhere.

Instead of travelling neatly down the drainpipe, it can pour over the edge, run down brickwork or find its way towards the roofline.

That's when a boring little autumn job can become considerably more interesting and considerably more expensive.

The Met Office specifically warns homeowners about falling leaves blocking gutters and drainpipes before winter.

Peterborough City Council also identifies overflowing gutters and rain getting into a property as possible causes of damp and mould.

What does it cost around Peterborough?

We found Peterborough-based Ace Cleaning Solutions advertising gutter cleaning from £50.

Checkatrade's Peterborough listings put typical gutter cleaning and clearance rather higher, at roughly £114 to £194.

That's quite a spread, but houses aren't identical.

A straightforward gutter on a smaller property is different from a larger house with difficult access, several levels or years of debris waiting overhead.

So don't treat £50 as the Peterborough price.

Instead, get a quote for your actual property and ask what it includes.

The signs you can spot without climbing a ladder

Heavy rain can be surprisingly helpful here.

Next time Peterborough gets a proper downpour, look outside.

Water pouring over one particular section of gutter is an obvious clue.

So are stains on the wall beneath it, sagging sections, overflowing drainpipes, peeling exterior paint or damp appearing where it wasn't before.

You don't need to climb onto the roof to investigate.

In fact, don't.

Saving the price of a gutter cleaner stops looking clever remarkably quickly if it involves falling off a ladder.

Ask what you're actually paying for

“Gutter cleaning” can describe different jobs.

Before booking somebody, ask:

Does the price cover all the gutters?

Are the downpipes checked too?

Will the leaves and debris be taken away?

Will they point out loose joints, damaged brackets or cracked sections they notice?

Is difficult access included?

That makes it much easier to compare two quotes that may initially look very different.

Why October is a good time to notice

Leaves are coming down and wetter weather is ahead.

Ace Cleaning Solutions recommends checking gutters in spring and autumn, while the Met Office advises clearing leaves and debris as part of preparing a property for winter.

Some Peterborough homes will barely collect anything.

Others particularly properties surrounded by mature trees can fill surprisingly quickly.

The important thing isn't following an arbitrary twice-a-year rule. It's knowing what happens at your property.

If the gutter above your conservatory fills every autumn, next year shouldn't come as a surprise.

Selling soon? Look up before the buyers do

There's another reason to sort it before putting the house on the market.

A buyer arriving on a wet afternoon and seeing water pouring over the gutter, staining down the brickwork or a damp patch inside doesn't know whether they're looking at a £50 clean or the beginning of a much more expensive problem.

And they're unlikely to assume the cheaper explanation.

It could become a question during the viewing. It could get mentioned in the survey. It could simply become one more little doubt in a buyer's mind.

Much better to deal with the leaves before you're standing there trying to explain the water mark.

What if you're renting?

Don't start arranging substantial external repairs yourself.

If you notice leaking guttering, water coming into the property or damp developing, report it to your landlord or letting agent and keep a written record.

Citizens Advice notes that leaking gutters and external pipes can cause water to penetrate a property and explains the responsibilities that can apply in rented homes.

Take photographs if there's visible damage.

Then report it before a small problem gets several months of British weather to work on it.

For homeowners, the principle is even simpler:

Deal with the leaves while the problem is still leaves.

Have you ever ignored a tiny household job only for it to turn into a much bigger bill?

Tell us what happened in the comments you may save another Peterborough homeowner from doing the same thing.