Clear the drain outside someone else's house
Ten minutes with a rake in autumn is the difference between a puddle and a flooded front room in the next heavy rain.
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Why it lands
Blocked gulleys are a genuinely consequential thing that nobody owns. The council comes rarely, the householder often cannot see the blockage from inside, and the first time anybody notices is when water is coming up the path. It is unglamorous, entirely invisible when it works, and one of the few small acts with a real chance of preventing thousands of pounds of damage.
How
After the leaves drop, take a rake or a gloved hand to the grate outside a few houses — not just yours. Lift the mat of leaves, bag it, and check the water runs. Twenty minutes covers most of a street. Do not lift heavy covers or reach into anything you cannot see the bottom of.
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