One of the warning signs that you need new gutters are cracks or crevices. The small cracks soon turn into much larger ones that will cause major problems for water drainage. A small crack can cause enough damage if water drips into vulnerable areas. Fix any crack immediately by consulting a professional.
Your gutters should not have large gaps. If they do, cut them out and change them immediately. Stagnant water means that there is some kind of obstruction in the gutter or even in the downspout. If you can't find an obstruction in any of these accessories, you must install a new gutter.
An estimated 1,000-square-foot roof receives more than 620 gallons of runoff during a storm that drops an inch of rain. Your roof system and gutters work together to keep that water out of your house, as it can cause wood rot, mold, leaks, stains and structural damage. When leaves and other natural debris fill the gutters, they decompose and leave you with an unpleasant smell. These rotting leaves can cause birds, mice, squirrels and other unwanted pests to nest in gutters, causing greater obstruction and increasing odor with their waste.
One way to ensure that gutters are clean and working properly is to install a protection system. We use the Leaf Relief system, which we can apply over your existing gutters or with new gutters. These gutter protectors are superior to homemade screen protectors, require no cleaning and have a 25-year warranty. One of the most difficult problems to detect in gutters is an inadequate slope of the gutter.
This can cause water to stagnate in the gutter or, worse, water to accumulate in the gutter at its lowest point. If you notice that your gutter doesn't drain with no visible leaks, the problem could be the slope. It's not as easy to fix as the others, but it will cause excessive stress on the gutter system if left unlooked after. A sure sign that you should replace the gutter is the presence of a leaky roof, which you can see when it rains a lot.
The most important sign to watch for is the moisture that accumulates on the roof, whether it comes from gutters or seeps through the coating or floor. Detached gutters hanging from your house can be dangerous. This not only means that the system is not working, but it also represents a potential hazard. If there is a strong wind or storm, the gutter could completely detach from the roof and fall on something or someone underneath.
Joints where two pieces of gutter are connected are the weakest points of any gutter system. If you start to see the gutters being separated by those joints, your gutters are likely to be near the end of their useful life. Cracks and crevices in other parts of the gutter are also signs that the gutters are wearing out. Even if you see a small crack or crevice, it's worth starting to think soon about replacing the gutters.
Cracks and crevices will only grow over time, especially when colder weather hits and ice can seep and expand into those cracks. The appropriate slope for gutters is ½ inch over 10 feet, but if the gutter is more than 40 feet long, you may want to tilt it in the middle of two different drain nozzles. If you don't realize these problems before they get out of hand, you'll need to call a professional to repair or replace the gutters. Even if your home is located away from falling trees and areas of hail, gutter erosion will occur if you don't maintain them properly.
If your gutters overflow even though the downspout spits water, it's a sign that the gutters are likely to be too narrow for your home and should be replaced. To fix the slope of a gutter, you'll need to rehang it by removing the hardware and re-measuring the pitch. This causes excessive tension in that section of the gutter and can cause the hardware to fail, causing greater sagging or, worse, a total collapse of the gutter section. Learn the most common gutter problems, how to fix them before it's too late, and when it's time to replace gutters completely.
Even the smallest leak in your gutters could cause your roof to leak, and you should know that this is a sign that you need to repair your gutters. Rust stains quickly turn into holes, and you don't want rainwater to seep through rusty stains in gutters, as it can leave large, hard-to-remove stains on your home's lining, not to mention that holes in gutters can cause water damage. Gutters are designed to work with your home's drainage system, but some gutters aren't as strong and can collapse if not properly maintained. So, before the rainy season or winter begins, you may want to have gutter repair professionals inspect your gutter system.
Every fall and spring, you'll have to climb the entire perimeter of your roof to clear clogged gutters. . .
