The Most Common Gutter Problems and How to Fix Them
Gutters are designed to do a specific job, which is to channel water away from the foundation of your home. They play a critical part in protecting the structural integrity of your home, and in order to do their job properly it’s important that they are properly maintained. This means ensuring that your gutters are free from issues such as leaks, clogs, holes, and sags. Thankfully, most common guttering problems are easy enough to fix on your own, so there’s no need to spend a lot of money on costly gutter repair services, most of the time. Here are some of the gutter problems that homeowners find the most often, and how to rectify them.
Clogged Gutters
Often, gutters don’t just catch water – it brings with it a whole host of other materials such as dirt, leaves and debris. If left unmaintained, gutters can soon fill up with all of these other materials, leaving them clogged and unable to catch the amount of water that they should be able to. The excess weight of water-logged leaves, twigs and debris can also lead to other issues such as leaks, or can cause the gutters to pull away from the side of the property and start to sag. Thankfully, simply cleaning your gutters regularly can rectify this problem. Gutters should be cleaned at least once a year, or twice if there are a lot of trees nearby. Whilst cleaning, you should take the opportunity to also check the gutters for other problems such as cracks or holes that may not be noticeable from the ground.
Sagging and Pulling Away
If you’ve noticed that your gutters are sagging or pulling away from the sides of the home, it’s usually an indication that there is a problem with the hangers. These hangers are the hardware which fastens your gutters to the fascia, and they could have deteriorated over time, causing the gutter to pull away or sag due to a lack of proper support. Usually, there’s no need to fully replace your gutters if you encounter this issue and it’s a much simpler – and cheaper – job than you may have imagined. You can buy hangers and fasteners separately at most hardware stores and re-fit them yourself easily.
Leaks and Holes
Leaks and holes in gutters can be caused by a variety of different reasons. Improperly cleaned gutters could cause a crack as weight builds up, and holes can be caused by general deterioration over time or in the case of plastic gutters, by issues such as acid rain. However, leaky gutter joints doesn’t necessarily mean that the whole gutter system needs to be replaced. Gutter sealant can be bought in most hardware stores and can be used to caulk or fill any cracks or holes in the gutters. Of course, you’ll need to wait for a dry day in order to this successfully!
If you encounter any serious problems with your gutters or aren’t confident in repairing issues yourself, contact the friendly experts at thompsoncreek.com.
