Why Do I Have Leaking Gutters?

No one likes dealing with gutters, cleaning them is a hassle and if they break, they are a pain to repair. Leaking gutters can cause damage to the exterior of your home and the foundation of your home. Furthermore, leaking gutters bring with them all the issues that you usually come with water damage, rot and mold growth. So, if you are unlucky enough to have your gutters start leaking, it is important that you identify the reason that your gutters are leaking so that you can both fix the gutters and prevent your gutters from leaking in the future.

Clogging

Let’s start with the simplest, and probably most common cause of gutter problems, clogged gutters. Large amounts of debris fill up your gutters and this causes clogs. I know it is a hassle to clean your gutters, but unless you want to hire a professional cleaning service, you are going to have to clean the gutters yourself. Thankfully, cleaning your gutters is not difficult. Start by cleaning the downspout. Next, grab a ladder (never attempt to get up on your roof to clean your gutters, always clean from a ladder), grab something to dislodge the larger debris (or get a tool specifically made for cleaning gutters), and grab a bucket. Start fishing out the larger pieces of debris, like leaves, branches, sticks, etc. After the larger pieces have been fished out, grab your hose, and use that to clean out the smaller bits of debris in the gutter. In the future, you need to make sure to clean your gutters at the very least 2 times a year, if you live in an area with lots of rain, you will need to clean them more often. Yes it’s a hassle, but if you ignore your gutters as many irresponsible home owners do, then you will be regretting it later. If you want to make your life easier, you should consider buying leaf guards for your gutters. Leaf guards have durable filters to keep common debris like leaves, twigs, sticks, branches, etc., from getting into your gutters. They also tend to be very easy to install, many leaf guards do not even require power tools to install.

Cracking and holes

Over the years, small pools of water can form in certain parts of your gutters. Over time this water can cause cracks to begin appearing on your gutters. The size of the cracks and the amount of them vary greatly from situation to situation. Cracks are most likely going to form at your gutter’s joints and areas where 2 separate pieces of gutter meet. Cracks can be easily fixed assuming that there are not a lot of them and that the cracks are relatively small. Grab a ladder, and your favourite brand of caulk, and you can deal with some small cracks. If the cracks are larger and more numerous than do not attempt to fix them yourself, call a professional and get them to take a look. As we discussed in the beginning, leaking gutters can cause serious damage if not handled properly, so you do not want to risk making the problem worse. Every few

Small pools of water do not just cracks, they can also cause holes to begin forming. The water causes rust and corrosion, which then makes it easier for holes to form. Much like with cracks, small holes can be fixed with caulk, but for larger holes, you are going to need a professional to fix them. If you notice that your gutters are continually plagued by holes, then there is a chance that your gutters are not sloped properly. When gutters are not properly sloped, water pools easier, which leads to holes forming. The professional fixing your gutters should be able to identify this, on the off chance they miss it, do not be afraid to ask them to make sure that your gutters are sloped properly.

Badly installed gutter joints

It is very easy for the connecting pieces of your gutter, like the elbow joints, to be improperly installed. If these gutter joints are not installed properly the water will either leak through the joints or it will pool there and cause some of the problems discussed above. Fixing this problem is much easier than the other problems described so far, all you need to do is replace the improperly installed gutter joint. If you have no idea how to do that, do not attempt it yourself, call a professional who should be able to do the job fairly easily.

Loose gutters

If your gutters are old, then chances are they were installed with spikes and ferrules. These do a pretty good job of keeping gutters in place, but they also come loose somewhat easily after a certain amount of time. You can of course just put them back in, but that is only a temporary fix. During times of extreme weather, your gutters are likely going to become loose. So, if you are handy you can try fixing loose gutters yourself, but if you are not, then you are going to want to ask a professional Sydney plumber to install some tighter fastenings on your gutter system.

 Gutter material

There are a bunch of different types of gutters, galvanized steel, plastic, aluminum, vinyl, etc. Certain gutter materials are more prone to damage than others. The key culprit here are galvanized steel gutters. They are far more susceptible to corrosion and damage than aluminum gutters. If leaky gutters are a common problem, then it may be time to consider ditching your galvanized steel gutters and getting more durable aluminum ones installed. In general experts prefer aluminum; it is lighter, easier to work with, and resists damage better. If you do not already have aluminum gutters, consider making the switch ASAP.

Leaky gutters are an issue many homeowners have to deal with, but it is important that you do not ignore them. As we discussed at the beginning, leaky gutters can potentially cause a lot of damage. Do not ignore the problem, call the professionals as soon as you discover that your gutters are leaky.