7 Signs of Gutter Damage on Your Home
If you’re like many homeowners, your rain gutters are not something you really worry about. They need regular gutter cleaning, but besides that, their functionality is incredibly simple.
It’s not until rain gutters aren’t doing what they’re supposed to that you realize just how important they are for your home!
WHAT DO GUTTERS DO?
Gutters and downspouts go virtually unnoticed on most roofs in Marlborough. They blend into the exterior unless the homeowner decided on copper or wood … building materials that are definitely meant to stand out! Most home exteriors are made of durable but lightweight aluminum or vinyl siding.
The point of gutters is to provide a path of minimal resistance for rain to get off your roof. When they’re in good shape, your rain gutters will route runoff away from the foundation and landscaping, protecting your home’s exterior from mildew and mold, the foundation and basement from leaks, and the gutters themselves from wear and rust.
When gutters are damaged, it can cause thousands of dollars’ worth of damage to your home and property.
ARE YOUR GUTTERS DAMAGED?
Gutter damage is too easy to fix to be the reason for major home repairs! Inspecting your gutters is simple and safe. If you notice any of the following issues, it’s a pretty good clue that your rain gutters have some type of damage.
As soon as you notice a possible gutter problem, you can decide whether it’s something you feel comfortable repairing or remedying by yourself or if it’s something you should trust a gutter company for.
Sitting Water Near Your Home
Sitting water is a good sign that your gutters or downspouts are not directing the water runoff away from your home the way they are designed to. Pooling water can result in mold, weakening of your foundation, and creates the perfect habitat for pesky mosquitoes. And, it will make the areas around your house consistently soggy and muddy.
Mold or Mildew
Either one of these is a bad sign, whether you see mold or mildew on the gutters or the exterior of your home. Mold and mildew indicate there is excessive moisture in that area – a possible problem with the gutters could be to blame. Keep in mind that mold and mildew are more likely to grow on the north side of a house anyway, so if that’s where these substances are appearing, it might be because that area gets very little direct sunlight on it. This is a situation where the advice and knowledge of a professional in Marlborough would be helpful.
Rain Pouring Over the Gutter
You’ll need to wait until it’s raining to look for this gutter issue. Hopefully this doesn’t mean that you have gutter damage. It could just be that the gutter is full of debris and needs to be cleaned. Either way, you want to have it checked ASAP.
Basement Leaks
Based on the design of your basement, the leaking could be due to any number of things. The standing water issue we discussed earlier could definitely lead to a basement leak. Egress windows and cinder block walls can only block out so much water. That’s why it is necessary to keep your gutters in working order!
Landscaping or Lawn Damage
Gutters pour directly onto the ground most of the time, and landscaping should be designed to work with this flow of water to help it disperse into the ground. But, a gutter leak or clogged gutter will cause rainfall to overflow or pool in areas where it shouldn’t. This pooling water can kill plants either by force or by overwatering. It will also displace flower bed building materials like rock or mulch.
Water Marks
Water marks are the first sign that there is excessive moisture on a surface. Water marks are left behind even if standing water has evaporated or dissipated into the ground. You usually see water marks right under the rain gutters or behind the downspouts. This is a typically an indication that rain water is streaming down the outside of the gutters and not staying inside of them.
Visible Gutter Damage
The final sign of gutter damage is the simplest to spot. If your gutters are bent, sagging or cracked in the middle, they have damage. After a storm, it’s a good idea to walk around your house to assess any possible damage to the roof, outer walls, and gutters. These inspections are in addition to your standard home inspections.
HOW TO PROTECT YOUR GUTTERS?
Here are some easy tips MCC Gutter Cleaning recommends to help prevent gutter damage:
Clean your gutters at least once a year. You can extend the amount of time between gutter repairs by having them cleaned out. Like with anything else, the better you care for your rain gutters, the fewer problems you’ll experience with them.
The recommended time to clean out gutters is during the spring, but to be cautious, give them a good cleaning in the fall, too. A lot of homeowners choose to clean their gutters on their own, but there are local gutter cleaning companies that offer this service so you don’t have to deal with the mess or the risk.
Check your gutters often. Signs of damage can be visible from the outside of the gutters. Just a fast inspection – with both feet firmly on the ground – should reveal any of the problems we discussed above.
We’d recommend that you complete an exterior home inspection at the end of each season to ensure that your gutters are working properly.
When you see signs of gutter damage, act fast. Fixing an issue before it becomes too bad can save you time and money. A small crack, for example, can be sealed, or the section of gutter with the crack can be replaced very affordably and quickly.
However, if you let the issue go on for too long, you might end up making repairs in your basement, replacing expensive vinyl siding or redoing an entire section of landscaping.