Are Your Gutters Leaking?
Gutters are important because – despite being simple and relatively inexpensive – they protect more valuable home components, like the roof, foundation and windows. Maintaining and cleaning rain gutters is an easy way to prevent your home from major damages.
And it’s much easier than you might think.
Finding a leaking gutter early can protect your entire home. Here, we’ve listed a few indicators that you can be on the lookout for (without calling a roofer) to see if your gutters are leaking.
How to Identify a Gutter Leak
There are several signs that indicate leaking gutters, even if you don’t actually see water dripping. You can do a visual inspection from the safety of your lawn to determine if the signs of a gutter leak are present.
Here are some things to look for:
Visible Flaws – When gutters start to pull away from the home, it causes stress on the connections. Cracks can be the result of poor installation, low quality materials, storm damage or age. Cracks in the gutter channel or seeing any part of them pulling away from the home may not be causing a leak yet, but these things will ultimately cause problems. Getting these defects fixed is affordable than replacing gutters or any of the potential damages a leak can lead to.
Pooling Water – If water is pooling around your house, it’s a possible sign that a gutter leak is probably present. You should also check underground pipes, water spigots and any other water source that is near your home, just to be sure.
Pooling water around your home can be really harmful for the foundation. It’s also bad for landscaping and might cause your windows to leak.
Drips – One of the most visible signs of a leaking gutter is a drip, or several of them.
A drip coming from your gutter could indicate a clog, but if it’s coming from the bottom of the gutter and it isn’t overflowing, there is a hidden leak. These tiny leaks will happen if a fastener has gotten loose (see the next item on our list).
Visible Fasteners – Seeing nails and screws working their way out of the rain gutters means a leak will begin soon, if it hasn’t already. The hole where the nail or screw fits in becomes a new area where water can escape if the fastener starts to fall out.
Sometimes the solution is as easy as refastening them, but it can also be necessary to cover the hole so no more water can leak from around the screw or nail, even after it is tightened again. You can purchase this sealant, or let a gutter repair company put it on.
Water Stains or Rust – Moisture leaves evidence behind, especially if it is constantly or frequently present. Darker water stains appear because dirt and other materials adhere to the moist surface better than on a dry one.
Rust is the product of nearly constant moisture, and the more extreme sign you’ll see after you see water stains. Most water stains on gutters can be cleaned away and the gutters can be fixed, but if the gutters are rusty, they definitely need to be repaired or be replaced.
Unexplained Home Damage – If there hasn’t been a storm, and you haven’t had a tree limb fall on your roof, but you’re starting to notice paint flaking, cracking in the foundation around the downspouts or walkways, rotting wood on your patio or deck, or mold on your window sills, you could have a gutter leak.
These are all signs that water has been leaking from a place it shouldn’t. They also go hand in hand with older building materials, so all of these factors should be considered when inspecting gutters for leaks.
Other gutter issues…
Not all gutter issues lead to major repairs. If you see these common gutter issues, a leak may not be the problem.
Rain Overflow – This issue is a pretty easy fix. It’s probably not a gutter leak, but a clog that has to be removed. You can do this yourself or hire a Redding gutter cleaning service – or even a general handyman – to clean out the gutters.
Animal Nests – A bird, squirrel, chipmunk or other pest can quickly build a nest in your rain gutters or downspout, which will cause overflow. Once the nest has been there awhile, you will start seeing some of the above signs of a leak in a gutter – like rust or puddling – if you don’t get rid of it.
Trees & Plants – A tree can take root in your gutter with small amounts of debris present. While it may be small now, a sapling will sprout strong roots that can destroy aluminum gutters before you know it.
Professional Gutter Repair
Any of these easy-to-see signs indicate there are problems with your gutter that need to be addressed right away. By checking all of your gutters and downspouts, you can see if there’s a cause for concern.
This is when a gutter service in Redding can be helpful. They can distinguish if gutter replacement is necessary or if you can get by with repairs to extend the life of your home’s gutters. Sometimes, gutter cleaning is all that’s needed.
Some homeowners choose to do basic gutter care and maintenance, such as gutter cleaning, themselves. Although it is time consuming and somewhat dangerous, they are willing to complete the project a couple of times each year to save a little money.
However, any job beyond basic gutter cleaning is best left to the professionals.
Start by calling a gutter specialist with good customer reviews like Redding Gutter Service. Then let us do a full inspection to accurately determine the issue. We provide free inspections for potential customers.
If there are repairs to be made, or if we feel that it’s time for gutter replacement, you can trust us to get the job done. Our gutter repair service will save you a lot of time and trouble in the long run!