7 Signs of Gutter Damage on Your Home
If you’re like many people, your gutters aren’t something you really think about. They need biannual gutter cleaning, but besides that, their purpose is very simple.
It’s not until rain gutters aren’t doing what they’re supposed to that you understand just how important they are!
WHAT DO GUTTERS DO?
Gutters and downspouts go unnoticed on most houses in Oak Lawn. They blend into the home’s exterior unless the homeowner preferred copper or wood … materials that are definitely designed to stand out! Most are crafted from durable yet lightweight aluminum or vinyl siding.
The purpose of rain gutters is to create a route of least resistance for rain to get off your roof. When they are in good condition, your gutters will route runoff away from the foundation and landscaping, protecting your home’s exterior from mold and mildew, the foundation and basement from leaking water, and the rain gutters themselves from wear and rust.
When they are damaged, it can cause thousands of dollars’ worth of damage to your home and surrounding property.
ARE YOUR GUTTERS DAMAGED?
Gutter damage is too easy to fix to be the cause of major home repairs! Inspecting your gutters is easy and safe. If you notice any of the following issues, it’s a pretty good indication that your gutters have some type of damage.
Once you notice a gutter issue, you can decide whether it’s something you feel comfortable fixing or remedying by yourself or if it’s something you’d rather call a gutter specialist for.
Sitting Water Near Your Home
Standing water is a sure sign that your gutters or downspouts are not directing the rain runoff away from your house the way they are supposed to. Standing water can cause mold, weakening of your foundation, and creates the perfect habitat for pesky mosquitoes. And, it will leave the areas surrounding your house perpetually wet and muddy.
Mold or Mildew
Mold or mildew is a bad sign, whether you see mold or mildew on the gutters or on the sides of your house. Mold and mildew mean there is excessive moisture around that area – a possible issue with the gutters could be the cause. Keep in mind that mildew and mold are likely to grow on the north side of a house anyway, so if that’s where these substances are growing, it may just be because that area doesn’t get a lot of direct sunlight. This is a time where the advice and knowledge of a professional in Oak Lawn would be a great help.
Rain Pouring Over the Gutter
You will need to wait until it’s actually raining to find this gutter problem. Hopefully this doesn’t mean that you have gutter damage. It might just be that the gutter is clogged with debris and should be cleaned out. In either case, you want to have it looked at right away.
Basement Leaks
Depending on the design of your basement, your leak could be due to any number of things. The standing water problem we mentioned before could definitely cause a basement leak. Egress windows and cinder block walls can only keep out so much water. That’s why it is necessary to keep your gutters in working order!
Landscaping or Lawn Damage
Gutters empty directly onto the ground in most cases, and landscaping should be designed to work with this water flow to help it submerge into the ground. But, a gutter leak or clogged gutter will allow rainfall to overflow or pool where it shouldn’t. This standing water can destroy plants either by force or by overwatering. It will also displace flower bed materials like rock or mulch.
Water Marks
Water marks are a visible sign that there is a lot of moisture on a surface. Water marks are sometimes left behind even if standing water has evaporated or dissipated. You usually find water marks right under the gutters or behind the downspouts. This is a typically a sign that rain water is running down the outside of the gutters rather than staying inside of them.
Visible Gutter Damage
The final sign of gutter damage is the easiest 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 identify any damage to the roof shingles, outer walls, and rain gutters. These inspections are in addition to your standard home inspections.
HOW TO PROTECT YOUR GUTTERS?
Here are a couple of simple ways Oak Lawn Gutters recommends to prevent gutter damage:
Clean your gutters at least one time each year. You can extend the time between gutter repairs by having them cleaned out regularly. As with anything else, the better you care for your rain gutters, the less problems you’ll experience with them.
The recommended time to clean gutters is in the spring, but to be extra cautious, give them a good cleaning in the fall, too. Many homeowners choose to clean their gutters themselves, but there are many professional 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 gutter damage can often be visible from the outside of the gutters. A quick inspection – with both feet firmly on the ground – should reveal any of the problems we mentioned above.
We’d suggest that you do an exterior home inspection after each season to be sure that your gutters are functioning correctly.
When you see signs of gutter damage, act fast. Taking care of a problem before it becomes too bad can save you a lot of time and money. A small crack, for example, can be sealed, or the section of gutter with the crack can easily be replaced very affordably.
However, if you let the problem go on too long, you could end up making repairs in your basement, replacing vinyl siding or redoing an entire section of landscaping.