Are Your Gutters Leaking?
Gutters are important because – while they are simple and inexpensive – they protect valuable home investments, like the roof, foundation and windows. Maintaining and cleaning rain gutters is an easy way to prevent your house from major damages.
And it’s a lot simpler than you might think.
Identifying a leaking gutter early can protect the entire home. Here, we’ve listed a few indicators that you can be on the lookout for (without calling a roof specialist) to see if you have a gutter leaking.
How to Identify a Leaking Gutter
There are several signs that indicate leaking gutters, even if you don’t notice water dripping. You can do a visual inspection from the safety of your ground to decide if the signs of a leaking gutter are there.
Here’s what to look for:
Obvious Flaws – When gutters begin to pull away from the house, it causes stress on the connectors. Cracks can be the result of poor installation, poor quality materials, damage or general wear and tear. Cracks in the gutter or seeing any part of them pulling away from the home may not be causing a leak just yet, but these things will ultimately lead to issues. Getting these defects fixed is more affordable than replacing gutters or any of the potential damages a leak can cause.
Pooling – If water is puddling around your house, it’s a sign that a gutter leak is present. But you should also check underground pipes, water spigots and any water source that is close to your house, just to be sure.
Pooling water near your house can be damaging for the foundation. It’s also bad for landscaping and can cause your windows to leak.
Dripping – One of the most visible signs of a leaking gutter is a drip, or several drips.
A drip coming from your rain gutter indicates a clog, but if it’s coming from the bottom of the gutter and it isn’t overflowing, there is an unseen leak somewhere. These tiny leaks can occur if a fastener has become loose (see the next item on our list).
Visible Fasteners – Finding nails and screws wiggling their way out of the rain gutters means a leak will start soon, if it hasn’t already. The hole where the nail or screw fits becomes a new area where water can escape if the fastener starts to fall out.
Sometimes the answer is as simple as tightening them, but it could also be important to seal the hole so no more water can leak from the edge of the screw or the nail, even after it is back in place. You can purchase this sealant, or let a gutter repair company put it on.
Water Stains or Rust – Moisture leaves behind evidence, especially if it is consistently or frequently there. Dark water stains appear because dirt and other organic materials stick to the moist surface better than it would a dry one.
Rust is the result of constant moisture, and the more severe sign you’ll notice after you see water stains. water stains on gutters can be cleaned and the gutters fixed, but if your gutters are rusty, they definitely have to be repaired or be replaced.
Unexplained Home Damage – If there hasn’t recently been a severe storm, and you haven’t had a limb fall on top of your roof, but you’re starting to see paint flaking, cracking in the foundation around the downspouts or walkways, rotting wood on your patio or deck, or moldy window sills, you may have leaking gutters.
These are all signs that water has been leaking from somewhere it shouldn’t. They also are related to older building materials, so all factors should be taken into account when inspecting gutters for leaks.
Other gutter issues…
Not every gutter issue leads to major repairs. If you see these common gutter issues, a leak may not be the problem.
Rain Overflow – This issue is usually an easy fix. It’s probably not a gutter leak, but a clog that needs to be removed. You can do this or hire aSammamish gutter cleaning service – or even a general handyman – to clean them out.
Animal Nests – A small bird, squirrel, chipmunk or other pest can build a nest in your rain gutters or in your downspout, which will also cause overflow. Once the nest has been there for a little while, 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 little debris present. While it may be little now, a tree sapling will sprout strong roots that can damage aluminum gutters before you even know it.
Professional Gutter Repair
Any of these obvious signs mean there are problems with your gutter that need to be addressed right away. By checking your gutters and downspouts, you can see if there’s a reason for concern.
This is when a professional gutter service in Sammamish can be helpful. They can determine if gutter replacement is necessary or if you can get by with repairs to lengthen the life of your gutters. Sometimes, basic gutter cleaning is the only thing that’s needed.
Some homeowners choose to do basic gutter care and maintenance, like gutter cleaning, on their own. Although it it can be time consuming and sometimes dangerous, they are willing to complete the project 1-2 times each year to save a little money.
However, anything beyond basic gutter cleaning should be left to the professionals.
Start by calling a gutter specialist with good customer reviews like Sammamish Gutters. Then let us do an inspection to correctly determine the issue. We provide free inspections for new customers.
If there are any repairs to be made, or if we think that it’s time to install new gutters, you can trust us to get the job done. Our gutter repair service can save you a lot of time and trouble in the long run!