Does your house have old gutters that just are not doing the job?
You can quickly and easily determine if your house needs new gutters. From the ground, inspect around your home for signs of water pooling or signs that water is spilling over the tops of your homes gutters. You will see the erosion of soil around your homes foundation or stains on your siding near the ground or foundation caused from the water splashing as it hits the ground. Yes, these are bad signs. Water that is dumped over the top or
in some cases behind roofs gutters drain down along your home’s foundation, raising the water table and eventually can break down your home foundation. Foundation repairs are serious and complex and will be covered in a future blog post.
Look for signs of the gutter pulling away from the house. Is there space anywhere between the gutter and house? Inspect the seam areas of the gutter system. Are there obvious holes? Look for signs of dirt in these areas. This is a tell-tell sign the seam may have been broken from perhaps ice forming in the gutter during the winter months. Inspect your downspouts. Are they lose? Shake them. Are they ready to fall off? Are the fastening systems that hold them in place missing, loose or falling off?
The above mentioned inspections can quickly and easily be performed by any homeowner to determine if you need new gutters or maybe some gutter and downspout repairs. Today’s seamless gutters systems coupled with the right gutter guard or leaf filter system can relieve you of years of maintenance and aggravation. More color options are available than ever before and can quickly ad beauty to your home overnight.
Sizing gutters is another very important aspect when it comes time to replace your home’s gutter system. Builder grade gutters many times are small and inadequate to properly move water from the roof and away from your home. Rain gutters come in different sizes from 4” to 8” typically for homes in the Maryland, DC, and Virginia area. A careful inspection of how water runs off your roof and how it will be transferred away from the home will help determine what size gutter and downspout should be used. If you have a large roof area draining water into a single small downspout, even the best new gutter system will not perform adequately. It’s important to have the right sizes for your home’s drainage needs.
Gutter guards and filter systems can also assist in protecting your home. Today’s market has many different types of rain gutter guard systems, from screen type filters to full metal or vinyl covers. These products, chosen properly, can save you money in the long run. Not to mention the lower maintenance costs of having gutters cleaned of leaves and debris year after year. With the right rain gutter system, you can keep your gutters free of leaves dirt and other clogging debris.
Without the right rain gutter system, water can backup and damage your home in very expensive ways. Leaks, ice dams, mold and bug infestations can arise from bad rain gutters on a home. Pooling water around your foundation can cause rotten wood, break down block and stone foundations, crack foundations and wreak havoc with expensive repair jobs. Get the right rain gutter system from a company that is experienced in rain gutter systems and protect your most expensive investment, your home.
Metropolitan Design/Build is a licensed gutter contractor that has been installing rain gutter systems on homeowner’s properties in the Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia area for over 26 years.
