Easy Ways to Extend the Life of Your Gutters

With time, your gutters get dirty and clogged with leaves, dirt, and debris. As such, you need to clean them twice or thrice a year to ensure proper rainwater flow. When cleaning gutters, safety is paramount. Ensure you have a sturdy ladder, gloves, non-slip shoes, a mask, goggles, and a gutter trowel to remove the debris. If not, hire a professional for gutter cleaning.

Walk around your home and inspect your gutters and downspouts for signs of wear and damage. Watch out for rust, leaks, joint separation, and holes. When you detect any issue, call a professional immediately to fix it before it grows into a big problem requiring more extensive and costly repairs.

Positioning your gutters at the correct angle ensures that water drains properly into the gutters and downspouts. If your gutters have an improper slope position, they cannot drain water properly, resulting in premature wear, rust, and leakage.

Leaves on your roof and yard are not only unsightly but also compromise your gutters' function and lifespan. Leaves on the ground can be blown into the gutters, which causes blockage if left for too long. On the roof, the leaves get washed by rain into the gutters, where they can decompose and harbor mold and algae, which damages the gutters. Also, such leaves act as a good home for pests and rodents.

Additionally, trees and overhanging branches can wreak havoc on your gutters. For instance, during inclement weather - heavy rains and strong winds - overhanging branches can fall on your gutters and harm them. Therefore, you should trim any overhanging branches near your gutters.

After years of use, gutters can get loose and detached from the roof or even fall down. As a result, rainwater drains too close to your home and may cause costly damage to your foundation, basement, and walls.

Luckily, securing loose gutters is easy and you can do it yourself. Start by gearing up with gloves and setting up your ladder. Then, remove any debris in the gutter since it causes undue weight on the gutters and may result in sagging and detaching. Use a drill to remove the old gutter spikes from the problematic gutters and replace them with longer gutter screws that attach to the rafters.

Since gutters collect water on the roof, they are vulnerable to rust due to clogs, poor installation, or improper slope. Metal gutters like steel may start to rust after constant exposure to high humidity levels. If you notice rust on gutters, scrub them with a wire brush, clean and dry them, and apply a metal primer that hinders rusting.

An excellent way to prolong your gutters' life is to install gutter guards to prevent leaves, branches, and ice from accumulating in your gutters. It makes cleaning easier and effortless since you don't spend much time and effort shoveling debris from your gutters. Gutter guards are helpful for properties near trees and shrubs.

Contact Mr. Gutter, LLC, for gutter cleaning, repair, and installation in Burke, Fairfax, and Springfield, VA. You can count on our three decades of experience and extensive gutter knowledge to cater to all your gutter needs and get the job done right the first time.