If you’ve ever had to duck under an overflowing rain gutter, you know how annoying it can be to deal with. In heavy rainstorms, it can seem like a mini waterfall, and in light rainstorms, it becomes a persistent drip-drip-drip, puddling at the base of your home. Luckily, leaky gutters are an easily avoidable nuisance.
Even better, by preventing leaky gutters, you can also prevent damage to your home like cracks in the foundation, landscape erosion, and mold and mildew buildup. Fixing these damages can become a costly endeavor, so prevention really is key in this situation.
Here are five easy ways to prevent a leaky gutter system before the rainy season.
1. Make sure you have the right size gutters
Gutters come in all shapes and sizes, so it’s easy to play the guessing game when choosing which type of gutters to install on your home. However, if you choose wrong, leaky gutters may ensue. If you live in an area that gets a lot of precipitation, make sure to choose a gutter system with larger troughs for adequate water collection.
Otherwise, you may find the gutter system can’t keep up with the rainfall, and will overflow even in light rains. It’s also important to have the right number of downspouts to allow the water to be properly diverted. If there aren’t enough downspouts to accommodate the rainfall, it will back up and overflow. Our LeafFilter gutter experts can help you determine the proper sizing and number of downspouts you’ll need for optimal performance.
2. Unclutter your gutters
Another big culprit of leaks is clogged gutters. When debris builds up, it takes up much needed space in your gutters where water should collect. Even if you have the right sized gutters to keep up with the local climate, they won’t do any good if they’re filled with debris. LeafFilter always includes a complimentary gutter cleaning with every installation, so you won’t have to worry about uncluttering your gutters again.
3. Seal any cracks
While overflowing gutters cause mini waterfalls, cracks in your gutter system may cause a more steady drip. It’s unfortunately harder for an untrained eye to identify cracks in a gutter system. That’s why our LeafFilter gutter experts include a resealing of your gutters with every installation. This will take care of any cracks and potentially weak spots so that your gutters won’t leak anymore.
4. Realign the system
If your gutter system isn’t pitched properly, you’ll experience leaks galore. It’s important for the system to slope gradually so that the water follows the natural flow of gravity to meet your downspouts. Otherwise, the water would puddle in your gutters and cause other problems. However, if the gutters slope too severely, the water will gush right past your downspout openings and overshoot the system completely. This will cause those pesky mini waterfalls.
As you can probably tell, realigning gutters can be a tricky process. Without the proper know-how, you’ll almost certainly run into issues. That’s why the LeafFilter gutter experts always realign the gutter system prior to installing LeafFilter in order to ensure proper water diversion.
5. Install gutter protection
Last, but certainly not least, you can prevent gutter leaks by installing LeafFilter Gutter Protection. Our system prevents keeps your gutters in tip top shape for the lifetime of your home. It prevents clogged gutters altogether, and strengthens the system for even better performance. By investing in LeafFilter, you can prevent leaky gutters, as well as severe home damage, once and for all. Request your free estimate from our gutters experts today!
Leaky gutters are a pain. No one wants to get drenched as soon as they walk through the door of their home. With these five preventative measures, you can stay dry and protect your home from serious damage.
