Are Your Gutters Leaking?

Gutters are very important because – despite being simple and inexpensive – they protect valuable home components, such as the roof, foundation and windows. Maintaining and cleaning gutters is an easy way to prevent your home from major damages.

And it’s really much easier than you might think.

Identifying a gutter leak early can protect an entire house. Below, we’ve listed a few signs that you can look for (without calling a roof specialist) to see if your gutters may be leaking.

How to Identify a Leaking Gutter

There are a number of warning signs that suggest a gutter leak, even if you don’t actually see water dripping. You can do a visual inspection from the ground to determine if the signs of a gutter leak are present.

Here are some things to look for:

Obvious Flaws – When gutters begin to pull away from the home, it causes stress on the fasteners. Cracks can be the result of poor installation, low quality materials, damage or general wear and tear. Cracks in the gutter channel or seeing any section of them pulling away from the house might not cause a leak yet, but will definitely result in problems. Getting these defects repaired is a lot more affordable than installing new gutters or any of the possible damages a leak can lead to.

Pooling Water – If water is pooling around your house, it’s a possible sign that a gutter leak is probably present. But you should also check pipes, water spigots and any other water source that is near your house, just to be sure.

Pooling water near your home can be bad for the foundation. It’s also bad for landscaping and could cause your windows to leak.

Dripping – One of the more noticeable signs of gutter leaks is a drip, or several drips.

A drip coming from your rain gutter could indicate a clog, but if it’s coming from the bottom of the gutter and it isn’t overflowing, there is a hidden leak. These tiny leaks will occur if a fastener has become loose (see the next item below).

Visible Fasteners – Seeing nails and screws working their way out of the rain gutters likely means a leak is going to begin soon, if it hasn’t already. The hole where the nail or screw fits in starts to become a new area where water can get out if the fastener starts to fall out.

Sometimes the answer is as simple as refastening them, but it may also be necessary to seal the hole so no more water can leak from around the screw or the nail, even after it is back in place. You can purchase this type of sealant, or let a gutter repair company put it on.

Water Stains or Rust – Water leaves evidence behind, especially when it is constantly or frequently there. Darker water stains will appear because dirt and other organic materials adhere to the wet surface better than on a drier one.

Rust is the result of constant moisture, and the more severe sign you’ll see after you see water stains. water stains on gutters can be cleaned away and the gutters can be repaired, but if your gutters are rusty, they will definitely have to be repaired or be replaced.

Unexplained Home Damage – If there hasn’t been a severe storm, and you haven’t had a limb fall on your roof, but you’re beginning to notice paint flaking, cracking in the foundation around the downspouts or walkways, decaying wood on your porch or deck, or mold on your window sills, you might have leaking gutters.

These are all indications that water has been leaking from somewhere it shouldn’t be. They also are related to aging building materials, so all of these factors should be factored in when inspecting gutters for leaks.

Other gutter issues…

Not all gutter issues lead to major repairs. If you see these gutter issues, a gutter leak may not be the problem.

Rain Overflow – This issue is a pretty easy fix. It’s likely not a leak, but a clog that needs to be cleaned out. You can do this yourself or hire a Gastonia gutter cleaning service – or even a general handyman – to clean them out.

Animal Nests – A bird, squirrel, chipmunk or other pest can build a nest in your gutters or downspout, which can 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 pooling – if you don’t get rid of it.

Trees & Plants – A tree can easily take root in your gutter with small amounts of debris present. While it may be little now, a tree sapling will sprout really strong roots that can damage aluminum gutters before you even know it.

Professional Gutter Repair

Any of these visible signs indicate there are problems with your rain gutter that need to be addressed right away. By checking all of your gutters and downspouts, you can see if there’s a reason for concern.

This is when a gutter service in Gastonia can be helpful. They can distinguish if gutter replacement is required or if you can get by with repairs to extend the lifetime of your gutters. Sometimes, gutter cleaning is the only thing that’s needed.

Homeowners can choose to do basic gutter care and maintenance, like gutter cleaning, on their own. Although it it can be time consuming and somewhat dangerous, they are willing to take on the project 1-2 times each year to save some money.

However, any job beyond gutter cleaning should be left to the professionals.

Start by finding a gutter specialist with good customer reviews like Gastonia Gutters Plus. Then let us do an inspection to correctly diagnose the issue. We provide free inspections for new customers.

If there are repairs to be made, or if we feel that it’s time for gutter replacement, you can trust us to get the job done right. Our gutter repair service will save you a lot of time and trouble in the long run!