Keep Your Rain Gutters Clean Now and Avoid Problems Later

You probably don’t think much about your rain gutters and just how essential and important they are to your home’s overall protection. We are going to share some reasons why you should give your rain gutters some thought and why you need to keep them cleaned out.

Exterior Damage to Your Home

Without rain gutters, the water from the rain and the snow will simply pour off to your home’s foundation leaving it at risk for erosion or leaks. Gutters keep that water from backing up under the shingles which can cause damage like a leaking roof. Rain gutters help to avert this backup – unless they are clogged with debris, leaves, etc. This is why it is important to clean your gutters out regularly, or have it done.

Potential Clogs Revealed

It is usually apparent when your rain gutter has a clog by way of a big puddle located close to your home’s base.  Getting a regular check-up is still recommended so that any possible clogs can be caught before they begin that puddle.  Once that puddle begins and goes unnoticed, it can start seeping in your home’s foundation and before you know it, there is that moldy smell in the basement or creeping into the house.

Are Repairs Needed?

When you have your rain gutters cleaned regularly, you can check to see if there are any repairs needed. During the winters in this area, there can be a lot of snow and that puts a lot of weight on your rain gutters, making them bend or break. Get those things fixed as they are found to prevent more costly repairs to your home’s foundation or roof.

Bugs and Pests Go Away

When excess water is left sitting in rain gutters, it attracts bugs and pests like mosquitoes and termites. Bugs and pests thrive in water and when rain gutters are neglected, it makes a perfect breeding ground.

5 Questions to Ask a Rain Gutter Contractor

Some of the most commonly asked questions a homeowner will ask any contractor are:

• “How long have you been in business?”
• “Do you belong to the BBB?”
• “Do you have recent references?”

While these are good questions, when it comes to hiring a rain gutter contractor, or a roofing contractor that installs gutters, there are five more questions you need to ask:

What are the size of gutters you install?

The majority of homes will have five-inch gutters, but a six-inch size gutter is more effective, especially for a home with expansive and steep roofs or has multiple levels.  The six-inch gutter will handle forty-percent more water, and you may want to ask about seven-inch gutters. 

When you install the gutters, what do you use to make sure they are level?

A level is a tool that tells a contractor if something is, well, level. It may surprise you to find out how many contractors that install gutters do not us a level. Without your gutters being level and properly pitched, you can be pretty sure you’ll have problems later on. If you’re talking to a sales person, they often have no idea what actually happens on the job.

Is your company bonded and insured?

For any contractor business, liability and worker’s comp insurance are must-haves, but they are expensive. Contractors in the gutter and roofing industry pay some of the highest insurance rates, too, but that isn’t your concern. You never want to hire any contractor that does not have current liability and workers comp insurance. This can make you liable should any of their employees get injured while working on your property.

How close do you place the gutter hangers?

Gutters that are properly installed will have hangers that are hidden. These are brackets that will hold your gutters in position. They can increase the price of a gutter job, and unless it is by city zoning, there is no law on how many hangers or how close they should be for a gutter contractor. So, a contractor is often tempted to use as few as possible and save on the job. What this means to you is a weak install job that can break with too much weight from rain, snow or water. The average is 24″ apart.

What improvements are there for my gutters?

Gutter installation is a low-margin business, so for most contractors, they make it up in volume. What that means to you, they are in there and done fast and moving on to the next house. When you are getting quotes, ask each contractor what they would recommend to improve your home’s gutter design and then see what they offer. This can tell you a lot about the contractor’s attention to detail, their experience, and even the quality of work they offer.

How Important are Gutters on Your House?

Gutters on a house aren’t just a decorative thing to have. They actually serve an important purpose. Rain is a natural element and it can cause damage to your home when not controlled by gutters. Here we are going to talk about the benefits of having gutters installed and keeping them maintained.

The Benefits

• They keep the soil stabilized around the foundation, minimizing problems
• Prevents flooding happening under your home and into your basement
•  Prevents erosion and preserves your landscaping
• Prevents water damage to the siding  
• Prevents water staining to the brick or stone masonry on your home
• Lessens the cracking and settling of the driveway, patio, and sidewalk around your home
• Preserves the exterior doors to your home

Properly Installed Gutters

Not only are gutters important to your home’s stability, but they must be properly installed to do their job. Each roof edge that is sloped should have rain gutters and they need to be fastened securely to avoid problems. If they hold water instead of sending the water to the downspouts, it can backup under the shingles.

The downspouts should be placed so that they go out and away from the foundation at least three feet. In some cases, the contractor will install a section of flexible black plastic hose/pipe material to the end of a downspout so that the water can be directed away.

Maintenance

Once gutters are installed, the work isn’t done. They need to be cleaned from time to time to remove any debris, leaves, or limbs that have blown in or fell in them. When gutters are left uncleaned, you may experience one or all of the following:

• Water dams up and rots the eaves
• Water will begin to leak in your house and damage the ceiling, flooring or walls
• Mosquitoes and other insects will breed in the water
• The leaves can be a fire hazard
• The gutters will begin to rot, then leak

Are Gutter Guards Necessary?

Are gutter guards really necessary? Isn’t the idea of gutters to catch debris, leaves and stuff?  Well, the answers to those questions are: Yes. No.

The purpose of gutters is to keep the rain from your home’s foundation and away from the ceiling and walls. The purpose of gutter guards is to keep them from getting clogged up with debris, leaves, limbs, and more. Because when the gutters are clogged up, the rain just backs up under the shingles and down to the foundation, washing it out and eroding the soil.

It is the general opinion by experts that gutter guards aren’t foolproof in keeping everything out of your gutters. You will still need to clean, or have your gutters cleaned, once or twice a year. But they do reduce how frequent you need to clean your gutters.

Purchasing gutter guards isn’t just a matter of buying them and having them installed. There are different types of gutter guards and they each work differently. There are several ways that gutter guards are classified and here are 6 of the basic types:

1. Bottle brush

2. Foam type

3. Mesh

4. Non-gutter cover

5. Nylon

6. Reverse curve

Bottle brush gutter guards are somewhat like the pokey bristles on statues that keep birds off of them. The bristles face upward so that they aren’t hindering the flow of water through the gutters to the downspout.

Foam type gutter guards are made of plastic and fit directly on the gutter to block all the debris and leaves out of the gutters.

Mesh gutter guards are sheets with holes. They are attached to the roof and cover the gutters. The smaller holes are most recommended because they let the rain into flow through and won’t clog up.

Non-gutter covers essentially replace your gutters with thin louvers which divert rain coming off the roof and out, away from the house.

Nylon gutter guards are recommended for homes where there is a lot of ice and snow.  These fit into the gutters, but do not attach to the shingles.

Reverse curve guards are designed to send the water downward in the gutter by way of a small slit and direct the leaves onto the ground.

4 Reasons Why Your Neighbors Are Getting Metal Roofs

Are you looking around the neighborhood and wondering why everyone is going with a metal roof? Well we are going to let you know 4 reasons why:

They Are Green

No, we don’t mean that by the color but by the fact they are eco-friendly. As the awareness of how things are impacting our environment, more and more people are looking for ways to make their homes “greener” and metal roofs are one of the best ways. The majority of the metal used on roofs is recycled material and it can also be recycled itself once it has lived its life expectancy, which is much, much longer than traditional asphalt shingled roofs.  Metal is extremely lightweight so it has fewer emissions released while being produced and transported. And last but not least, because of its reflexivity to high solar, metal roofing is also very energy efficient.

Long Lifespan

The lifespan of a metal roof is fifty years or longer. Tour a downtown area of an old, established city and you’ll see that most historic buildings have metal roofs that were installed when the building was new and is still in good shape today. Your traditional roof will last fifteen to twenty years max.

They are Durable

The reason a metal roof will last forever is because metal is characteristically water-resistant and when additional coatings are applied, rain and snow both roll off easily. In parts of the country where snowfall is traditionally heavy, this is particularly important so that you don’t have to worry about the snow sitting for weeks to months on your rooftop. The only maintenance a homeowner will have with a metal roof is clearing debris and cleaning the gutters, both of which can hold water and cause the roof corrosion.

A Cost-Effective Option

The initial expense of having a metal roofing install will be as much as 2 to 3 times higher than an asphalt or wood roof. Where you’ll save is over the life of the roof because it won’t have to be replaced as soon.  

What Does Flashing do for my Roof?

One of the main things that protect your home and all that is inside is the roof. Without a roof, your family, your possessions, your whole home would be subject to the elements that Mother Nature brings to us. One of the most important parts to your roof is the flashing.

It isn’t something that you may notice every day. It is installed and just lays there, doing its job. That is if it was installed correctly. When it hasn’t been installed correctly, water will find its way under the shingles, into your attic and in time, in your home.

Flashing is a protective seal that has one job: Prevent water from intruding under the shingles or around the chimney, dormers, skylights and vents. Flashing is one of the first preventions to moisture damage happening to the surface of your roof and in your home.

The Importance of Flashing

Anywhere on your roof where there are edges, joints or valleys, flashing is needed to cover and smooth any gaps, grooves, intersections or projections where water may intrude. This can be water from rain or melting ice or snow.

When flashing is installed improperly, your roof can experience premature aging and deterioration at the joints. It is important to make sure all your flashing is installed properly and if you see any signs of it coming loose, call a professional to repair or replace it immediately.

Rain and Winds are not Your Roof’s Best Friend

You think you’re settling in for a late fall or early winter storm that’s been brewing all afternoon. Just as it begins to blow in, you notice a damp spot on the ceiling. Just above the big screen television where you were planning to spend the evening. You didn’t notice anything there two days ago when there was the light shower, though? So why is it happening right now?

It isn’t unusual for homeowners to notice these leaks when storms blow through. Even if it had been raining daily, it takes a rain that is blowing in just right to get up under the flashing or shingles before you’ll notice a leak. Rain that comes in with strong wind, usually horizontally, will create an intrusion with the water that it didn’t a few days ago.

Leaks caused by rain that is driven harder by wind are most common around the chimney, flashings, siding, skylights and where the walls and windows meet. They are also found around the corner boards and any dormers your home may have.

Before winter comes in, it is strongly recommended to have a professional roofer inspect your roof. They will find any possible places that may have loose or missing shingles, curled or missing flashing. The problems they find need to be fixed immediately to avoid any possible roof damage this winter.