Inspecting your gutters on a regular basis is essential to maintaining the life of your system and the entire home exterior. However, many homeowners neglect this duty, not trusting their own judgment as to what calls for immediate action (repair). Priority concerns that may be obvious to some may not be so to others. Today we are detailing some easy-to-identify signs that your gutters, or sections of them, require prompt attention and quite possibly professional intervention.
Don’t wait until moss growth on your roof resembles that found in the introductory image of this article. That falls under the “obvious” category and you would likely have attended to the issue before it got that bad. What you more likely need to consider, is the signs of early moss growth. On shingles, moss will have a more dotted appearance, with tiny spores appearing sporadically on your roof’s surface. On metal roofing, initial moss will take on a smeared green appearance. In either circumstance, the time to act is now before you take on further growth, damage, and cost to clean it. Call a professional, Litespeed Construction, we specialized in removal and cleaning.
Gutters on residential properties get dented all of the time. Dents may have been sustained from your own DIY attempts to clean gutters (leaning the ladder on their edge), backyard sporting events, and extreme weather. Carport/garage gutters are also high-targets for dents. Because the occurrences are common the damage tends to get regulated to the “fix it in the future” category. This is a mistake. A dent on the outside surface can be indicative of a larger problem on the inside of your gutter. In addition, the smallest dent in aluminum/metal gutters can invite corrosion, electrochemical oxidation that will result in rust, fractures, and leaks. Simply put, if you see an indentation, dimple, or depression on the surface of your gutters it needs to be addressed right away.
Downspouts installed along a high-risk zone, as shown above, don’t fall under the “sustained damage” category it is a visual cue that immediate action needs to be taken to prevent a potential hazard to your entire home. If electrical cords and cables are installed at the same point as your downspout you set the table for trouble. If your downspout has the slightest fracture or is not properly connected to the gutters above, water will leak in the 6 to 12-inch zone running vertically along your downspout. If this water comes into contact with the electrical cords, cables, or box we don’t need to tell you what can come next. If your home exterior is currently outfitted with outside electrical connectors located at the same point as your downspouts you will need to have your downspouts repositioned along the side of your home and reconnected to the gutter system above.
This repair cue is found either under the ledge of your roof, along your home’s foundation, or on the immediate landscape below. Under the eaves of your roof, you will want to look for water stains, marks, and peeling paint. This is indicative of a leak in your gutters, likely on the inside or backside of the system, keeping the expelled water close to your roof’s underside. Along the foundation of your home, where the architecture meets the ground, you will look for the same sort of evidence. This indicates that leaked water is making its way all the way down the side of your home from the hole or fracture in your gutters and settling at the foundation. When inspecting the landscape, do so within a 3 to the 4-foot circumference of your foundation within an hour of rainfall. If a distinct pool of rainwater is evident you may have uncovered an underlying problem from up high.
If after reading this article you inspect your gutters and surrounding area and find any of the above we encourage you to act now and call Asheville’s premier roofing and gutter contractor,Ă‚Â Litespeed Construction at 828-505-6051.
