Are Your Gutters Leaking?

Gutters are so important because – despite being simple and inexpensive – they protect valuable home components, like the roof, foundation and windows. Caring for and cleaning rain gutters is an easy way to protect your house from major damages.

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

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

How to Identify a Gutter Leak

There are several warning signs that suggest leaking gutters, even if you don’t notice water dripping. You can do an inspection from the safety of your ground to determine if the signs of a leaking gutter are there.

Here are some things to keep an eye out for:

Obvious Flaws – When gutters begin to pull away from the roof, it causes stress on the connectors. Cracks can be caused by poor installation, poor quality materials, damage or age. Cracks in the gutter channel or seeing any part of them pulling away from the house might not be causing a leak yet, but will definitely cause issues. Having these defects repaired is affordable than installing new gutters or any of the possible damages a leak can lead to.

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

Pooling water around your house can be very harmful for the foundation. It’s also bad for landscaping and can cause your windows to leak.

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

A drip coming from your gutter is likely a clog, but if it’s coming from the bottom of the gutter and it isn’t a big overflow, there is an unseen leak somewhere. These minor leaks will occur if a fastener has become loose (see the next item on our list).

Visible Fasteners – Finding nails and screws wiggling their way out of the rain gutters likely means a leak will start soon, if it hasn’t already. The area where the nail or screw fits becomes a new area where water can escape if the fastener starts to fall out.

Sometimes the solution is as easy as tightening them, but it might also be necessary to seal the hole so no water can escape from the edge of the screw or nail, even after it is tightened again. You can purchase this sealant, or let a gutter repair company put it on.

Water Stains or Rust – Moisture leaves evidence behind, especially when it is constantly or frequently there. Darker water stains appear because dirt and other debris adhere to the moist surface better than on a dry one.

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

Unexplained Home Damage – If there hasn’t recently been a severe storm, and you haven’t had a limb fall on top of your roof, but you’re starting to notice paint flaking, cracking in the foundation or walkways, rotting wood on your patio or deck, or mold on your window sills, you might have a gutter leak.

These are all signs that water has been leaking from a place it shouldn’t be. They also are related to older building materials, so all factors need to be considered when inspecting gutters for leaks.

Other gutter issues…

Not every gutter issue leads to major repairs. If you see these common gutter issues, a gutter leak might not be the problem.

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

Animal Nests – A small bird, squirrel, chipmunk can quickly build a nest in your gutters or downspout, which will cause overflow. Once the nest has been there a while, you will start seeing some of the above signs of leaks – like rust or pooling – if you don’t get rid of the nest.

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

Professional Gutter Repair

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

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

Some homeowners choose to do simple gutter care, such as gutter cleaning, themselves. Although it it can be time consuming and sometimes dangerous, they are eager to complete the project a couple of times a year to save a little money.

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

Start by hiring a gutter service with good customer reviews like TruClean Toledo Gutters. Then let us do a full inspection to correctly determine the problem. We offer free inspections for potential customers.

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