Your gutters play a major role in preventing water damage to your property. Given the important role that gutters play, every homeowner should make gutter cleaning and maintenance a priority.
Follow these tips to keep your gutters in good shape all year round.
Periodically Clean Your Gutters
Over time, dirt, dust, and debris can fill up your gutters, causing them to become clogged. Clogged gutters can overflow and damage your home or foundation. To prevent water damage, clean your gutters twice a year.
Depending on what type of foliage you have around your gutters, you may want to clean your gutters more frequently, perhaps even once every three months. Regular cleaning will ensure optimal performance and add years to your gutters’ lifespan.
Remove any debris including leaves, twigs, pebbles, and stones that may prevent water from flowing freely down your gutters and into your downspout. To get rid of birds’ and rodents’ nests, simply pull them out. If they are inside your downspout, flush them down with a pressure washer.
Use a plumbing snake or high-pressure water to dislodge debris such as compacted leaves, twigs and pine needles.
Install Gutter Guards
One of the easiest ways to prevent dirt, dust and debris from getting into your gutters is to install gutter guards. Look for gutter guards with small holes as they don’t clog easily. Irrespective of the type of gutter guards you opt for, you will want to clean them regularly.
If you already have gutters guards in place, and notice dirt splashed up onto the side of your house, consider installing splash guards. You can either install splash guards at the base of your downspouts or on your roof itself to ensure proper drainage.
If there are too many trees around your home, install leaf guards that prevent leaves and twigs from ending up in gutters. To maintain your leaf gutters, clean them bi-annually.
Periodically Check the Positioning of Your Gutters
Check the position of your gutters to make sure there is adequate slope allowing them to move water away from your home. Too much slope will cause water to drain faster than usual and forcefully away from your house, causing damage. Too little slope, on the other hand, may affect your gutters’ ability to move water away from your home.
To ensure good drainage, slope your gutters an additional ¼ of an inch every 10 feet. You may want to adjust the tilt of your gutters. Ensure they’re not leaning too far backward or forward.
Schedule Professional Gutter Cleaning and Maintenance
Have a professional clean and maintain your gutters annually. During a gutter maintenance session, your contractor will:
- Thoroughly clean your gutters
- Check your gutters for leaks
- Inspect gutter guards and repair/replace if required
ARS Roofing, Gutters & Solar is a top-rated roofing company in Marin County. We are your go-to team for gutter repair in Marin County. We get to the root cause of gutter problems and address them. To learn more, call (707) 584-5900.