Many homeowners take gutters for granted. However, gutters are an important part of your home’s well-being. The purpose of a gutter is to control the flow of excess water in order to protect your roof, walls and foundation.
When gutters are neglected, sticks, leaves and other debris can build up resulting in clogged gutters. This means excess water isn’t able to pass through which can cause a leaky roof, basement floods or foundation damage. Homeowners who avoid gutter-cleaning will surely change their habits when they learn what happens if you don’t clean gutters.
What Damage can Clogged Gutters Cause?
The gutters are a system of open pipes which are placed beneath the roof. Their main role is to gather excess water and direct it to a proper disposal area. When these open pipes get clogged, either from debris build up, bird nests or ice, gutters completely lose its functionality. The path of excess water is now blocked and water has no other option but to accumulate. Here is what can happen if you don’t clean the gutters and if they get clogged:
1. Roof leaks
The first-place water will go to is the roof. The pressure it will put on the shingles will become so high that they will start to break and deteriorate, resulting in roof leaks, mold growth in attics and in some sever cases even ceiling collapse.
2. Foundation Damage
The second-place water will go to is the exterior walls. Either with slow dripping or large splashes, water will find its way to your foundation. By being accumulated in your backyard, right next to the basement, the foundation floors and walls will start to crack, resulting in extreme dangers in security and stability.
3. Basement Floods
Before or after it reaches the foundation, be sure that excess gutter water will do some damage to your basement. With exposing every weak spot, it can find like loose concrete or non-waterproofed walls, water will either overflow and turn into a flood or slowly damage the interior of your walls.
4. Mold Growth
An inevitable side-effect from uncontrolled water is always mold growth. Whether you have roof leaks or basement floods, mold and bacteria will start growing in the roots of your house. These two culprits are number one when it comes to damaging the health of humans and animals.
How Often Should Gutters be cleaned?
The ideal amount of annual gutter clean-ups is 4 – 5. This number only applies to areas with frequent snow and rain. By the rulebook, we should clean our gutters after each severe storm, once in mid-autumn and once in spring. Cleaning the gutters is fairly easy. You just need a pair of gloves and a hose. First, gather the debris and leaves with a broom or your hands and then rinse the area with a bucket or a hose. Tons of homeowners decide to do this on their own. But if you are afraid of height or aren’t physically fit, always go with expert cleaners. The price isn’t high at all since some contractors charge only 85 cents per foot.
