How to Properly Maintain Your Gutters Throughout the Year

Gutter maintenance is imperative as it helps safeguard your property’s structural integrity and prevents water damage, landscaping problems, and pests. It also maintains your home’s aesthetic appeal. Routine gutter maintenance saves money on repairs while giving you the peace of mind that your property is protected. The right gutter maintenance tactics can help ensure a smooth functioning roof. Discussed below is how to properly maintain your gutters throughout the year.

Schedule a professional gutter inspection

Besides the general wear and tear gutters experience as they age, bad weather conditions, such as hail storms, can cause significant damage to your gutters. As such, neglecting your gutter system can have severe consequences, including water damage, pest infestations, foundation issues, and ice dams.

A professional gutter inspection is key for maintaining your roofing system’s integrity and avoiding water damage. It helps you identify signs of gutter damage early enough. Your roof inspection expert can recommend repairs for minor damages. However, you may require a gutter replacement to address major damages. Considering the different types of gutters available today, consulting a roofing contractor can help ensure a high-quality gutter upgrade.

Prioritize gutter cleaning

Gutter cleaning involves removing leaves, dirt, and debris from your downspout and gutters to keep your gutter system from getting clogged while ensuring the free flow of rainwater. Routine gutter cleaning offers numerous benefits, including:

• Safeguarding your foundation: Regular gutter cleaning redirects rainwater from the roof  away from your home, protecting the foundation
• Keeping pests away: Leaves and twigs in gutters create a haven for pests and rodents. As such, keeping your gutters clean can help prevent pest infestations
• Preventing roof damage: Clogged gutters cause rainwater to penetrate through your roof’s surface, causing water leaks, roof rot, and weakening your roofing system’s construction. Clean, unclogged gutters allow rainwater to keep moving off the roof via the downspout and away from your property, avoiding roof damage

Install gutter guards

Gutter guards are protective covers that keep leaves and debris from entering your gutter system and causing blockages. Installing gutter guards helps:

• Minimize clogs: Gutter guards are designed to prevent debris buildup and clogs. They only allow rainwater to go into your gutters
• Reduce fire hazard: Twigs, leaves, and other things stuck in your gutters can easily catch fire. However, installing gutter guards reduces the risk of fire by preventing buildup
• Lower maintenance frequency: Without protection, gutters require routine cleaning several times a year. Nonetheless, adding gutter guards means your gutters won’t collect as much debris and dirt, keeping them in proper condition longer
• Keep pests and rodents out: Gutter guards help keep unwanted rodents and pests from finding their way into your attic by ensuring rainwater keeps moving

Ensure proper gutter placement

Gutters depend on gravity and proper slope to ascertain successful flow. If you have steeply sloped gutter slopes, the runoff will flow too quickly and overflow before reaching the downspouts. If they’re flat, it will lead to standing water in your gutters, causing corrosion and providing a breeding zone for pests. When properly installed:

• Gutters should be positioned close to the shingles to ensure troughs can catch all the water runoff with less splashing
• The gutter troughs’ back must rest at the back of the drip edge to create a gap that avoids capillary action that may otherwise allow water into your roof
• The gutters must have a gradual slope toward the downspout

Endnote

Proper gutter maintenance is crucial for safeguarding your property’s structural integrity. Consider implementing these tips to properly maintain your gutters throughout the year.