Your gutters are a crucial part of your home, but if they’re doing their job right, they’re also something that you likely never notice. When they’re at their best, your gutters fly below the radar and doing their job. However, when they aren’t at they’re best, there are a number of issues that can pop up with your gutters that, if not attended to, can have serious repercussions.

Clogged gutters

Probably the most common issue you can experience with your gutters, clogging is exactly what it sounds like. When debris like fallen leaves or twigs get caught up in your gutters and prevent water from flowing correctly. This can lead to other issues as time goes on by causing standing water to be left sitting either in your gutters or downspouts. In addition to damage to your gutters and home, this standing water leads to other issues, such as encouraging infestation of pests in your home. Birds or mice may be attracted to the standing water as well as the hatching of mosquito eggs leading to not only the annoyance of being eaten up come late summer, you also have to worry about the health concern that comes from that infestation.

Damaged fascia

Fascia is the part of your home that your gutters are mounted to. Over time, these boards can be damaged due to the seasonal beating that the environment can produce. This is aggravated if your gutters have other issues, such as clogs that cause the gutters to overflow and lead to water damage. Damage to the fascia can be prevented by regular inspection. Unfortunately this cannot be completed looking up from the ground, and requires getting up to your roof with a ladder for an up close look to identify possible problems before they become more serious.

Sagging gutters

Over times, your gutters may start to sag. This may be due to damage to your fascia as mentioned above, but also can simply be due to the wear and tear on the hangers for your gutter system. This can be exacerbated by increased weight on your gutters if they haven’t been regularly cleaned out. As your gutters sag, the problem gets worse as water collects in the sagging parts and the gutters don’t drain properly. This increases weight in these already weak points in your gutters, and also leads to overflowing water that can further cause damage to your fascia or the walls of your home themselves.

Leaking joints

The joints of your gutter system are some of the most susceptible weak points in that system, particularly if you have seamless gutters on your home. The joints will often be the place where it is easiest for clogs to get stuck in your gutter system, and what’s worse they’re also the place where the material of your gutters will be weakest. This leads to water being backed up and then leaking out. While this is an issue regardless of where it occurs, if it happens at a joint closer to the top of your gutter system, it can create even more issues as the leaks will drain over more of your home.

Regular cleaning and inspection of your gutter system is a crucial habit for dealing with or preventing all of these issues. Ensuring that clogs are regularly cleaned out, fascia are inspected, gutter hangers are tightened and checked, and leaks are identified and patched are all regularly steps in professional gutter maintenance. Call us today to schedule yours.