Cleaning the gutters is a subject often brought up at the start of Fall – and there’s a very good reason for that. This season is when tons of leaves start to fall from trees, and as you can expect, they tend to fall on top of your gutters.
The frequency in which you call for gutter cleaning will depend heavily on your region and the amount of debris, but it’s nearly guaranteed you’ll need this service at least once this season. It might seem like a minor problem at first, but clogged gutters can lead to a series of other peripheral, yet much more serious problems.
Let’s take a look at why it’s so important to clean your gutters!
“Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible. – Dalai Lama
1. Prevent water damage
The main purpose of gutters is to collect and redirect water from where it could harm your residence. Water damage is no joke, so you can imagine how having a clogged gutter can lead to serious problems.
Your roof is the most immediate victim. The accumulation of water is an easy way to grow mold, but when the colder days of winter start coming, frozen water and debris will create extra weight – which can crack, skew, or break your rooflines.
2. Prevent pests and critters from nesting
Dirty and clogged gutters end up creating convenient housing for critters and pests in general – especially if it’s near trees from where they could easily jump off of.
Rodents such as mice and squirrels may take up on the easy housing offer and then, instead of only having to clean your gutters, you will also have to deal with the unwanted guests. The best way to avoid this altogether is to clean your gutters as early as possible, not allowing critters to see the opportunity to nest.
3. Cracks in the foundation
The poor redirection of water caused by clogged gutters can lead to a lot of water pooling up around your home. This causes a good deal of water to reach your foundation, and if that water is allowed to freeze during the winter, you will start seeing cracks in the foundation – which is a massive headache to deal with.
Gutter cleaning helps prevent this issue and it’s much easier and cheaper – trust me, you never want to have to deal with cracks in the foundation.
4. Gutter damage
It seems rather obvious, but it’s no surprise that the gutters themselves can get damaged. The accumulation of water, leaves, and mud can quickly lead to erosion and rust, but even worse, the weight of these debris can cause the gutters to bend and break.
Likewise, still water that isn’t going down can freeze during colder days and cause damage to your gutters and everything nearby, which includes the roof and walls of your home.
The type of damage and the overall resilience of your gutters will depend on their material, but regardless, it’s much safer and wiser to opt for preventing these problems altogether instead of hoping they never happen.
Keep in mind, a damaged gutter can:
- Break and fall, which is likely to damage nearby structures, your home’s siding, landscape, your car, or even someone in your family
- Leak and cause pools to form around the house, leading to water damage
- Bend your rooflines due to poor weight distribution, which if damaged enough, will become a massive headache to fix in the future
Long story short: care for your gutters!
5. Protect your landscaping
Your landscaping can also suffer from neglected gutters. The main problem is poor water redirection, which can lead to pools forming around your yard. We’ve already talked about how this can lead to cracks in the foundation, but on a surface level, it can also compromise your landscaping and gardening efforts.
Frozen water is the most egregious culprit once again – water that freezes underground can easily kill your plants and grass. But even before the winter, an excess of water can also kill your plants by overwatering them and lead your grass to become muddy.
Gutters may seem like simple quality of life improvements, but they serve an incredibly important purpose that we cannot afford to overlook. Water damage is one of the hardest problems to fix once it sets in, and gutters – as simple as they are – have an important role in preventing that from ever happening.
Are your gutters in need of maintenance? Get free quotes from local gutter companies today and save yourself from trouble!
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