Gutters are one of the most commonly forgotten aspects of your home that need regular maintenance. Because guttering isn’t in your direct eye-line, it’s often overlooked. Your guttering is essential to ensure that your home’s drainage is kept clean and flowing, however, many things could affect the gutter’s drainage if you don’t keep on top of your cleaning them.
What Causes Guttering To Become Blocked?
There are a few key factors that could cause issues with your guttering:
● Nesting Birds
Birds often see your guttering as the perfect place to build their nests. This completely blocks the flow of water through your guttering and causes the gutters to overflow after heavy rainfall.
● Dead Leaves
During autumn, there are dead leaves flying everywhere and the damp weather leaves them rotting away in your gutter, creating a mulch that eventually blocks water flow.
● Wind
High winds can cause unsecured guttering to move, meaning that the pipe might not guide the water down to the floor as it should.
● Cracks
Cracks can appear in old gutters if they’re not maintained properly or if the weather has been at freezing temperatures and the water in the gutter has turned to ice – expanding the pipe. This leaves water flowing randomly down the side of your house, potentially staining the brickwork and damaging the property’s foundations.
Warning Signs
Here are some warning signs to look out for that show you your property’s gutters need cleaning:
● You might notice water running down your walls, rather than continuing down the pipe to the floor as it should. This could indicate that there’s a blockage in the pipe at the top, meaning the collected water is overflowing and falling to the floor. It could also mean that there’s a disconnected pipe somewhere in the chain, meaning that the water can’t flow through correctly.
● You might notice staining on your outer walls. This shows that the water that should be in the pipe is flowing out from somewhere it shouldn’t be and running down the walls. The stain may appear green in colour as it starts to build up mould on the outside of your house.
● Surface water may start to build up if your pipes aren’t guiding the water directly into the drains below your house. If you notice your patio becoming unusually wet, it could be because the water is coming from the gutters.
What Happens If I Don’t Clean The Property’s Gutters?
Cleaning your gutters regularly is a necessity to keep your drainage smooth. Failure to maintain gutters could cause external staining of your house due to dirty running water and may even result in mould building up on your outdoor stone surfaces.
In extreme cases, depending on where the water is being redirected due to the damage, you could end up getting damp inside the house too.
How To Clean The Gutters
You could always get up a ladder yourself and clean out your gutter with a brush. However, this isn’t the most efficient way, and you could end up causing more damage than good if you’re too heavy-handed. Depending on the height of your house, it can be really dangerous too.
The best option is to get Gutter Maintenance LTD to clean them for you. They bring professional and safe equipment to keep your gutters cleaner for longer. You also have peace of mind that everything is done safely. We will clean your gutters carefully, but also alert you to any repairs required and fix the issues for you before they become a larger problem. Discover more by contacting us using our enquiries form or call one of our team on 01869 277 100.