3 Reasons to Clean and Repair Your Gutters Before Winter Arrives

Many homeowners take great care of their home gutter systems during the rainy seasons, then neglect them during the fall and winter months. However, you should always clean your gutters and perform any necessary repairs before winter arrives. Not only do your gutters perform many important tasks during the winter, but exposure to the winter elements can also worsen existing mild gutter damage.

Learn three reasons you should clean and repair your gutters before winter temperatures drop and snow begins to fall.

1. Prevent Foundation Cracks

A properly functioning gutter system directs all water that falls onto your roof and into your gutters away from your home's foundation to prevent foundation water damage. If the soil around your home's foundation becomes waterlogged during the summer due to a malfunctioning gutter system, then soil can expand and place pressure on your foundation walls that can lead to cracks over time.

However, during the winter, rainwater and melted snow that does not direct away from your home properly can seep into foundation cracks and then freeze when temperatures drop. As this water freezes and expands, it can enlarge these cracks, potentially leading to costly foundation repairs to prevent basement flooding.

To ensure that all rainwater and melted snow goes away from your home's foundation, first clean your gutters to remove debris that could create gutter clogs during the winter.

Also, repair existing gutter damage and ensure that all gutter downspouts are positioned to drain at least six feet away from your home's foundation. If your downspouts drain too close to your home, then have a gutter expert attach affordable downspout extenders to them.

2. Ward Off Winter Ice Dams

Ice dams develop on a roof when snow melts and then refreezes on another area of the roof. An ice dam is often a large block of ice. While the weight of heavy ice dams can lead to roof collapse, lighter ice dams can block the flow of water off the roof, potentially leading to roof water damage over time.

Gutters free from debris and in good condition can help prevent ice dams by allowing melted snow to flow freely through them. If melted snow cannot freely flow through your gutter system, it can back up onto your roof and refreeze into an ice dam.

Standing water that accumulates in clogged gutters can also freeze inside of the gutters, potentially damaging them or worsening minor existing damage as this water freezes and expands.

3. Stave Off Gutter Collapse

Gutters typically connect to the roof fascia, which is a series of long, straight boards that run along the lower edge of the roof, with special fasteners called hangers. Over time, these hangers can begin to separate from the fascia, causing gutters to sag. This separation can occur slowly over time due to hanger corrosion, rotting fascia boards, or gutters that routinely hold more weight than they should.

Already sagging gutters can completely break free from your home's fascia when filled with heavy snow and ice and collapse mid-winter, leading to emergency gutter replacement.

To prevent mid-winter gutter collapse, repair your sagging gutters now. If your sagging gutters are in relatively good condition otherwise, then they may need new reinforcements added to them to eliminate sagging. However, gutter replacement may be recommendable if gutter reinforcements are not enough to reverse current gutter sagging.

Your home gutter system helps protect your home, including its roof and foundation, during the winter just as it protects it during the warmer seasons of the year. Contact the gutter experts at Ratliff Enterprises, Inc., for gutter repair or replacement today.