In this article, you’ll learn all about what happens if you don’t clean your gutters and how it affects your home – as well as what you can do about it.
Do Gutters Really Need to Be Cleaned?
Yes, gutters really do need to be cleaned. If they aren’t cleaned regularly, it could impact the state of your home’s repair and cause unnecessary water damage, mold, or mildew, which are expensive fixes inside the home.
Scheduling a gutter inspection with a local pro allows you to get a head start on the next season’s repairs or maintenance with proactive assessments and add-ons like gutter guards that can help reduce issues that cause debris build-up.
How Often Do Gutters Need Cleaning?
Gutters don’t need cleaning very often, but it is important to consider your local environment.
For example, if your home is surrounded by a lot of pine trees or other types of trees that often shed a lot of small debris, you will need to clean your gutters more than average, while a house out in the open without nearby tree cover won’t have to worry about gutter cleaning services as often.
A professional gutter cleaning specialist will help you determine how often your home’s gutters need to be cleaned after a thorough inspection.
Most gutter specialists will recommend that you clean your gutters twice a year on average to prevent the most damage to the system. Once after spring, and once before winter.
What Happens if You Don’t Clean Gutters?
Gutters are your home’s first line of defense from the outside world, so while scheduling a gutter inspection might be something that falls off your to-do list quickly, it should be one of your top priorities as a homeowner.
Fortunately, you don’t need to get your hands dirty or stand on a tall ladder to get the job done. Gutter specialists can quickly and efficiently clean your gutter system without any hassle.
Foundation Issues and Flooding
Foundation issues are all too common with damaged gutter systems, and flooding is typically one of the first signs of distress.
If the gutter is clogged, it can no longer divert the excess water coming off the roof, and all that additional water begins to break down the foundation and find its way through cracks in lower levels.
Driveway Cracking
If you notice your driveway cracking, your gutters might be to blame. It sounds like a stretch, but it could be water damage causing your driveway to crack in prominent areas where water collects because the gutters are too full.
This could be the case if the driveway is cracking close to the house, or further down the landscape away from the house, which is especially common if you have a buried downspout or a multi-story home.
Pests, Algae, and Moss
If there’s anything that pests, algae, and moss love it’s a rich collection of broken down plant material (which eventually turns into soil) and standing puddles of water.
Clogged gutters that haven’t been cleaned in a while can leave you with a wide range of pests from mosquitos to rats, and algae or moss will begin growing wherever it can gain a foothold thanks to the extra moisture.
Roof Damage
Roof damage near the edge, or underneath along the fascia is one of the most common signs of a neglected gutter.
If the debris in the gutter channels and downspout build up enough, or if it is clogged in some way, the rainwater collects along the roof’s shingles and may leak down the side of the house, causing water damage over time.
Damaged Landscaping
If your gutters aren’t clean, it can damage the landscaping around your home because of an increased amount of water in the topsoil, causing erosion or otherwise disrupting the local ecosystem. Damaged landscaping is often most visible around the house perimeter or wherever downspouts are located.
Why Hire a Professional to Clean Your Gutters?
Hiring a professional to clean your gutters is one of the best things that you can do for your home in preventing unnecessary damages and extending the life of your home repair jobs both inside and out.
Not only does hiring a professional know what to look for and can easily identify the signs of a problem before it occurs, but they can also perform all the necessary tasks to check the guttering system without endangering themselves.
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“Professionals have experience and skill working on ladders, whereas this can be hazardous for the average homeowner. Beyond cleaning debris, professionals can also help fix any damage to the gutters.”
– Forbes
Tall or awkwardly-angled gutters, unstable ladders, or walking on the roof unsupervised are all common causes of injury at the home that can all be provided by having your gutters inspected professionally once or twice a year.
How Long Do Gutters Last?
Properly cared for and regularly maintenance, gutters can last anywhere from 15 to 20 years. Of course, this depends greatly on the material of the guttering and climate conditions that the gutters are exposed to.
Different guttering materials perform best in certain climates based on average hot and cold temperature extremes, as well as humidity and sunlight exposure. You can get anything from stainless steel to aluminum or copper gutters, but each one will require different maintenance and may have a different longevity.
If you want to maintain your gutters so they last as long as possible, it’s important to have a professional maintain and repair your guttering system regularly so that you can catch leaks, sagging, or debris build-up before it becomes a problem.
For questions about specific materials, we recommend asking your local pro from Same Day Pros to help you determine the longevity of your guttering system based on local conditions.
How Do You Know If You Need New Gutters?
It is important to keep your gutters performing at their best, which means you should keep an eye out for any signs of damage to the system itself.
There are many signs that lead up to gutters falling into disrepair, and if you notice any of these, you should look into having the gutter system replaced as soon as possible:
- Cracked and leaking gutter
- Leaking downspout
- Stress along the seams
- Peeling paint on or around the gutter
- Mildew ground on or around the gutter
- Signs of water damage nearby seams or joints
- Sagging gutters
- Missing or broken parts
You will know if you need new gutters once the guttering itself becomes bent and warped or begins to fall off the roofline. Fortunately, gutters don’t fall into disrepair that easily, and many homeowners will catch the problem sooner than that unless it has sustained some sort of blunt damage such as a falling tree limb or damage due to ice expansion.
Choose Same Day Pros for Your Gutter Cleaning Needs
Need a gutter cleaning? Whether you are looking for something routine, or a deep-clean to get rid of built-up debris, Same Day Pros can help you find a local professional who can help you as soon as today.
Professional gutter cleaning is essential for any home and can help you remove debris that keeps your gutters from functioning properly throughout the year.
For a once-a-year cleanout, a twice-annual routinely cleaning, or for anything in-between, it’s important to be able to rely on a professional who can get the job done efficiently.
Simply type in the services you’re looking for, enter your zip code, and look through a list of pros are ready to help you today. We do the searching for you so you can focus on finding the right contractor for your needs.
References:
- Forbes, What Are Typical Gutter Cleaning Costs? https://www.forbes.com/advisor/home-improvement/gutter-cleaning-costs/
