How To Spot a Leak in Your Gutters
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21 Jul 2022
How To Spot a Leak in Your Gutters
Leaks in your gutters may not seem like a big deal, but leaky gutters can cause some serious water damage if you don’t repair them. Water splashing down where it can’t drain properly can cause leaks, rot, and other problems from water damage to your roof, siding, and foundation. But how do you tell if your gutters have a leak? Before you start searching for “gutter companies near me,” you can check for a few signs yourself.
Here are a few easy ways to check your gutters for leaks.
Look for cracks and gaps.
First, you want to start on the ground. Walk along underneath your gutters and look for any visible cracks in the gutter themselves or gaps in the joints. If water stays in your gutters in the winter and the freezes, it expands and can stress your gutters and the joints. The gutters can crack and the sections can pull apart to create gaps in the joints.Use the hose test.
Often it’s hard to tell if what you can see from the ground are actually cracks that will leak when it rains. The next step is to test if water is leaking out of your gutters rather than flowing along to the downspout. You could pop outside while it’s raining and watch for leaks, but it’s easier to test it in a controlled environment. Climb up a ladder with your garden hose and turn it on. Have a second person on the ground look for leaks or secure the hose and check yourself.Call the Pros.
If you find any leaks in your gutters, you can seal them yourself with a liquid coating or patch, but those fixes will only last for so long. The best solution is to call the pros—like Pro Exteriors!—for gutter repair or replacement. No matter what you do, you want to do it right away. A leaky gutter system might not seem like a big deal, but it can cause major problems later if you don’t fix it.
