5 Reasons You'll Want To Clean Your Gutters

# 1 Insects

Uncleaned gutters and blocked downpipes are an attractive environment to many insects. Termites, mosquitoes, ants, spiders, earwigs, and other insects can quickly find their way into the home and cause a damage.

 

 

 

 

 

#2 Animals

Debris in the clogged gutters and insects can turn the gutters into appetizing place where squirrels, mouses, birds and other animals like to nest and breed. They can easily pass through the fascia and soffit board in attempting to reach the warm air coming from an attic. Well-maintained gutter will keep animals and insects away of your home, saving you the trouble of removing them.

 

 

 

 

#3 Rotting Soffit and Fascia Board

Clogged gutters accumulate water, that can rot the wood and cause serious damage to the soffit and fascia board. There is no need to be much water in the gutter in order for rotting to take place, debris build up within the gutter can transfer water from the gutter to the soffit and fascia boards.

Clearing your gutters once or twice a year will protect not only your guttering system but the whole house itself. It’s a simple maintenance that can prevent many unwanted and expensive repairs.

 

 

#4 Cosmetic Damages, Leaking Basement, Leaking Roof, Fungal Growth

Poor maintenance of gutters and downpipes can cause the joints to drip and gutters to overflow which over time leads to fungal growth, moss, and mold. These tree toxic problems hold water near the structure of the house like a sponge, harmful for your health and home. 

When gutters overflow, water runs down the facade, it can damage the brickwork and crack the foundation of your home. Please be aware, as such repairs are very difficult to execute. The possibility of leaking basement and roof leaks caused by overflowing gutters is also high. A leaking roof will cause a sinking of the ceiling and over time even it’s collapsing. Water can also penetrate into the basement, and continue to damage your home…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#5 Home Insurance Policies

One of the requirements, of most insurance companies, is a good gutter maintenance. If any damage occurs, caused by a poor gutter maintenance it may not be covered.

Investing a bit every year in cleaning and maintaining the gutters will keep you and your home away from all problems, that neglected gutters can cause.

If you happen to live in some of the areas listed below and need your gutters checked you can call us on 0744 641 4469 / 0742 463 6733 or email us at info@scrappydioguttercleaning.co.uk

Tips to extend the life of the guttering system

How often to check the draining system of the roof?

The time for inspection and maintenance of down pipes and gutters can double and eve triple the life of the drainage system of the roof. This, therefore, saves repair costs.

Our advice is to check their condition twice a year (spring and autumn) or if once spring.

How come the problems?

One of the most common cause of a problem is poor drainage due to irregular slope of the gutters. Then the water begin to be kept at certain points in the gutter and overflowing. This leads to accumulation of sludge and accelerates corrosion.

Another problem can be  a total or partial blockage of the gutter or down pipe. At temperatures below zero the accumulated water from the established “stopper” freezes, expands and damages the down pipe.

A possible problem might be a falling from the gutter down the down pipe ice. Then the ice hits the down pipe on every possible crinkle, which leads to breakthroughs in the pipes and deformation of the brackets.

Is the slope of the gutters normal?

For proper swelling provide about 1 cm drop every 3 m from the midpoint of the gutter which is located between every two adjacent down pipes. Higher or lower points along the smooth path could be fixed by adjusting the clamp-holders of the gutter. Gently fold up or down is often sufficient. Sometimes an additional brackets are required.

How to protect the gutter from clogging with leaves?

In areas with many trees, it is recommended the installation of a special cover against leaves and protective leaves stoppers can be placed on every down pipe. Note that it is necessary to clear them periodically from leaves and other tree branches.

General tips of how to prolong the life of the guttering system.

Periodically inspect for obstructions in the down pipe, look for places in the gutter where the water is retained or even overflowing?

Periodically check that the swelling is normal ( you can just pour a bucket of water in the gutter and see what happens to it).

Check for corrosion, broken brackets, bended gutters, dripping down the walls, (destroyed or puffy coat is a sure sign of leaks in the facade).

However, the services we provide are not safe and can cause injury, we advise to call professionalists.

We bet who will clean the leaves off the gutter…

Unfortunately we see a total lack of enthusiasm:

Don’t wait for the cat to clean your gutters. Call the professionalists. 

Creative Uses For Your Gutters

Of course, every guttering system needs its cleaning and maintaining. So it is good to have that in mind before you choose a design for your guttering system. More complicated the gutter, more maintenance will need.

If you happen to live in some of the areas listed below and need you gutters checked you can call us on 0744 641 4469 / 0742 463 6733 or email us at info@scrappydioguttercleaning.co.uk

Why do we need to think about water?

Outdoors

Outdoor water use accounts for around 7% of the total water use. In the summer, this can rise to over 50% of peak demand.

We encourage everybody to use rainwater for the garden instead of tap water. Catch all the water you can by fixing rain barrels to the guttering system of the roof.

By using rainwater for the garden, people can still have a beautiful, living garden even in times of extreme drought.

More info of how to install a rain barrel can be found here: waterwise.org.uk

Scrappydio Gutter Cleaning Ltd supports the rain barrel programs and can help to maintain a good drainage system of the roof.

Most of the rainwater that could be  captured come from our roof guttering system. If you happen to live in some of the areas listed below and need your gutters checked you can call us on 0744 641 4469 / 0742 463 6733 or email us at info@scrappydioguttercleaning.co.uk