Get your mind in the gutter. That’s right, in, not out of the gutter!
Or perhaps, more to the point, get your mind in your gutters, and your downspouts.
Hey, Brad Nale here asking you, when was the last time you did anything about your gutters? Are they clogged? Does the water flow properly? Are they starting to pull off your eaves? Are your down spouts still attached right? Are they clogged? These are all good questions to ask yourself and this is a good time of year to do it.
Soon leaves will be falling and while they’re beautiful in fall, they can sure get ugly in your gutters. There’s nothing fun about having leaves clog the water flow coming off your roof. It may seem like just a nuisance, but it can lead to serious trouble with your eaves and your roofing. Water that does not drain properly can lead to expensive troubles by rotting out wood. Check with your local Ace Hardware and ask the helpful folks about various ways we have to keep leaves from getting in your gutters. Many of these may be added on by yourself and they really do help.
Typical for the Rocky Mountain region, it’s rained off and on and often in huge downpours this summer. That’s okay, we never like to turn away rain. We do, however, like to channel away rain and take it away from our house, so, check your down spouts too. Make certain they don’t dump water out right at your foundation. You want them to drain the water well away, no less than 3 feet from your foundation and be certain that the ground drains the water downhill and out, not back towards your house. Adding a down spout extender can be a simple thing that save you gobs of trouble later on. The helpful folks at Ace Hardware can show you several options.
You may think, big deal, it doesn’t rain enough here to be a big issue. That’s what I used to think, until the foundation of my garage sank. Yep, my downspouts drained water right along the edge of the house, it got very wet one year and the ground shifted down a few inches. It was just enough to crack the floor, make the walls way out of square. I had to jack up the walls and get a mason in to re-block the foundation. Not exactly how I had planned to spend my hard-earned money.
This is a prime example of an ounce of prevention saving a pound of cure. So, before the leaves start coming down, get out and look at your roof drainage. You don’t want to be doing this in the middle of the rainy season or the middle of winter. If you’re uncertain, or if you have a very tall roof, contact a professional for an inspection. The only thing that’s scarier than climbing a ladder to work on your gutters is not doing it and having serious water damage later on.
Now you can get your mind out of the gutter again!