With all the festive preparation going on, many people turn to cleaners and contractors to get their homes in the best possible shape for the season. But have you been ignoring your gutters, and do you know why you need your gutters cleaned? The roof is the one area most people tend to leave because they either need to shimmy up ladders or call a professional. Gutters fall into that category, and those that fall into disrepair can become clogged, unable to do their job, and can cause even bigger problems for your home structure. In the bitterly cold winter months, the last thing you want to deal with is a gutter full of frozen water backing up into the roof.
Getting a professional gutter contractor to look at your gutters is important if you want them clean, tidy, and ready for anything. Clogged gutters are a paradise for pests, so they should be clean. Still on the fence about getting this job done? Here’s why you should get it done now.
Preventing water damage
Having an expert look at and clean your gutters helps ensure that you avoid the risk of water damage. Water damage from the gutters that haven’t been properly maintained can occur inside and outside the home. The excess water can travel back into your walls through crevices and cracks in the siding. It may not seem like a big deal, but that trickle can soon turn into mold or of massive pooling of dampness.
Preventing cracks in your foundations
It doesn’t matter how old the property is, the last thing you want to deal with is cracked foundations. Your gutter system plays a big role in protecting your home’s foundation from damage. Without it, your foundation doesn’t have any guard against heavy rainfall and pooling water. Gutters move the rain and melting snow away from your house. Instead of worrying about erosion and pooling water that weakens the foundation, get your gutters cleared and avoid it entirely.
Saying goodbye to pests
Nobody wants to have nests of mice or bugs on their roof or in their gutters, so you need to get them cleaned out. Clogged gutters are attractive hangouts for pests and rodents and can be a serious health hazard if you’re not careful.
You protect your roof
With clogged gutters, rainwater has nowhere to drain. This means that water can flow backward into your roof, resulting in leaks in the attic. You may not even discover these issues until a few months later. You don’t want this to happen, so call the experts to clean the guttering and avoid it entirely.
In the apartment I used to live in, the gutters were never well maintained for years (even before we moved in) so they were a real issue, especially as the landlord was not interested in getting them sorted. I am very lucky that I live in a new place that has excellent maintenance as gutters that are not cleaned can cause so many problems.