Gutters are there to catch water runoff during rain, channelling it from your roof and away from the foundations of your house. Regularly maintaining your gutters reduces the risk of leaves in your gutters piling up into a sludgy unmanageable mess and potentially leading to water damage in your house and your foundations.
Below is a step-by-step guide to basic gutter maintenance and repair. For anything else gutter related, contact a local
handyman!
1. Put safety first
Anytime you are working with your gutters, you are going to need your ladder. Never rest your ladder against the gutter. Make use of a standing ladder instead, and make sure that your ladder is stable. It’s also a good idea to have a partner to help out. Wear workers gloves to protect your hands.
2. Clean your gutters
Cleaning your gutters is a simple job. Make use of a trowel to scoop out the sludge from your gutter and then place it in a bucket you have at hand. (Maybe save the debris for your compost heap!) Once the majority of the debris has been removed, you can use a scraper to continue removing the smaller bits of debris. Be careful not to damage the gutter as you are working. Once most of the leaf litter, dirt and debris has been removed from your gutter, flush it out with your hose pipe. After, make sure your gutter is dry so you can inspect your gutters for repair work.
3. Check for any repair work as you go
While you are cleaning your gutters you have an opportunity to check for any repair work that may need to be done. Check that your gutter is flush with your fascia boards, both above and below the gutter. Look out for blockages, rust, holes, leaks, sagging or buckling and loose pipes.
4. Prevent blockages
You can install a gutter guard, which you can source from any local hardware store. Simply cut it to length and place it in the gutter to prevent leaves and other debris falling into your gutter. Make sure to maintain your gutter guard as well.
5. Get rid of rust
If you spot rust on your gutters, make sure the area is dry and then smooth out the rust with some sandpaper. Work gently so as not to cause any holes, and then paint the area with a rust-inhibiting metal primer, and then with a gloss paint or black bitumen.
6. Fix those holes
You can block up small holes using gutter sealant. However, if the holes are too many or too large, it is probably time to replace the entire gutter.
7. Repair leaks
Sometimes your gutters will leak at the joins. Make sure the area around the joins are clean and dry, and then inject gutter sealant, not bathroom silicon, into the join with an applicator gun.
8. Fix sagging or buckling
If you see sagging or buckling of your pipes, this may be due to damaged joins, damaged brackets that hold up the sides of the gutter, or loose screws attaching the gutter to the wall. Replacing the inner brackets with new ones should fix the sagging and support your gutter for longer. You can replace the joins on a plastic gutter by squeezing the gutter to release the join piece and replacing it with a new one. If there is a loose or missing screw that has caused the gutter to sag, insert a new screw and the correct wall plug and re-screw the loose bracket. If your gutters are still sagging after this, fit extra brackets to support it.
9. Secure any loose downspouts
Loose downspouts may also be due to loose brackets attaching the downspouts to the wall. Another cause for loose brackets may be damaged wall plugs. If this is the case, replace and refix these screws with new wall plugs. You can also look at galvanised screws for fixing the brackets to the walls.
Gutters are an important part of the house and can be an easy fix; however if you ever feel you are in over your head with your gutters, there are
local handymen that you can call up for assistance! Your gutters are your first line of defence against rain and rain damage, and maintenance is easy and cheap in comparison to the damage that they prevent.