Gutterman of TN's Blog

The Effects of Leaves Trapped in Your Gutters

Gutter cleaning is, perhaps, one of the most universally loathed home maintenance tasks. Few homeowners relish climbing a latter and pulling out the leaves and underlying muck. While this chore is despised, it’s also incredibly important. When you allow leaves to build up in your gutters, you see some ill effects in and around your home.

Overflowing gutters

When your gutters are full of leaves, rainwater can’t flow through your gutters and away from your home. During a heavy or long-lasting rainstorm, you will see your gutters begin to overflow. Overflowing gutters might seem innocent enough, but they’ll actually lead to some serious problems with your home, including:

• A flooded basement. Believe it or not, overflowing gutters can lead to a flooded basement. When large amounts of water are deposited next to your home, the water has nowhere to go. It can seep down through the soil around your home and into through the walls of your basement, causing flooding and damage.

• Stained or rotted woodwork. As water flows down the exterior walls of your home, it can cause damage to the wood framing around your doors and windows, and it can cause staining on siding and doors. The longer gutters are allowed to overflow, the worse the damage is likely to be.

• Damaged landscaping. An excess of water striking your landscaping can ruin the aesthetic. It can wash away mulch, flowerbed, retaining walls and landscape features; it can kill plants; and it can destroy sidewalks, patios, and walkways.

• Deteriorated foundation. The worse of the damage caused by overflowing gutter is a deteriorated foundation. Wet soil can introduce moisture to the masonry materials of your foundation, which can cause it to crack or weaken. As the wet soil around your foundation shifts, it can cause your foundation to shift and suffer damage, as well.

Overloaded Gutters

Too much debris built up in your gutters eventually will become too much for your gutters to endure. When gutters become too heavy, they will droop, pull away from your home and crack. Not only does this cause permanent damage to your gutters, but it can also degrade the look of your home.

Ice dams

When leaves are left in the gutter over the winter, the likelihood of problems increases. The water in the gutters will freeze. The ice can weigh down gutters and cause damage. It also can cause ice dams that can damage your roof. Snow on your rooftop melts due to heat coming out of your attic. As the water flows down your rooftop, it will have nowhere to go when gutters are already filled with ice. The water will be forced back into your rooftop. There it can cause water damage, or it can refreeze and cause large, damaging, dangerous ice dams on your rooftop.

If you hate cleaning your gutters but don’t want to face the ill effects of clogged gutters, The Gutterman of TN can help! We can install gutter guards on your gutters to prevent leaves and debris from entering the gutters in the first place, eliminating the need for gutter cleaning while keeping your home safe with a functioning gutter system.

All About Our Specialty Gutters

Does your home need new gutters, but you want something that’s more than just run-of-the-mill? With specialty gutters from The Gutterman of TN, you will find gutters that fit the aesthetics, or the practical needs, of your home. When it comes to specialty gutters, here’s what The Gutterman has to offer:

Half-round gutters

While the gutters routinely installed on homes feature a K-shape, half-round gutters are essentially a half tube made to shuttle the water that flows from your home’s rooftop. For centuries, half-round gutters could be found on many homes, and for that reason, half-round gutters are often installed on historical homes or homes with a historical feel. Before choosing half-round gutters, you will want to consult with a gutter expert. Half-round gutters don’t accommodate nearly as much water as their K-shaped counterpart, so they might not work if you live in an area that sees heavy rains or if your roofline is heavily sloped.

7-inch box gutters

Another novel shape for gutters are box gutters. These square gutters, the top edge of which sits flush with your roofline, are most commonly installed on commercial buildings, but they make a great addition to residential homes, as well! Because of their sleek, low-profile appearance, box gutters are the perfect complement to modern or contemporary homes. The straight lines of box gutters mean that box gutters blend into the profile of your roofline so the line of your gutter won’t detract from the look of your home.

Copper Gutters

Copper gutters make a beautiful, stand-out addition to any home. When initially installed, copper gutters feature the traditional beauty of shiny copper, and they age to develop a beautiful patina. Copper gutters are a lovely accent on a historical or high-end home. And due to the nature of copper, copper gutters will last for decades without the need for excessive maintenance.

Galvalume Gutters

Galvalume gutters offer the perfect alternative to homeowners searching for gutters that have a unique look and long-lasting durability. Galvalume gutters are steel gutters coated in a combination of zinc and aluminum. They won’t rust or corrode over time, and they have an attractive matte gray appearance. Galvalume gutters are a great specialty gutter option for homeowners who want something different but don’t want to overspend on their gutters.

7-inch seamless gutters

Sometimes standard 6-inch gutters aren’t enough for the volume of water that flows off a rooftop. When your roof needs more protection from water, you can trust 7-inch seamless gutters from The Gutterman. These gutters can handle the water flowing off of homes with larger rooftops or roofs with extra pitches or steeper slopes. And because these gutters are seamless, you won’t have to worry about your gutters developing leaks over time.

If you’re ready to overhaul the look of your home with new, specialty gutters, call The Gutterman of TN! We can talk to you about the different types of specialty gutters and help you choose the type of gutters that are right for your home.