When you are buying a home for the first time, it can be a real learning curve. There are some aspects of house upkeep and maintenance that you don’t realize when you are just living with mom and dad or renting an apartment from a landlord.

One aspect of home maintenance that many tend to forget about most often until there is a problem is the rain gutters. The rain gutter system allows rainwater to flow from the roof of the house down to the ground without damaging the roof, walls or inside the house.

Learn everything you need to know about what do gutters do and why you need them.

What Exactly Do Gutters Do?

Gutters do a lot considering they are such an inconspicuous part of your home. They redirect storm water so it doesn’t seep into the roof and into the rest of the home causing water damage throughout. Much of it might be hidden within the walls. That’s why you need to be careful if you start to experience a musty smell in certain parts of the house.

Rain gutters are also a good defense against soil erosion. If the rain were allowed just to flow off your roof haphazardly, it would wash away a lot of soil affecting your lawn and flower beds and causing pools of water to build up every time it rains. If left unchecked, this could lead to foundation issues including uneven floors, and cracks in the walls and even the chimney. If your home has a basement, you might see a lot of pooling water there as well whenever there is a bad storm.

Does My Home Absolutely Need Gutters?

In general, most homes need rain gutters. The only time you might not need them is if you live in a particularly dry climate where there is very little rainfall.

What to Do about Leaks?

How to prevent roof leaks? The best prevention against leaks is proper maintenance of your gutter system. This means regularly clearing out all the debris inside the gutters so they don’t get clogged up. Twice a year is generally the rule of thumb when you should clear out those gutters, in the spring and fall. You either have to use a ladder to get up there and clean them out yourself or hire a professional gutter cleaning company to do it for you. This is a service we can help you out with, especially if you have concerns about getting up and down a ladder safely.

While you are up there twice a year, you should also look for broken gutters or any other damage to the system. The sooner you get it repaired, the less likely more problems will build up. If a leaky gutter joint is the culprit, all you have to do is seal it up with some caulk or roofing cement. For small holes, you will need gutter sealant.

For larger holes, a gutter patching kit is best. It comes with a sheet metal patch. Just add the patch to the roofing cement and then add another layer of cement. Depending on how complicated the leak is you may want to hire a gutter company like ours to do it for you.

Should I Get Them Professionally Installed?

There are of course both pros and cons to installing gutters for house on your own. If you are short on cash, it can definitely save you money because you will only have to buy the supplies instead of paying for supplies and labor. And if you are good with your hands and love to DIY projects, then this could be a fun project for you. For your safety though, follow these following ladder safety practices:

• Have someone assisting you so you are not out on the ladder alone.
• Make sure the ladder is sturdy enough to hold your weight and that there are no defects to the ladder that could cause it collapse on you.
• The best quality ladders are made of aluminum and fiberglass and are safer choices than the wooden ones.

That’s not going to be the case for everyone though. If you have a fear of heights and ladders and don’t normally enjoy DIY projects, then it might be wiser to hire a professional company like ours to install them for you. That way you won’t be stressing over whether you are making any mistakes with your DIY installation. Get it done right the first time and you won’t have to worry about it anymore.

At Storm Masters, we are a gutter company that has been providing gutters and gutter services for over 40 years now and we guarantee affordable and reliable products and services always. We also provide gutter cleaning, repair and protection services.

Want to learn more about what do gutters do and why you need them? Call us for a free estimate today. We can evaluate your gutter needs and make recommendations accordingly on whether your gutter system needs to be fully replace or just repaired. Don’t wait until the water damage starts to appear to finally remember to take care of your gutters.