Your home’s gutter system is designed and built to catch the water runoff from your roof. It redirects that water towards the downspouts so that they safely go down the drain. And like the rest of your roof, they must be regularly maintained to stay in good condition. You should also understand that they can also get damaged and come loose over time due to several factors.
What Are the Usual Causes?
Gutters coming loose can be caused by any of the following:
- Poor Installation
If you’re sure that you’ve been maintaining your gutters regularly and it’s still coming loose after only a few months since it was installed, subpar workmanship is likely to blame. To determine this, look closely at your gutter hangers and how they’re installed. If they’re placed every three or four feet even when the standard should be two feet, then you can be sure that they were cutting corners. If your gutters weren’t installed properly, this can cause strain to the hangers especially when water runoff passes through them. This will eventually cause the gutters to sag and come loose.
- Debris Accumulation
Unless you take proper care and maintenance, you’re allowing the debris to cause clogging problems to your gutters. Not only will the water runoff become affected, but the debris also becomes an added burden on your gutters’ hangers. This will slowly pull it from the roof edges and cause sagging. This also causes the water to pool and spill over your gutters since it won’t drain properly, which can lead to water damage on your fascia boards and cause rot damage under your roof.
What Are the Common Signs of Loose Gutters?
Here are some of the common signs indicating that your gutters are coming loose:
- Lip/Spout on Your Gutters
You won’t immediately notice a lip or spout forming on some parts of your gutters unless you take a closer look. This can happen due to a fallen tree branch or water that expanded into ice during the winter season. This leads to water pooling over those spots slowly over time, causing a lip or spout in that section of your gutters.
- Loose Gutter Spikes
These are essentially big nails that go through the gutters and mount them into the rafters of the fascia board. They’re relatively visible from the ground, so if you see parts of your gutters sagging, the gutter spikes must be re-secured back in place as soon as possible. This can be done easily via hammering or screwing, but if the hole becomes worn out, you’ll need to use new hardware to prevent further damage to the rest of the gutters.
Turn Gutter Helmet® of Northern Minnesota for your gutter guard needs. Call us at (866) 937-3508, or fill out our online contact form. We serve homeowners in Duluth, MN, and the surrounding communities.
