Gutter Repairs – leaks on flat roofs? Stamford Westport CT

Gutters constantly have to be cleaned out and re-adjusted

Gutters repair is often overlooked

Whether residential or commercial roofs, whether slanted or pitched roofs, they all need gutter repairs.

The best draining system is to have a slightly slanted roof where water will run off with no gutter. Many small roofs are normally designed to be slanted in one direction to drain the water off. In most cases, these roofs will have a gutter attached to remove the water away from the building.

Gutters have one common problem – they get full of debris and leaves.

Pros and Cons of a Gutter system:

• Relatively inexpensive
• Leads water away from building in a controlled way
• Needs to be cleaned on a regular basis
• Hard to clean due to gutter brackets
• Freezes up during winter causing Ice Damming
• Easily damaged and gets dirty on the outside
• Requires a lot of maintenance

What are gutters for?

• To lead water away from the building’s foundation
• To prevent water spilling over the roof onto windows and doorways
• To prevent flooding in certain areas
• To catch leaves (just kidding)

If you can avoid a gutter – do it at all cost. They cause a lot of problems

Gutter Spouts

Problem: The spout on a gutter usually is too small. Leaves will block the spout almost instantly.

Answer: The best solution is to install a larger downspout and downpipe. In this picture, the downspout and pipe are 3″ in diameter. Replacing it with a 4″ diameter spout and downpipe will be better.

During winter the downpipe on a gutter will freeze up, and water will not be able to drain off.

 Frozen Gutter

When a gutter freezes up like in this picture below, water will pool on the roof side under the snow and eventually leak into the house. Many times when someone tries to break the ice from the gutter; the gutter gets damaged.