Would your insurance cover damage from
a leaking gutter or down pipes?
Check it and see as a lot
of insurance companies don't and with all the rain and
snow unseen damage can be going on without your knowledge.
Usually the snow bends the brackets and allows the seals and brackets to
move and not let the guttering perform correctly, leading to leaks either in
the form of drips or a visible flow of water. Water getting on the face wall
can lead to staining, algae growth, paint discoloration, water breaching
leading to inside damp patches on the walls and ceilings, undermining the
footings and lots more.
Usually a quick clean-up of the seal and a squirt of washing up liquid
(the green one that’s good for your hands we use) prior to the re install which
should do the job. If not replace the offending part. Make sure you look for
the brand name and check your merchants stock the brand prior to taking it off.
Down pipes usually get blocked due to leaves etc. clogging
the entrance and exit due to coagulation of detritus with
the excess water. Most people think that more water means the detritus gets
washed away? Well it usually washes everything off your roof into the guttering
and silts up goes hard and then causes a blockage.
A few simple steps like cleaning the guttering out, using a hedgehog (yes it’s spikey), cleaning moss off
your roof etc. . . .help.
There are so many products out there to join round to square etc. that
no one should have leaky guttering.
The worst cases usually cause the felt to rot (there should be a slight
over hang into the guttering to allow any water that gets beneath the tiles to
flow into the guttering) and then the roof plate follows causing a drop in the
roof, trusses to rot at the ends, valleys to rot, rot to spread into the roof
and then how to stop? Installing eaves fillers (unless sarking felt was already
installed?, usually not due to time and lazy roofers) is a massive help.
Then as the fascia and soffit are
usually wooden, only painted on the outside the water gets into the back of
them and they rot starts from inside out. The outside paint flakes off and
shows that there is a problem, too late.
Prevention is better than cure!
