Every homeowner can tell you that owning a home comes with more responsibilities than they anticipated. Upkeep on gutters might be at the top of this list of tedious responsibilities. Climbing up ladders on uneven ground and cleaning out soggy, wet leaves hardly anyone’s idea of a good time. Additionally, many homeowners such as the elderly, need to pay others to complete for them. Gutters can cause significant headaches, but when a gutter is working properly, no one notices or thinks about it. This is the goal of seamless spouting. Let’s compare them to traditional gutters to see which will benefit you more.
Traditional Gutters
Traditional gutters come in standardized lengths and are locked into one another at joints. At each seam, caulking needs to be applied to waterproof the joint. The caulking breaks down every one to five years, and the homeowner or a handyman needs to re-apply the caulking often. If left alone, water can seep between the joints, dripping onto siding or landscaping, and causing problems from rot to erosion. The seams in traditional gutters also can become places where dirt and leaves pile up. Cleaning out gutters can be a dangerous task, especially for elderly people. They’re prone to problems, most of which end up causing water damage.
Keeping water out of a home is the most difficult as well as the most important responsibility of a homeowner, according to the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors. Water damage by faulty gutters can cause flooding in basements, rotting wood eaves, and even erosion of foundations. It can also cause damage to the siding of a house, leading to rot. Many of these issues carry high ticket prices in the resolution of the problem.
Seamless Gutters
In the 1960s, inventor Art Knudson developed a machine with the ability to cut gutters in one seamless piece. Since then, seamless gutters have risen dramatically in popularity. The cause for their rise in popularity can be traced directly to their effectiveness in eliminating many of the problems that traditional gutter systems have.
People may initially balk at the increased cost of seamless spouting, but the lack of need for repairs, caulking, and replacements quickly recoups the initial cost of installation and materials. Both traditional and seamless gutters should be replaced every twenty years, but the difference in maintenance is tremendous.
Most traditional gutters need to be cleaned each year and re-caulked at the joints every one to five years. Additionally, they often develop “problem spots” with sections that need to be replaced to avoid sagging and leaking. In contrast, seamless gutters need minimal repair. They are much less likely to have leak points. Finally, the dreaded fall chore of cleaning out the gutters becomes an easy chore of checking on the gutters. As the name implies, seamless gutters have smoother troughs, with no joints to catch sticks or debris. Only in cases of heavy damage do seamless gutters fail at their job of funneling water out and away from the house.
Leaf Guards
With additional leaf guards, the yearly maintenance task of cleaning out extra leaves and debris is nearly eliminated. Leaf guards fit over the gutter, funneling water into the trough below, and causing most leaves to blow away before they pile up in the wet trough. Even though the occasional organic matter lands in the gutter, the plenitude of water usually flushes it out.
Final Notes
Out of sight and out of mind could be the most appealing aspect of seamless spouting and leaf guards. If you are a homeowner today who has difficulty checking on your traditional, jointed gutters, consider replacing them with seamless gutters. Even though the cost may initially be higher, the long-term benefits will recoup the cost and give you peace of mind. If you’re interested in having seamless spouting and/or leaf guards for your home, call Yoder Family Roofing. We are here for more than your roofing needs! We value each of our customers and deal with them on a personal level. Our many years of service have given our customers the assurance that we are not only here for their present needs but for their future needs as well!
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