Why Are My Eavestroughs Leaking?

Leaking eavestroughs are an obvious sign it’s time for an eavestrough repair or an eavestrough replacement. Our company is contacted daily by people telling us their eavestrough woes. They tell us the eavestroughs are damaged, they leak, they are pulling away from the house, but what causes this? While some reasons are obvious, some are not. Here is what to look for if you have leaking eavestroughs:

Age of the Eavestroughs

Like many parts of the house, eavestroughs weaken and wear out with age. Old eavestroughs have been through decades of wear and tear from the elements, had exposure to corrosive elements, and may have even had ladders put against them for various reasons. This results in weakening the aluminum and caulking, and eventually, small holes or even tears develop. Leaks will occur through each new opening. I usually tell people if your eavestroughs are 15 years old on new construction houses or 20 years old or more on older houses, do not spend money repairing them, replace them.

Loose or Sagging Eavestroughs

Wind storms, abuse, and the effects of time can all cause your gutters to get pulled slightly away from your house. When this happens, leaks will occur, but in reality, the eavestrough is not leaking but water is falling between the fascia and the eavestrough. To fix this, you need to reattach the eavestrough so they are tight to the fascia once again. A repair may also need to be made because the gutter has warped by pulling away. Normally, it's best to get a professional to repair this for you.

Clogs from Debris

When your eavestroughs are clogged, water backs up within them and then rises. Once the water line is above the top of the gutters, it spills over the front of the eavestrough. As with loose gutters, the problem isn’t really that you have a leak. In this case, the water simply can't flow out of the eavestrough because they are impacted with debris. Having a professional clean your eavestroughs will fix the problem. It is also important to get a plumbing snake and snake the downspout to make sure there is no debris in the upper elbows of the downspout. 

Damaged, Defective, or Improper Caulking 

This is one of the most common reasons eavestroughs leak. When the caulking gets old around 25-30 years, the caulking wears out. New construction homes usually need replaced sooner because, well, the builders use a very thin builders grade aluminum and a very cheap caulking. I have also had to go and repair gutters that had the wrong type of caulking installed. There is only one type of caulking that will work on eavestrough and there are different qualities of that caulking. You really need to contact a qualified professional if you have defective caulking. I will say one thing, if you attempt to repair the eavestroughs yourself, DO NOT USE ANY TYPE OF TAR SPRAYS like Flex Seal. None of these sprays work on leaking eavestroughs and only served to permanently damage them.

Improper Gutter Slope

This is one of the most difficult issues for homeowners to see. Often this happens with age. Usually because homeowners, window cleaners, roofers and others place their ladders directly on the eavestroughs. Over time,this causes the eavestroughs to sag. A sagging gutter prevents the water from flowing toward the downspout. It could also be the original installer did not slope the eavestroughs properly and the water runs away from the downspout rather than toward it. 

How Do I Fix My Leaking Gutters?

Once you or a professional determines the cause of the leaking eavestrough, a plan of action is needed to determine what the next steps are. Do you repair them or if they are old, is it time to replace them? Fixing eavestroughs can be a very dangerous job if you do not know proper ladder safety. One slip or fall can ruin your day or life!

The Eavestrough Company would love to help you. If you would like a quote to have your eavestroughs replaced, please contact us at www.theeavestroughcompany.com or call us at 905-966-2564.