When it comes to being ready for spring water management, fall is the best time prepare.
When it comes to being ready for spring water management, fall is when you have to prepare. The spring thaw signals the beginning of water problems if you are not prepared. Snow, ice and ice dams build up over the winter, and depending on the rate of thaw and the condition of your gutters, it can be a rude awakening.” Dave Catherman Gutter Glove of Madison.
Timing Is Everything
This last year has shown how destructive water can be when conditions conspire to create havoc. A good example is the tremendous volume of water we received in summer of ’07, coupled with record snowfall through the winter and very heavy rains this past spring. Any one of those situations would not have been a problem for most people by itself. But together, they created heavy water flows and saturated ground which lead to multiple water problems.
Hydrostatic water pressure, or water seeping up between the basement floor and foundations, plagued a number of homeowners this year. Drain tile is an important last line of defense for removing water once it has arrived at your foundation. But, an important step in water management is directing the water away from your foundation altogether. Properly sized and correctly configured gutters coupled with the appropriate equipment allowing them to function can play an important role in protecting your home. Let’s face it, if water doesn’t reach your foundation it can’t leak into your basement.
Check Your Water Management System:
This past winter was very tough on gutters. Ice dams and ice in the gutters often caused gutters to be bent, sometimes ripped from the fascia or have attachment screws snapped off.
Snow coupled with freezing then thawing can cause many problems. But these problems can be magnified by having wrong sized gutters for the surface area on your roof (such as having a five inch gutter instead of a six inch gutter) or downspouts (two inch by three inch downspouts instead of a three inch by four inch). Inadequate gutters and downspouts look fine in good weather, however, when the weather turns, they can be overrun, not doing the job they are intended to do. This can result in thousands of dollars worth of damage.
Keeping debris out of your gutters allows water to be guided away from your roof and foundation and is an important first step in protecting your home from water damage.
Ensuring Top Performance
Even if your gutters and downspouts are sized correctly, debris can impede or block the gutter’s flow, diminishing performance.
Gutter Glove and similar products are designed to protect your water flow so your gutters can protect your home. Keeping your gutters and downspouts clear is necessary to protect your home from water damage.
Dave’s Advice
The best time to protect your home for next spring in now, in the fall before the snow comes. And, to help improve your ability to control the ice and water problems you may want to consider, Heat Trace, an electric wire device inserted in your gutters, or some of the newer products such as heat panels can help eliminate conditions for ice buildup and dams.
Water trapped in gutters by debris will contribute to ice build up that can cause shingle damage and leaks in your attic.
Heat Trace can help eliminate ice buildup and keep water fl owing away from your home. Water trapped in gutters by debris will contribute to ice build up that can cause shingle damage and leaks in your attic.
