What Are Seamless Gutters?
Seamless vs sectional gutters, the benefits, and the install details that matter.
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Gutter Repair Guide
Common Gutter Problems, How To Fix Them, And When It's Time For New Gutters
Most gutter problems come down to a handful of causes, and most of them are fixable. Here's what each one looks like, how to fix it, which jobs to leave to a crew, and the signs it's time for new gutters.
Common Gutter Problems And How To Fix Them
Gutters Overflowing
Water sheeting over the front edge in a storm is the most common gutter complaint. There are three usual causes: a clog, a gutter that has lost its pitch, or a gutter too small for the roof above it. Cleaning fixes the first. Re-hanging fixes the second. The third needs bigger gutters or another downspout. Our guide to how clogged gutters cause roof leaks goes deeper on why gutters overflow, including the ones that overflow even when they're clean.
Sagging Or Pulling Away From The House
Usually the hangers. Older gutters were held up with long spikes driven through the gutter into the fascia, and every winter of ice and every fall of wet leaves works them loose. The fix is to re-hang the run with hidden hangers screwed into solid wood, which also resets the pitch. If the fascia behind it has gone soft, the wood has to be replaced first, or the new hangers have nothing to grip.
Leaking Seams And Corners
A drip at a joint or corner long after the rain stops means the sealant has failed. On a dry day, scrape out the old sealant, clean the metal, and apply fresh gutter sealant from the inside. A corner that keeps leaking after it's been resealed usually means the joint itself has separated and needs to be refastened or replaced.
Blocked Downspouts
If the gutter fills but nothing comes out the bottom, the downspout is plugged, usually at the elbow. Run a hose down from the top. If that doesn't clear it, take the bottom elbow off and clear it from below. A strainer at the outlet keeps the big debris out, and an extension at the bottom keeps the water away from the foundation.
Water Running Behind The Gutter
If you see streaks on the fascia or water dripping between the gutter and the house, the water is missing the gutter. The usual cause is a missing or short drip edge at the bottom of the roof, or a gutter hung too low. This one matters more than it looks, because it rots the fascia and the roof deck above it while the gutter seems fine.
Holes And Rust
Older steel gutters rust; aluminum doesn't. A pinhole can be patched with a gutter patch and sealant. Once a run is rusting through in several places, patching stops being worth it.
Ice In The Gutters
A gutter fills with ice when water sits in it: a leftover clog, a sag, a downspout frozen shut at the bottom, or a steady trickle of meltwater from a roof warmed by attic heat. Don't chip it out; that tears the gutter and the shingles. Our guide to frozen gutters and heat cables covers the fall fixes, and what causes ice dams covers the attic side.
DIY Gutter Repair Or Call The Professionals?
Plenty of gutter work is fine to do yourself, as long as you can do it from a ladder on firm, level ground.
- Usually fine to do yourself: cleaning a one-story gutter by hand, flushing downspouts, resealing a leaking corner, adding downspout extensions and strainers, tightening a loose hanger.
- Better left to a crew: anything two stories up, re-pitching a long run, replacing rotted fascia, replacing sections, and any work near the electrical line coming into the house.
Put the ladder on solid ground, keep it out of flowerbeds, don't lean it on the gutter itself, and move it instead of reaching. If any part of the job has you leaning out past the rails, it's time to call.
Signs You Need New Gutters
Repairs fix one problem in one place. When the problems are spread across the whole system, new gutters are usually the better money. Look for:
- Rust holes, or so many patches you've lost count
- Seams that open up again every spring after being resealed
- Sagging that comes back after the hangers are reset
- Soft or rotted fascia behind the gutters in more than one spot
- Peeling paint, mildew, or stains on the siding below the gutter line
- Water pooling against the foundation, or washed-out mulch and soil under the eaves
- Gutters that overflow even when they're clean, which usually means they're too small for the roof
- Gutters past 20 years old that show several of the above
Gutter Repair Or Replacement: How We Decide
When we look at a gutter system, we walk the whole house, not only the corner you called about. If the problems are in one place, like a loose run or a leaking corner, we repair it. If the system has failures everywhere, or the fascia behind it is rotting, we'll tell you replacement makes more sense and show you why.
When we replace, we take the old system down, check the fascia and trim for rot and replace what's soft, then install seamless aluminum gutters formed on site to the exact length of each run, with downspouts sized to the roof. Most seamless gutter jobs in our area run about $3,000 to $5,000. If new siding is in your plans, the gutters come free with it.
Gutter repair calls get a 48-hour response, and every repair and replacement is covered by Senco's 10-Year Workmanship Warranty, in writing. In spring, our guide on when to schedule gutter repair covers what winter tends to leave behind. You can see all of our gutter work on our seamless gutters page.
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Gutter repair questions we hear every season
How do you fix a sagging gutter?
Re-hang it. Most sagging comes from old spike hangers working loose. The fix is to reset the pitch toward the downspout and fasten the gutter with hidden hangers screwed into solid wood. If the fascia board behind the gutter is soft, it has to be replaced first, because hangers can't hold in rotted wood.
Can you repair a leaking gutter seam?
Usually, yes. On a dry day, remove the old sealant, clean the metal, and apply fresh gutter sealant from the inside of the joint. If the seam keeps leaking after it's been resealed, the joint has separated and needs to be refastened or the section replaced. Seamless gutters avoid most of this, because they only have joints at the corners and outlets.
When should gutters be replaced instead of repaired?
When the problems are spread across the whole system: rust holes, seams that open every spring, sagging that comes back after re-hanging, rotted fascia in several places, or gutters that overflow even when clean because they're too small. If it's one loose run or one leaking corner, it's a repair.
Is it safe to clean gutters yourself?
On a one-story house, from a sturdy ladder on firm, level ground, most people can do it safely. Don't lean the ladder on the gutter, move the ladder instead of reaching, and stay clear of the electrical line to the house. Two-story gutters and steep or wet roofs are a job for a crew with the right equipment.