The pressure that results from the consistent flow of water near your home's foundation can compromise the integrity of your home's foundation. Getting rid of the resulting foundation-related problems can be quite costly. It is cheaper and less labor intensive to simply keep these problems from cropping up.

One of the most effective ways to do so is to ensure that your roof's gutter system is directing water away from your home's foundation as effectively as it should. The following are some of the things that you should look out for when inspecting your gutter system.

Sagging gutters

Sagging gutters cannot hold as much water as they are designed to. As a result, most of the water flowing through them usually ends up spilling over right into the home's foundation and hence damaging it.

Gutters usually sag when there is a problem with its support system. This happens in cases where the hangers are too widely spaced, when fasteners holding the hangers in place have fallen off, or when due to wear and tear, the hangers stretch, causing an imbalance in the weight distribution within the gutter system.

If you are having a sagging problem, you should start by installing additional hangers in places where there is too much distance between the hangers. You should also replace any stretched out hangers and any loosened fasteners. Doing this will decrease the amount of gutter water spills, something that will go a long way towards protecting the integrity of your home's foundation.

Clogged gutters

Accumulation of leaves, dirt and other debris usually blocks downspouts and gutters and thus preventing water from being directed to the drain -- and away from your home's foundation. This accumulation also increases the weight that the gutter system has to bear. It therefore accelerates the rate at which the hangers get overstretched, something that increases the risks of sagging and hence foundation-threatening water spills. There is also the fact that the accumulation of leaves and debris encourages the formation of water pockets throughout the gutter system. This usually accelerates the rate at which metallic parts of the gutter system rust and hence causing the formation of holes. These holes can then leak water directly into the foundation of your home.

To prevent this, regular cleaning of your gutter system is recommended. Doing so with a broom will be enough to prevent most of these gutter-related problems. And in case holes have already formed in you gutters, you should seal them as soon as possible so as to prevent further damage to your foundation. If you suspect that your foundation is already damaged, contact a business, such as Tremor Ready.   

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