During the winter months, most of us are concerned with staying warm at home and staying safe out on the roads. The activities of the winter months are fairly minimal, as a majority of family are hunkered down indoor trying to keep safe and warm.
While most people don’t consider their rain gutters as part of their plumbing system, your rain gutters play a key role in protecting your home from water damage and wood rot, making them a very important ancillary part to your plumbing system.
In fact, if your rain gutters are left blocked with leaves and debris from the winter weather, you could be facing serious problems like mold, mildew, and wood rot underneath your home. This is the same thing that would happen if a pipe cracked and burst.
Once your subfloor and foundation are soaking wet due to flooding, you will have to deal with an infestation of mosquitos, termites, mold, wood ants, mildew, and many other things that can cause serious problems for your home and health concerns for you and your family.
Make sure to follow these steps for keeping your rain gutters clean:
- Check for animal nests inside of the downspouts. Sometimes, the downspouts are the perfect place for a bird or small critter to build a little nest and stay out of the freezing temperatures.
- Make sure that all sticks, leaves, and twigs have been removed from your gutters. Any dirt or mud that has accumulated at the bottom of your gutters should be scraped out with a small garden shovel.
- Use a garden hose to spray your gutters with water and make sure that the flow of water makes it through the gutters and down the spouts. Check the bottom of the downspouts for blockages of ice or debris.
But, now the spring thaw is beginning and the moisture level outside is starting to rise, it is time to make sure that your plumbing system is ready for the April showers. The extra water from all of the spring rains, can be very damaging to your home and foundation if you are not prepared for it.