Why gutters matter so much in west of Scotland rain
Anyone who lives in Glasgow, Dunbartonshire or Argyll knows the rain here rarely stops for long. Every drop that lands on your roof runs down the slates or tiles and into the gutter. When the gutter is working, that water goes into the downpipe and away. When it isn't, the water ends up on your walls.
That causes three common problems:
- Damp walls. Water spilling down the same stretch of wall, storm after storm, soaks into stone, brick and render. It often shows up indoors as damp patches, peeling paint or mould in an upstairs corner.
- Rotten fascias. The fascia board behind the gutter takes the soaking first. Timber that stays wet will rot, the gutter brackets lose their grip, and the gutter starts to sag, which makes the overflow worse.
- Roughcast staining. On roughcast and painted render, overflowing gutters leave green and black streaks running down from the eaves. Over time the water can get behind the roughcast and loosen it from the wall.
None of this happens overnight. That's why it pays to spot the early signs.
Six signs your gutters need attention
1. Overflowing in heavy rain
Go outside the next time it's really pouring and look up. Water spilling over the front edge in a sheet usually means a blockage further along, a blocked outlet, or a gutter that has lost its fall and holds water instead of draining it. If it only spills at one corner, that corner or the outlet next to it is usually the problem.
2. Dripping joints
Steady drips from the same point, even after the rain has stopped, usually come from a joint, a corner or the outlet into the downpipe. Seals perish with age and sunlight, and on older cast iron gutters the joints can open up as they rust.
3. Sagging runs
A gutter should run in a straight line with a slight fall towards the outlet. If you can see a dip or a bow, a bracket may have broken or pulled out, or the fascia behind it may be soft. Water collects in the low point, adds weight and pulls the gutter down further.
4. Rust staining
Orange-brown streaks on a cast iron gutter, or on the wall beneath it, mean the metal is corroding. Surface rust can sometimes be treated. Rust that has gone right through, with flaking metal or pinholes you can see daylight through, usually means that section needs replacing.
5. Plants and moss
Grass, weeds or small saplings growing out of a gutter are a sure sign it's full of silt and moss. Much of that material washes down off the roof, so a mossy roof will keep filling the gutter. Cleaning the gutter and the roof at the same time is often the lasting fix.
6. Damp patches below
Check the ground and walls under the gutter line. Look for green algae on the wall, a worn or splashed strip in the gravel or paving, moss on the wall head, or damp inside the house on the same wall. These all point to water coming out of the gutter where it shouldn't.
Clean, seal, repair or replace?
Not every gutter problem needs a new gutter. In plain terms, here's what each option is and when it makes sense.
Often a gutter needs a mix of these, such as a clean, two joints resealed and a bracket replaced. A proper look at the whole run, and at the fascia behind it, tells you which. You can read more about our gutter installation, repair and sealing work and about roof cleaning and moss removal.
Eaves protection trays and fascias: the parts behind the gutter
Sometimes the gutter is fine, but water is still getting behind it. In that case, look at the eaves.
On many older roofs, the felt at the bottom edge of the roof was meant to carry water off the roof and into the gutter. Over the years this felt sags or rots, and water runs onto the fascia instead. An eaves protection tray is a rigid tray fitted at the eaves, under the bottom courses of slates or tiles. It carries water into the gutter and supports the membrane so it can't sag again. It's a common fix when water keeps soaking the fascia even though the gutter itself is clear.
The fascia is the board the gutter brackets are fixed to. If it's soft or rotten, brackets work loose and the gutter sags however often it's refixed. A sagging gutter is often really a fascia problem. In that case the fascia, and sometimes the soffit beneath it, needs repairing or replacing before the gutter can be put back properly. See our fascia and soffit repairs.
Safety: don't go up a ladder alone
Most gutter checks can be done from the ground. Every year people are hurt falling from ladders doing what looked like a quick job.
- Look from the ground or from an upstairs window. A pair of binoculars shows a surprising amount.
- Check during or just after heavy rain. That's when overflows and drips are easiest to see.
- If you do use a ladder for a low, single-storey gutter, never do it alone. Have someone foot the ladder, keep it on firm, level ground and don't overreach.
- Never climb onto the roof itself, and leave two-storey houses, tenements and anything near overhead cables to someone with the right access equipment.
If you can see one of the signs above but can't safely get a closer look, that's the point to call a roofer.