Life in Raeford, NC, is beautiful. Yes, summers are hot, and rain can be annoying. But at least winters aren’t like the one from the Game of Thrones. In Raeford, most people don’t brace themselves before the winter comes.
And that’s a big mistake because Raerofd gets rain every month (and some snow during the coldest part of the year).
We won’t talk about the importance of a healthy roof. You know you need to replace a roof that leaks more than the colander. We’ll focus on gutters. People neglect them, which leads to the terrifying things you’ll see below.
Clogged Gutters Are Like a Fuse Around Your Home
Most people don’t think about this… Homeowners connect gutters only with rain and water. But another element is known to take advantage of neglected gutters.
“Fire!”
Yes. Dry leaves, twigs, granules from damaged shingles… All of that is perfect for catching a spark. However, it’s not very often that a fire starts in the gutters. So if that disaster doesn’t make you clean your gutters, the next one surely will.
How Much Faith in Your Foundations Do You Have?
Gutters are there to escort water away from your house. If they’re clogged during heavy rain, overflows are inevitable. Sometimes walls crack because of that much water. However, that’s not very often.
You’ll probably notice that paint peels at some places long before they crack (address that problem on time, so you don’t have to deal with serious issues later).
But… Even though seeing cracks in the walls of your home may seem scary, that’s not the cause of the problem. Walls cracks usually happen when the foundation of a house suffers water damage (or your roof leaks a lot).
Soil and concrete around the house absorb water and put pressure on the foundation. That’s where the real problem is. Yet, water damage on foundation walls is sneaky. People who never go to their basements don’t notice it on time. That’s why we suggest inspecting your whole house after every storm (especially if you had overflows).
Because if you don’t… You might get a free swimming pool. But it won’t make any of your neighbors jealous.
Do You Plan to Turn Your Basement into a Swimming Pool?
So let’s recap.
Clogged gutters can’t take water away from the house. That leads to overflows. And thanks to simple physics, water has nowhere to go but down. As you already know, that tests your foundation.
But if there’s too much water, your basement could flood even if your foundations were fine before that. Note that we used were fine instead of are fine because once your basement floods, you can expect water damage on your foundation.
Would You Like to Pay For Sidewalk Repairs?
We know you’re a good person who gives to charity and cares about people around you. But would you do your community a favor and pay for the new sidewalk in front of your house?
Yes. Not cleaning your gutters can cost you that much.
Concrete absorbs water. And water creates more space every time it passes. That’s how canyons are made over millennia. Yet, concrete is much softer than rocks, so it doesn’t take 10 million years to erode and crack.
Fascia Boards Aren’t Diamonds, Wood Isn’t Forever
We know that all those gutter scenarios are scary. Those are all serious issues. And they don’t happen all the time (but they aren’t rare either).
Still, leave all that debris in your gutters, and you’ll notice water damage on your roof. Wooden fascia boards are the first to suffer. Wood absorbs water and widens. That makes it crack, and as the board dries, it shrinks, which makes the paint peel (and widens the cracks).
Then because problems don’t come alone, you’ll start noticing other roof issues. And almost all of that could be prevented by showing your roof enough care.
So… Do what you can for your roof. Call the experienced Redford, NC roofer to do the rest. Even if your roof is new, letting pros inspect it once a year would make you sleep peacefully during storms.
