Gutters fail slowly and then all at once, usually in the first hard freeze. These are the ten signs we look for on an estimate that tell us a system is past the point where resealing and re-hanging will get it through another Utah winter.
One: Sagging Along The Run
A gutter that dips between hangers is holding standing water, and standing water becomes ice. The usual cause is spike-and-ferrule nails that have worked loose from soft fascia. Re-hanging on screw hangers works if the fascia is sound; if it is not, replacement with fascia repair is the real fix.
Two: Pulling Away From The Fascia
A gap between the back of the gutter and the fascia means water is running behind the gutter and soaking the board. Once the fascia is soft, nothing hangs on it securely.
Three: Peeling Paint Or Dark Stains Under The Gutter
Paint failing on the fascia or soffit and dark streaks on the siding below the gutter line are the marks of chronic overflow or leaking behind the gutter.
Four: Split Seams And Cracked Corners
One leaking corner can be resealed. Several split seams on a sectional gutter mean the sealant has reached the end of its life everywhere, and seamless replacement is cheaper than chasing leaks.
Five: Rust Or Orange Streaks
Galvanized steel gutters from the seventies and eighties rust through from the inside. Orange streaks on the siding below the gutter mean the metal is going.
Six: Overflow At The Same Corners Every Spring
Undersized gutters or too few downspouts. A five-inch gutter draining a large bench roof, or a long run with one downspout at the far end, will overflow every melt no matter how clean it is.
Seven: Water In The Window Wells Or Basement
Downspouts discharging at the foundation on flat clay soil, or gutters overflowing above a window well. Sometimes an extension fixes it; often the whole drainage layout needs rethinking.
Eight: Dents, Creases And Crushed Sections
Thin .027 gauge aluminum dents under ladders and hail and creases under ice. Crushed sections under a metal roof mean sliding snow, and the fix is heavier gauge or steel with snow guards above the gutter.
Nine: Hangers And Spikes Working Out
Spike heads backing out of the fascia are the clearest sign that the system was hung the old way into wood that can no longer hold a nail.
Ten: Age
Aluminum gutters older than twenty to twenty-five years, or any sectional galvanized system, are at the end of their design life. The third repair on the same gutters is usually money that should have gone toward replacement.
Repair Or Replace?
A simple rule: if the repair quote is more than a third of a replacement quote, or if you have repaired the same gutters twice already, replace. Our estimator gives you both numbers. See the repair cost guide and the gutter replacement page.
Why October Beats January
A replacement scheduled in October goes on in a day on a dry roof, with fascia repaired and painted before the gutters go up. The same job in January waits for a thaw, and the damage from a winter of overflow is already in the fascia, the siding and sometimes the basement.
Ready for a number on your own house? SwiftHand Gutters gives free, itemized estimates across Salt Lake, Utah, Davis, Weber, Summit and Wasatch counties. Request a free estimate or call 801-784-6712.
