Gutters are not technically part of your roofing system. But they affect your roof's health more than most homeowners realize. A poorly functioning gutter system can cause damage that looks like a roof problem but is actually a drainage problem. In Utah's climate, with our freeze-thaw cycles and heavy spring snowmelt, gutters matter a lot.
What gutters do for your roof
The primary job of gutters is to move water away from the roof edge and away from your foundation. When they are working properly, rainwater and snowmelt flows off the roof, into the gutter, through the downspout, and away from the house. Simple.
When they are not working properly, water backs up. It pools at the roof edge. It overflows onto the fascia and soffit. It saturates the soil around your foundation. And in winter, it freezes into the ice dams that cause so much damage to Utah homes.
How bad gutters damage your roof
Ice dam contribution. Clogged gutters are the number one contributor to ice dams along the Wasatch Front. When water cannot drain, it freezes in the gutter and builds up along the roof edge. That ice dam pushes water back under the shingles where it refreezes and expands, lifting shingles and getting into the decking. This is the connection between a $50 gutter cleaning in October and a $3,000 ice dam repair in January.
Fascia and soffit rot. Water that overflows the gutter runs down the fascia board, the wood trim at the roof edge. Over time, this rots the fascia, which compromises the structural support for the gutter system and can allow water to reach the rafter tails and decking edge.
Standing water weight. Gutters full of debris and standing water are heavy. That weight pulls on the mounting brackets and can cause the gutter to sag or pull away from the fascia. Once it separates, water gets behind the gutter and directly onto the wood it is supposed to protect.
"A $50 gutter cleaning in October. A $3,000 ice dam repair in January. The connection between those two numbers is simple."
Basic gutter maintenance
Clean twice a year. At minimum, clean your gutters in late spring after the trees finish blooming and in late fall after the last major leaf drop. If you have a lot of trees, you may need a third cleaning in midsummer.
Check the pitch. Gutters should slope slightly toward the downspouts, about a quarter inch per 10 feet. If water pools in a section and does not drain, the pitch needs adjustment.
Inspect the brackets. Make sure the mounting hardware is tight and the gutter is firmly attached to the fascia. Loose gutters get worse over time, not better.
Extend the downspouts. Downspout extensions should direct water at least four to six feet away from the foundation. Splash blocks help, but extensions are better.
A word on gutter guards
People always ask about gutter guards. Here is an honest take: they reduce the frequency of cleaning, but they do not eliminate it. Debris still accumulates on top of the guards and can block water flow. Small particles and granules from the shingles still get through and build up inside.
That said, if you have a lot of trees and cleaning gutters twice a year is a real burden, guards can help extend the interval between cleanings. Just do not install them and forget about the gutters entirely.
Need your gutters checked as part of a roof inspection? We look at the whole system every time we are on a roof. Contact us for a free assessment.
"The experience with Bob Harvey Roofing was great from start to finish. They were very punctual and did a super job, even going above our expectations."Celia Rose , Google Review