“Get your mind out of the gutter!”
Your parents or teachers might have ordered you to do that on a couple of occasions when you were young.
But now, it’s time to kick that particular piece of parental wisdom to the side and direct your attention firmly towards your gutter again.
Oh, we’re not talking about unleashing your pent-up vulgarities. Rather, we’re talking about keeping the health of your roof guttering in mind when thinking about the state of your house!
Gutters play an important role in your house, but it’s a task that’s often completely overlooked by homeowners.
Well, no longer we say! Today, we’ll be laying down the law and explaining exactly what gutters do – and why they matter.
Why healthy gutters are critical to your entire home
Your roof takes the bullet for you every day, so to speak. It protects you from the sun, random bits of debris the wind picks up and most importantly, from the rain.
Everyone knows – even in the most basic terms – what gutters do: they encourage water to drain off your roof, stopping it from building up to dangerous or damaging levels.
And if you’re an environmentally-conscious homeowner looking to reduce your footprint, rainwater tanks are a great option for saving water. How does rainwater get into your rainwater tank? Why, via your gutters, of course!
As Melbourne’s leading metal roofing experts, we’ve seen our fair share of guttering problems.
In many cases, it’ll be homeowners asking us for advice regarding a damaged, overflowing, or otherwise struggling gutter.
And in most cases, our advice is to book an immediate inspection from a roof plumber in Melbourne to inspect your gutters.
The consequences of overworked, clogged or inadequate gutters
Blocked gutters and stagnant water causes considerable damage inside and outside your home
Water is one of the most powerful forces on earth.
While it may take millions of years, can literally change the face of the Earth, carving out geological wonders such as the Grand Canyon.
With that in mind, it stands to reason that a build-up of water anywhere in your house can cause significant damage if it isn’t fixed in time!
Of course, most roofs are watertight, that doesn’t account for prolonged exposure. Without effective gutters, water stays on your roof, and that opens you up to water damage.
Water can eventually find its way through your roof and into the crawlspace between your roof and ceiling. This can pose a serious risk of electrical fire if it comes into contact with your ceiling lights.
As it leaks in, it can also damage to your insulation and can even cause your ceiling material to weaken, leading to a pronounced sag.
Needless to say, this type of damage presents a major structural risk and needs to be looked at by a professional ASAP!
Mould, mildew and rot all over the place
Black mould is a common sight in many a bathroom. The causes are many – though not making a habit of regularly cleaning it out is an especially egregious oversight!
And the same goes for your roof.
Mould needs three key ingredients to grow:
- Water and moisture
- Something to feed on
- A lack of direct sunlight
While you can’t get rid of the last two, thanks to gutters you can minimise the first!
Take gutters out of the equation, and water builds up on your roof. At that point, it’s just a matter of time until the first signs of mould, mildew and rot start setting in.
More than just guttering – your roof plumbing is an entire system
When it comes to protecting your roof and ceiling from water damage and mould growth, your gutters are the first line of protection in roof plumbing.
However, gutters are just one part of a roof plumbing system that protects your house from water. They may be the most visible element, but by no means are they the only one!
Roof plumbing refers to any fixture that helps drain rainwater off your roof. When talking about gutters, it’s impossible to ignore:
Downpipes and spouts
At the end of most gutter systems is a downpipe. Water that flows off your roof travels down your gutters until it reaches a downpipe. These pipes then deliver that water to another gutter or straight into a drain.
And for homes with multiple floors, downpipes and spouts deliver water from your second-floor roof to the gutters of the floor below or directly into your drains.
Similarly, spouts specialise in transporting water from your gutters into your drains, but with one notable difference: namely, there’s no pipe!
Flashing
How do you stop water from seeping into your roof in the places where tiles and sheets of metal meet one another?
The answer? Flashing.
When you choose metal roof installation, your roof installer will cover the joints between sheets with an additional covering to stop rainwater getting in.
While it mightn’t be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of roof plumbing, it’s nonetheless an important part.
What do you do when things go wrong? Call a roof plumber in Melbourne!
It’s not often that our attention turns to the gutter – for many of us, the only time it crosses our minds is when things go horribly wrong!
- Maybe water’s building up with your gutter
- Perhaps your gutter’s threatening to give way
- You might even be experiencing problems with your flashing or downpipes
Regardless of the problem, you can trust the highly skilled roofers from Watermaster Roofing with all your roof plumbing problems.
We like to think we know our way around roof plumbing – we did start off as plumbers, after all!
If you need gutters repaired, replaced, or simply inspected, give our team of qualified roof plumbers a call on 1300 576 075. Alternatively, reach out to us using this contact form.