What Causes Rain Gutters to Overflow?

When rain gutters are working efficiently, hardly any rainwater splashes out of them onto the surface below. However, when rain gutters have a problem, they may overflow, causing water to pour onto the ground around the perimeter of the roof. This can cause foundation problems since the water can get in there and cause the foundation to shift. This article discusses some of the factors that can cause rain gutters to overflow.

Clogs in the Gutters or Downspouts

Tree leaves and other debris may accumulate in the rain gutters or in the downspouts and block the flow of water in case it rains. The water will stagnate in one part of the gutter, resulting in an overflow. If it is the downspouts that are clogged, then the flow of water into them will slow down or stop, forcing the water to remain in the gutters. The result is that the gutters will overflow. You can prevent this from happening by regularly cleaning your gutters and downspouts (for instance, cleaning after heavy rain) .

Sagging Gutters

When the hangers of rain gutters become loose, the gutters may sag under the weight of the water that is flowing through them. This sagging disrupts the slope of the gutters so water dams may form where the gutters are sagging. Those water dams prevent additional water from flowing beyond that point, and the result is that the rain gutters will overflow. You can solve this problem by replacing the loose hangers with new ones so that the flow of water is not inhibited by sagging gutters.

Gutters that Are Too Small

Gutter size can also be a factor in creating or preventing overflows. If the gutters are too small, the water flowing through them will be too much for them, and they will overflow. You can confirm that your gutters are too small if you check all the hangers and nothing is wrong with them but the gutters keep overflowing each time it rains.

The remedy to this problem is to replace the small gutters with bigger ones, or you can install more downspouts so that water can easily get into the storm drains without moving for a long distance in the rain gutters. For instance, if you had downspouts after every 40 feet you can install additional downspouts so that the distance between them reduces to 20 feet.

Use the information above to troubleshoot instances of overflowing gutters. For more information or help, contact a business such as O'Boyles Roof Plumbing.