How to Clean and Repair Sagging Gutters

Home improvement expert Danny Lipford shows you how to clean and repair sagging gutters on your home.

How to Clean and Repair Sagging Gutters The problem we’re dealing with now, really bad gutters here. you know the sag in these gutters as a result of just simply not being cleaned very regular which is the very best thing you can do. That was our first step here is to reach in and get all of the leaves and the mud that had accumulated in this area, got it out of the gutter. Now we can kind of concentrate on how to solve the problem of the sag. Yu can really see the out sag that we have right here and what that is causing is the water to gather and not ever even make it to the down spell. The real problem that this can cause is that it can – during a rain can actually feed water back into the soft area, the overhang area of the house and it won’t be along before that will need to be replaced. And what we’re planning on doing here is to replace a number of the gutter spikes. These are just basically long aluminum nails that are used originally to attach the gutter to the fascia board. We're replacing those with a screw type gutter spike. We’ll feed it right back through into the same hole then we can use our cordless drill to connect that, and that will snug the gutter back up and should allow it to drain. While you’re cleaning your gutters and replacing it, you need gutter spikes that you may need to. It’s a good time to look very closely at other areas that are very prone to leak. Now some of those areas would be where you may have seams or where your downspouts tie into the gutter themselves. Now these are aluminum gutters but almost any gutter system is prone to leak at these areas. Again, getting the leaves out of the way is the first step. You’ll also want to use a rag or towel to dry out any moisture in the gutter plus, if you want to scrape out any old caulk or stubborn dirt. A patty knife or painters tool works well for this. And then after that, I like to use the silicon caulk, spread out generously over the seams to prevent them from leaking. Look for places where sections of gutters come together or where downspouts connect to the gutter. Now speaking of downspouts, be sure they’re completely connected and free from any obstructions. And give the water some place to go. If your downspouts are washing out the dirt around the house, add a splash block to control the waters flow and protect your home’s foundation.