Avoid Slippery Sidewalks with Reliable Gutters

Gutters remove excess water from your roof and guide it away from your home. This winter, prevent ice buildup on sidewalks that surround your home by ensuring your gutters work properly.

What Causes Slippery Sidewalks around Your Home?

Do you have pools of water around your home caused by faulty or old gutters? During the winter, pools of water can create dangerous, icy conditions surrounding your home. There are a variety of gutter conditions that can cause this situation such as:

Standing water

Standing water in gutters can create problems that lead to leaks and ultimately hazardous ice on your sidewalks in the winter. You can avoid standing water in your gutters with a few simple tips:

• Get professional gutter installation so your gutters will function properly and drain water away from your home.
• Make sure your gutters are installed slightly sloped so water flows through to the downspouts. Improperly installed gutters may cause water to pool in walkways and landscaping.
• Prevent blockages in your gutters by having gutter guards installed.
• Avoid blockages in your downspouts so they can drain properly.
• Make sure there aren’t any bird nests in your gutters, causing standing water.
• Remove any foreign objects (like stray tennis balls) from your gutters to prevent clogs.

Gutter leaks

Leaky gutters can cause slippery, icy sidewalks around your home in the winter. They have a wide variety of causes:

• Worn out gutters—Old gutters tend to leak and can cause dangerous icy conditions around your home.
• Loose gutters—When gutters pull away from your home, water will run down your roof and onto the ground that surrounds your dwelling, creating hazardous conditions.
• Separated downspout joints—The joints of your downspouts can become separated due to corrosion or deterioration. When this occurs, water can leak onto the border of your home, including your sidewalks.
• Loose gutter hangers—Hangars fasten gutters to your house’s fascia boards, and when this happens, water falls to the ground around the border of your home rather than being channeled through the downspout away from your home.
• Clogged gutters—When gutters aren’t shielded with gutter guards, debris can tend to clog them and cause standing water that overflows to the area surrounding your home. Water that overflows your gutters due to clogs can create unsafe situations around your home in the winter.
• Improperly sloped gutters—When gutter systems aren’t installed correctly, they won’t work properly. Gutters should have a subtle slope to them so they drain your water away from your home. If your gutters weren’t installed properly and water pools around your home as a result, contact LeafCo about gutter installation and remove the possibility of unsafe, icy sidewalks around your home.

Inspect Your Gutters to Prevent Problems this Winter

Gutters and downspouts that don’t work properly can hinder water and snow from being guided away from your home. Clogged gutters or downspouts may look like simple problems, but if left unattended, they can cascade into serious ones—from icy sidewalks to costly foundation damage.

Take a careful look at your home gutters to verify they are functioning at full capacity in order to avoid costly hassles.

Minimize the Collection of Ice Near Your Home with New Gutters

Seamless gutters protect your home from water damage, foundation damage, icy sidewalks and more. They deliver low maintenance and won’t leak and cause costly hassles. They give your home attractive curb appeal by complementing your home’s looks. Gutter installation is a simple process that can be done in a day, and it can help prevent the risk of:

• Basement leaks and flooding
• Deterioration of your roof shingles, soffits, or fascia
• Roof leaks
• Flooded landscaping around your home
• Slippery sidewalks in the winter

How to Know You Need New Gutters

There are some simple ways to discover if your home needs new gutters. Begin with a few simple questions as you take a careful look at your home gutters.

• Is there water damage inside my home?
• Is my yard or basement flooded?
• Is there evidence of mold or mildew growth on my roof shingles?
• Are my downspouts broken or faulty?
• Does my home have visible gutter damage?
• Are my sidewalks icy?
• Do Chicago winters cause my gutters to freeze or form icicles?

Gutter Solutions

New gutters installed properly help prevent icy sidewalks by removing excess water. Mastic Seamless Aluminum Gutters are long-lasting, and they won’t rust or leak. They come in a popular K-style in a wide variety of color selections so you can get the perfect look for your Chicago home.

Gutter guards prevent gutters from clogging due to leaves, debris, or stray baseballs. They block the accumulation of ice and snow, allow your gutters to drain water effectively, and prevent flooded sidewalks and landscaping. They deter pests and animals from entering or nesting in your home gutters. And gutter guards help your gutters function properly so the water that drains off your roof is guided away from your home, protecting it from water damage and foundation troubles.

LeafCo for Gutter Installation

At LeafCo, we educate you on a variety of gutter options so you can choose the best long-term solution for your home. We take time to listen to your desires and answer your questions before beginning your installation project. We install Mastic Seamless Gutters, and gutter guards. We install K-style gutters and specialty gutters such as copper and steel.

We offer convenient financing options so you can promptly address your home exterior problems and avoid slippery sidewalks around your home this winter. Contact us for a free estimate.

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