Last Updated on October 11, 2024 by SampleBoard
When remodeling your home, it's easy to get distracted by new paint colors, flooring, and modern appliances.
While all these are beautiful and add functionality, the gutter system is an otherwise critical component.
A well-designed gutter system is usually overlooked, but it plays a vital part in the life and structure of your home.
This blog post will examine why including a dependable gutter system and gutter covers in your home remodel is essential.
We'll discuss the benefits and how the system can protect various parts of your home.
One primary reason to include a gutter system in your remodeling plan is the safety of your home's foundation.
During heavy rainfall, water cascades off your roof, and without a properly functioning gutter system, it can gather near the base of your house.
Without proper management, this water can erode the soil and add tremendous pressure to your foundation walls.
This can lead to cracking, bowing, and buckling of the foundation walls and/or a shifting or settling foundation, all of which have highly costly repair costs!
When properly installed, a gutter system carries rainwater away from your home, which helps preserve the integrity of your foundation.
A remodel often includes converting your basement into a more livable space.
Without a reliable gutter system, that beautifully renovated basement could have been lost to water damage.
Pooled water near your house's foundation quickly leaks into the basement, ruining walls, floors, and everything you've stored there.
It could pose health risks and is relatively complex to eradicate once mold grows.
Having a sound gutter system will help direct water away from your home.
It is a reasonably effective way to reduce the risk of basement flooding.
When properly chosen and installed, gutter covers can enhance this further by preventing the accumulation of leaves and other debris, allowing water to run off smoothly, and protecting your basement.
Landscaping is often an extensive renovation project. But it adds beauty today and property value tomorrow.
However, rainwater can damage your landscaping if you don't have a proper gutter system.
Think eroded soil, drowned bushes, and washed-away flowers.
This not only spoils the beauty of your landscape but will likely cost you more time and money in the fix than in the prevention.
A well-designed gutter system can help control the flow of rainwater and protect your landscaping investment.
Gutter covers can also prevent clogging, ensuring that your gutters work efficiently and preserving the beauty and integrity of your yard.
For effective gutter covers, choose one that can handle heavy rainfall AND keep your gutters clean.
One such cover is the Advantage Gutter Guard®, which has been third-party tested to handle three times the typical Midwestern rainstorm.
When you renovate, some exterior features likely to change include siding, fascia and soffit, windows, and doors.
Uncontrolled water splashing off the roof accelerates wood rot in these features and can cause mold and mildew growth.
This can affect not only the appearance of your home but also its structural integrity.
Like your foundation, basement, and landscaping, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
In other words, these problems are cheaper to prevent than fix later.
A functioning gutter system is that prevention. They restrict the amount of water that constantly attacks these surfaces and wears them down.
Indoor air quality is not something we usually think about, but it's critical to the health of our families.
Bad air quality causes various health issues, including allergies and asthma.
Controlling the water outside the house controls the water inside the home.
Reduced water penetration into your home and the materials it is made of minimize mold and mildew in your property and your air.
Proper gutters drain water away from your home and keep it dry, thus contributing to healthy indoor air quality.
A well-designed, properly functioning gutter system adds much value to your property.
How so?
Home inspectors always look for evidence of water damage and infiltration into a home.
This can result in the seller losing money on sometimes inflated repair costs during the home sale.
As discussed, a properly functioning gutter system protects your home from the damaging effects of rainwater—from the roof to the foundation.
When these are protected from damage, your home will function, look, and smell better, increasing its ROI.
A gutter system should be considered seriously in any home remodel.
Keeping it in good health protects the rest of your renovations, including the foundation, basement, landscaping, siding, fascia, soffit, windows, doors, air quality, and property value.
It might not be the flashiest or sexiest part of your remodeling, but it's a crucial component nonetheless.
Choosing a quality gutter system will protect your home and ensure the remodel goes well.
