Gutters, new roofs, and the joys of home ownership
By Will H.
Friday, February 16, 2007
My wife and I recently moved into our first home. It was a fixer-upper, and we knew from the start that we would need new vinyl siding and to replace most of the appliances. We expected these costs, and figured that the new lawnmower and a new AC in a few years would handle maintenance for the foreseeable future. The surprises started coming in our first Texas spring. The short version is that we had no idea what it cost to maintain a home, and we’re poorer and more experienced for the experience.
For example, take our gutters (please). They appeared fine to the home inspector, and though we had never been on the roof, they seemed fine to us. Then one afternoon we’re sitting on the back patio and look up a see a garden growing out of the gutters. I went and bought a ladder, a pair of thick gloves, and spent one of the grossest days of my life, cleaning our gutters. That accomplished, I thought I was done.
A month later, new sprouts appeared. Not remembering the experience fondly, I procrastinated through out the summer and into the winter. When spring came, we started to get leaks in the house. A San Antonio roofing contractor seemed genuinely distressed to tell us that our roof had rotted because the gutters had been backing up for so long.
Besides an angry wife, we now had a bill over ten thousand dollars to repair the roof, and I still had to clean the gutters every month. A friend we made in the neighborhood gave us some great advice. They gave us the name of a roofing contractor serving our area of Texas and suggested that we get covers for our gutters. We ended up getting a fair price, and an education. Best of all, they recommended another contractor who came out and installed a gutter system called LeafGaurd, so I don’t end up spending my Saturdays elbow deep in gunk. I recommend that you install LeafGuard before your gutters end up costing you a roof.