Here’s a concise answer on what happens if your Norton Shores Gutters don’t have downspouts: your property’s foundation and basement may suffer from water damage.
Ensuring your home has enough downspouts doesn’t seem like a big deal until your gutters are overflowing and you have to deal with moisture damage. Water damage isn’t a joke, and it can lead to costly repairs when left ignored. To avoid this, you need to make sure that your gutter system has everything it needs in place. That includes enough downspouts and good drainage.
In this article, we’ll teach you the importance of the gutter drain downspout and gutter drain tiles.
Table of Contents:
- The Importance of the Gutter Drain Downspout
- What is a Gutter Drain Tile?
- Do I Need a Drain Tile for Downspouts?
- Closing Up
The Importance of the Gutter Drain Downspout
Downspouts are vertical, pipe-like devices connected to gutters and erected along the sides of buildings. They redirect water away from your property toward a designated drainage location. A properly installed downspout will help avoid various problems, such as overflowing gutters and water damage to your home’s exterior and foundation.
They are essential in the fight against water damage in your home. A house without gutters and downspouts can result in standing water around its foundation. As a result, there is more risk of flooring damage and soil erosion.
When designing gutter systems, gutter installation experts consider various factors. One of them is the home’s design. They must assess your home’s layout, especially your roof. Your home should have one downspout installed every 40 feet of guttering. That way, you won’t have to worry about overflowed gutters when there’s heavy rain or snow.
Another thing you need to take into account is the position of your drainage system. The bottom of the downspouts should be positioned at a reasonable distance from your house. Water could end up seeping into your foundation and basement otherwise. So, how do you divert downspout water? The easiest way is creating channels for the excess water. One such example is extending the downspout away from your home’s foundation, so that water disperses onto the driveway instead.
What Is a Gutter Drain Tile?
Despite its name, a drain tile is not made of tiles. The name comes from the old way drain tiles were made, using clay tiles. Today, we use PVC pipes or flexible plastic tubing to manufacture them. These tubes are installed underground around the residence’s foundation so that you can drain the water from your gutters effectively.
Gutter experts usually install drain tiles below the frost line. In most systems, a solid pipe connects to the downspout to direct water away from your house before transitioning to a perforated pipe. The perforated pipe is coated in nylon mesh to keep dirt out of the system while allowing water to flow. Also, there’s usually a gate at the end of the drain tile to enable the safe release of water if the system becomes clogged.
If you have a lot of trees around your home, there’s a risk of leaves and other debris clogging the gutters. An excellent way to prevent clogging is to use a downspout filter to avoid debris from going into the downspout.
Do I Need a Drain Tile for Downspouts?
While drain tiles are not the only option you have, they are the most aesthetic and convenient. They allow you to ensure that rainwater from your roof goes down to the sewers directly.
Drain tiles bring a clean finish to any home and lessen the odds of soil erosion since they send water away to a great distance. Even if you choose to route the drain tiles to open ground, you won’t have soil erosion problems as long as it’s far from your home.
Drain tiles aren’t necessary, but they give you long-term benefits worth the additional cost.
Closing Up
The importance of a downspout and a drainage system for your gutter can’t be understated. If you don’t have one, you will risk damage to your home’s foundation and your basement. A proper gutter system and drainage always go hand-in-hand.
If you need help setting up yours, work with the professional gutter installers at Shepherd Shoreline. Give us a call at 231-780-2847 or message us here, and we’ll have a team ready to serve all your gutter installation needs.