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While having the appropriate gutters is essential to making sure that water flows away from your home, where it ends up once it leaves the gutters can be just as important. Installing a K-Guard Gutter System on your home is the first step you should take to protect your property.

Once you’ve taken the right steps to keep rainwater from penetrating your home, it’s time to start thinking about the best ways to move the excess water off your property altogether. Drainage problems can lead to severe issues, including foundation problems, wet basements, and the growth of mold and mildew.

Good drainage is essential to ensure that your house remains dry and mold-free. Not only does it increase your property value by making sure that your foundation and basement remain dry and stable, it also helps create an outdoor space that you can enjoy throughout the year.

How do I know if I have a drainage problem?

Pooling water on parts of your yard is the most obvious sign of trouble, but there can be other, much more subtle signs of trouble. Keeping an eye out for these tell-tale signs could alert you to the need for a drainage solution:

• Drifting mulch
• Soggy ground
• Flaking paint or bubbles in your basement walls
• Pooling water in your basement
• Mildew smells
• Mold

What can cause water drainage problems?

There may be several reasons that you could experience water drainage problems. Often the biggest culprit is ineffective grading of the yard. Grading is a technique used in landscaping that creates a gentle slope to the yard, moving away from your home. In many cases, the grading is so slight that you won’t even notice. During heavy rains, even a slight grade can help move excess water away from your house, preventing pooling and water penetration of your foundations.

Grading isn’t always possible, however, and you may need to install French drains or other solutions. French drains are essentially shallow trenches dug and then filled with gravel that channel excess water in the desired direction.

Also, don’t forget to check your driveway. An improper slope on your driveway could cause water to pool directly next to your home instead of moving it away! Making sure that water doesn’t pool on your property, especially near your foundation, is critical in preventing structural problems from developing.

How does proper drainage work?

Your K-Guard Gutter System specialist will help you create a drainage plan that not only keeps your house dry, but moves water away from your property. Contact us today to learn more about the K-Guard Gutter System.

Since the majority of us aren’t lucky enough to have a perfectly graded property from the start, your drainage plan will likely include the need for an underground water drain.

Your K-Guard specialist will help you assess your property, paying particular attention to the grade, slopes, low lying areas, and surrounding properties. The appropriate grading for the yard or trench is about an inch of downslope for every eight feet in the direction you want the water to flow. It’s best to divert the excess water to a drainage ditch, storm drain, the street, or even a dry well.

What are the pros and cons of installing an underground water drain?

Whenever you’re talking about managing excess water on your property, the pros inevitably outweigh the cons.

Some of the cons include the difficulty of installation and continued maintenance. Installing underground water drains requires a good deal of planning, making sure that you don’t interfere with underground utilities like gas, water, and electric lines. The construction itself can be disruptive, requiring excavation, even temporarily needing to move patio pavers. Once installed, you’ll need to make sure that they don’t get clogged with debris or mud, keeping them clear so they can do their job.

The pros, on the other hand, will make your property more valuable and much more usable! Some of the many pros include:

• Efficient drainage – in conjunction with proper grading, underground water drains are extremely efficient at managing excess water on your property.
• Affordability – underground water drains are surprisingly affordable, especially compared to other alternatives like basement waterproofing.
• Transforming – underground water drains can quickly transform your property, increasing its value and making your space more usable and enjoyable.
• Pro-active – Making sure that you properly manage water on your property starts with installing a K-Guard Gutter System on your home, moving the water away from your property, preventing potential foundation water damage, and other problems down the road.

A comprehensive water management system on your property is critical in helping you increase your property value and in maintaining a healthy and safe home for your family.

How can I get started?

Contact us today to learn more about the K-guard Gutter System and how our specialists can help you create a comprehensive plan to manage water on your property!

Among the biggest benefits of installing a K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System is its ability to withstand leaking. This one K-Guard advantage can save you thousands by not having to repair water damage to your home and hours of worrying about whether your gutters will hold-up.

Because of their revolutionary design, each K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System has fewer joints than seamed models. This seemingly simple design feature makes gutter leaks far less likely for K-Guard gutter systems.

Why Do Other Gutter Models Tend to Leak so Much?

• Fewer points of entry. Unlike the K-Guard gutter system, most other gutters have numerous joints and points of entry for practically anything to penetrate. K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter Systems have much fewer joints.
• K-Guard is not attached to your shingles. Most gutter systems are attached directly to your home’s shingles, which can easily weaken their integrity. K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter Systems are attached to the fascia board or rafters of your home. These sturdy anchor points ensure your K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System is secured snugly to your home but presents no risk of damage to the structure itself.
• Less clogging. Most gutter systems become easily clogged with leaves and other debris. This added weight weakens the gutters, makes them bow, and becomes easier to leak in various spaces at the same time. K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter Systems are designed with only a small opening between the gutter and the hood portion. Only water is able to get through to the gutter, where it’s then channeled to the downspouts and away from the foundation of your home.
• The pitch is true. If your regular gutter system isn’t installed as it should, its pitch will be off. This makes it easier for water to pool in a central area of the gutter, weighing it down and preventing the water from being channeled to the downspouts. Each K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System is installed to precise requirements. This means your K-Guard’s gutter pitch is true and level. As a result, rainwater is easily channeled to the downspouts.

How Much Damage Can Really Be Done If My Gutters Are Leaking?

Plenty! If your gutters are leaking and you don’t either fix them or switch to K-Guard, you’re risking significant damage to your home.

Here are some of the most commonly reported home damage reports caused by leaking gutters.

• A weakening of your home’s foundation as the leaked water pounds down from the gutters directly to the base of your home.
• Erosion of the soil surrounding your home because the water has not been channeled to the downspouts. As the soil around your home erodes, the foundation itself is also easily compromised.
• Significant staining of the siding and concrete around your home caused by the pooling water.
• Damage to your landscaping. If water is not sent through the downspouts and away from key areas of your yard, huge sections of it can be flooded and significantly damaged…perhaps permanently.
• Mosquito infestations. Nothing is more inviting to these pesky pests than a standing pool of water. If your gutters aren’t allowing rainwater to flow through them, your gutters may become a literal breeding ground for mosquitoes and other pests.

How Can I Tell If My Gutters Are Leaking?

There are several effective ways for checking on the health of your gutter system.

• A visual inspection. Take a walk around your home, and make note of water falling from an area of your roofline that should not have water dripping from it. This is a classic sign that your gutters are filled and clogged…and weakened.
• See how the water flows. Make sure you clean your gutters of any debris and clutter. Then, safely climb a ladder and place a garden hose in the gutter. After safely climbing down, turn the water on for the hose and see if you notice any water leaking out from the gutters.

K-Guard pro tip: with a K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System, you’ll no longer need your ladder to check on your closed gutter system.

If you’ve had to repair your gutter for leaks numerous times, it’s probably the right time to change over to a K-Guard K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System.

Beyond the minimal risks of leaking, you’ll have far less maintenance with your K-Guard system. In fact, there’s no maintenance required at all by you once your K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System has been installed…this also means there’s no more regular gutter cleaning to worry about.

In addition to protecting your home from water damage, a K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System will be visually appealing as well. With a smooth finish like crown molding and a wide variety of available colors, your new gutter system will have a more uniform appearance. Other gutter systems tend to look clunky and out of place.

We’d love to talk with you about our K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System. In fact, we encourage you to take advantage of our free estimate offer by contacting your nearest K-Guard dealer. You can also get in touch through our online contact form or by calling us at (614) 964-5644.