Have you noticed your gutters aren’t working the way they’re supposed to? It’s possible your gutters aren’t pitched correctly. The good news is it’s quite easy to tell if your pitch is incorrect!
What is a gutter pitch?
Gutters are installed at an angle so that they drain properly – that’s the gutter pitch. You don’t want your gutters to be completely straight; otherwise, the rainwater won’t flow to your downspout(s). The low point of the gutter should be directly above the opening to your downspout. The opposite end of the gutter will be the high point.
How can I tell if my gutters are pitched correctly?
It’s fairly easy to determine if your gutters are pitched incorrectly. Here are three ways:
- Take a look
- Sometimes you can see that the gutter is not tilted toward the downspout. However, most of the time the angle is so slight that you aren’t able to see it without a level. If you can put a level to your gutter, you can easily tell if it’s pitched correctly or not.
- Standing water
- Check your gutters after it has recently stopped raining. Is there standing water? If so, your pitch is probably incorrect. It’s important to get this fixed as quickly as possible because standing water in your gutters can lead to many problems and will result in needing to replace your gutters or fix other damages to your home itself.
- Note: sometimes standing water is not a result of an incorrect pitch. Check to see if leaves or debris are clogging your gutters or downspouts before adjusting the pitch. If you don’t see leaves or debris but the water is standing, then your gutter will need to be repitched.
- Overflow
- If water is overflowing your gutters, your pitch might be incorrect. Overflowing gutters can be a result of clogged gutters or downspouts, so check for clogs before you repitch.
How to pitch your gutters correctly
Thankfully, the gutter does not need to be completely removed if you find that your gutters aren’t pitched correctly. Here are a few simple steps to follow:
- Use the downspout’s location to determine where the gutter’s high and low points should be. The low point is the opening of the downspout and the high point is the opposite end.
- Remove some of the gutter brackets or spikes. You don’t need to remove the end brackets, and you can leave one in the middle too so that you don’t have to completely remove the gutter.
- Once the other brackets are removed, move to the opposite end of the downspout. Remove the bracket and raise the gutter to the correct position. Then, secure the bracket.
- Move to the downspout and remove that bracket. Adjust the gutter slightly downward, then replace the bracket.
- Remove the middle bracket and the gutter will adjust accordingly.
- Resecure the remaining gutter brackets every two to four feet.
- Use a level to ensure the pitch is correct.
Call Good to Go Gutters today!
Fixing a gutter pitch can be tricky. Don’t hesitate to call us! We’ll be happy to adjust your pitch for you. Good to Go Gutters has been installing gutters in the south metro for over 20 years. If you’re looking to install or replace your gutters, give us a call for your free estimate!