Eave Trough-Can Save Your Home From Rot And Water Damage

A lot of people think that eave trough are installed to keep the rain from falling on your head when you walk out your doors or keep water from pooling next to the building. While Eave Trough do all of this they also perform a much more important function. They protect your home from rot and water damage.

When rain falls off most roofs it ends up falling within a couple of feet of the actual walls of the home. This water has gained speed as it dropped off the roof and depending on what it lands on it can splash back onto the wall of the house. If the water hits a solid surface like a deck or concrete then the splashing can be worse then if it lands on grass or a bush in a garden.

When water splashes onto a wall the wall depending on what it is made from will become saturated, depending on where the water saturates the wall, will determine how fast the water affects the wall. If its in a corner that doesn't get a lot of airflow then the wall will likely never dry and the water damage will be worse then a place that the air gets a chance to help dry it. Usually near the ground no matter where it is there will be limited air movement.

If the wall is constructed out of wood and has a wood exterior then the water will penetrate and saturate the wood siding and the stud wall behind it. Overtime this will cause severe rot. The longer this is aloud to go on the worse the rot will get as it will spread from the original area.

With freezing and thawing the water that has saturated the wall can damage stone and masonry work.

A lot of modern designed homes do not have large overhangs, these homes require more water control as the smaller the overhangs the closer the water is dropped off the roof next to the foundation. In some cases the water falling off the roof can be pushed back by a prevailing wind that soaks the house wall instead of the water falling on the ground.

There are other ways to help negate water damage other then eave trough but nothing works as well as eave trough and nothing controls the distribution of water around a building like properly installed eave trough.

If your worried that your eave trough are not installed properly you can always call an eave trough contractor and for a small fee they will come out and make adjustments or repairs.

A little prevention can save a world of problems later.

Rob Abbott
Village Builders Inc.