Repairing Holes In Steel Gutters

This old house general contractor tom silva has a fast fix for a dripping rain gutter.

Repairing holes in steel gutters.

Holes you can use the same process for repairing holes in both steel and aluminum gutters. Once the hole is clean and dry spread roofing cement around the edges of the hole and apply a patch of. Great that is until they start to rust away resulting in holes and cracks that let the rain through trickling down the façade of your home and thus negating the entire purpose of having gutters in the first place. Scoop out leaves and other debris in this gutter section using your hands or a plastic gutter scoop.

If a gutter isn t draining properly it s either not sloping toward the downspout or it s sagging and needs to be raised you have to patch any hole right away so it doesn t grow larger. If clips or brackets hold your gutters check for broken clips and loose or missing screws. Steel gutters are great. First use a stiff wire brush to remove any rust or corrosion from the hole and the surrounding area.

Feather the roofing cement out on the surrounding area to flatten any steep edges. They re readily available relatively cheap and easy to install. If your gutters are fastened with spikes and some spikes are loose or rusted simply hammering the spike back in isn t. Once the hole is clean and dry spread roofing cement 1 around the edges of the hole and apply a patch of appropriately sized metal flashing.

See below for a shopping list and tools subscribe to this old house. Buy a tube of roofing cement 1 40 and a metal repair patch several inches larger than the damaged area. Once you have identified and thoroughly cleaned and dried the hole use roofing cement tarry paste or liquid rubber around the rusted edges of the hole. Apply plastic roofing cement over small holes.

Insert the drop outlet in the hole and fasten the new downspout with sheet metal screws. Make sure to seal the drop outlet to the gutter with seam sealer. It s important that the patch match the gutter material. Scrub the inside of the gutter around.

Hold the metal flashing firmly in place until the cement has dried and then test for sturdiness. There should be no more than a inch drop in the direction of the downspout. Set up a ladder on a flat even surface and carefully climb up so you can access the damaged section of gutter. You can then apply a sized piece of metal flashing.

How to fix holes in galvanized gutters 1. You can cut out the larger hole with a tin snips or you could use an oscillating multi tool equipped with a metal cutting blade. After the patch is situated cover it completely with another coat of roofing cement.