Box Gutters, the cornice work, and trim below add important historical and architectural value to homes and buildings. They also add to the buildings maintenance. Being pro active towards your roof and box gutters will ensure they remain a valuable asset to your home or building rather than a major expense later down the road.
Here are 5 signs that your box gutters may be leaking.Sometimes the leaking box gutter will cause the trim to rot from the backside out. Look fordarkening or discolored paint on the word trim and if possible physically touch suspect areas to see if they are becoming soft or dotey. Remember most of the older and historic crown moldings and trims can be as expensive
or even more expensive that the box gutter repair. Keep and eye on your wood work.
Leaking box gutters can allow water to enter the top of the masonry wall and can cause the wall to become wet and saturated with moisture. On buildings with painted brick, the paint will begin to peel off the wet masonry. The peeling paint will slow or stop all together the farther down the wall you inspect if moisture is cause the paint failure. The wall will be less wet the farther the distance away from the box gutter and source of the leak. This is how you can distinguish a failing paint job versus a leaking box gutter.
Unpainted Buildings with exposed masonry walls will show signs of deteriorated mortar close to the source of the leak. The old mortar wicks up moisture in the wall and becomes soft overtime. Rain, wind and gravity will take their toll on the soft, moist brick joint and you will notice how it recess over time.
Persistently leaky box gutters that cause the brick to stay wet and saturated for extended periods can lead to the brick spalling. The is the terms that refers to the face of brick falling off or crumbing away. Moisture in the brick goes through the freeze - thaw cycles of winter and the freezing moisture expands busting the face of the brick off.