Frozen Gutter Downspout

Whether some of your downspouts remained clogged with debris when winter hit or your gutters are just reacting to all the snow and cold here s how to manage them.

Frozen gutter downspout.

Over time the ice can back up into your gutters creating additional weight on your entire gutter system. Unfortunately dealing with frozen gutters is rarely simple or inexpensive. Consistently frozen downspouts require immediate attention. Frozen downspouts can cause costly damage.

If you live in a colder part of the world you may run into a situation where your downspouts become frozen. One recommends whacking the gutter from an upstairs window with a baseball bat. Looks like the freezing is backing up to the gutter making me concerned the ice build up could overload the gutter with weight and cause it to pull away from the roof. Others recommend taking ice melt to the gutters see below a few say heat the gutters to clear them.

I ve got a frozen downspout on the corner of my house due to multiple high snowfalls this year crazy low temps from polar vortexes indiana. It will cause your downspouts to freeze. You can also use a hose connected to a hot water tap to spray water on the outside of your frozen downspout. There are a few likely scenarios that can cause ice accumulation in downspouts.

Yet another recommends running electrical heat tape to prevent melting. When winter storms hit gutters and downspouts sometimes freeze into solid blocks of ice and homeowners understandably worry about gutters pulling away from the roofs or ice dams forming. The only sure fire way to melt the ice in frozen gutters is to hire a professional. Over time the ice may back up into your gutters themselves thereby creating extra weight on your entire guttering system.

If there is a large amount of snow on the ground that is covering the bottom mouth of the downspout. On line advice about frozen downspouts varies. First resist the urge to go after the ice with a hammer or axe. Frozen downspouts occur during the winter during or after winter weather occurs.

The downspout is responsible for taking the water collected by the gutters and dispersing it out and away from the home s foundation. Should i try to thaw out the downspout. Some say just leave it alone. However consistently frozen or frozen solid downspouts may require immediate attention especially if weather conditions will be less than ideal for the foreseeable future.

If the ground is safe and level grab a ladder and pour warm water into the top of the frozen downspout or gutter. This can lead to your gutter and downspout tearing away from your roof or siding leading to more costly and larger problems such as water leaks and improper drainage. A bit of warm water should be enough to break up frozen chunks and clear the blockage. A downspout is an integral part of a home s gutter system.