Blog

Winter has finally arrived and if you haven’t already, it is important to perform certain maintenance steps on your gutters to prevent problems.

• Unclog. Hopefully, you completed this step before winter set in, but if you didn’t, consider doing this now. If your gutters are clogged, it can restrict water flow, which can build up and freeze in the lower temperatures. This can weigh down your gutters and cause damage.
• Protect. If you would like to avoid the maintenance of cleaning out your gutters, consider gutter protection options, such as E-Z Step Down, Leaf Relief, or LeaFree.
• Secure. The weight of ice or snow can also cause your gutters to come loose, so ensuring they are tightly secured is important.
• Downspouts. Making sure your downspouts are properly aligned is also important, so that water does not end up running down the side of your home.
• Water Flow. If water is not flowing properly away from your house, it can cause problems. If too much water freezes around your house, it can put pressure on your foundation and even cause minor shifting.

With cooler weather here, it’s important that your windows are in top shape to keep the cold air out and keep your home warm without wasting unnecessary energy. Not sure if it’s the right time to replace your home’s windows? Here are a few things to look for.

• Check the trim. If your window trim is rotting, missing or cracked, your windows are no longer airtight. Depending on its condition, you may need new trim or new windows.
• Look for cracked or broken glass. This can be dangerous as well as let the elements into your home. Consider having the broken pane or entire window replaced.
• Watch for condensation or frost on your windows. Drawing in the condensation on your windows can be fun, but it can also mean it’s time for window replacements to keep your home warm and dry.
• Gauge the temperature near your windows. If it is colder in the winter or warmer in the summer than the rest of your home, consider replacement windows.
• How is the ease of use for your windows? If they are very hard to open / close, it could be because of age. The ease of use for your windows isn’t the only thing that can be affected by age – older windows can be drafty, damaged, have rotting trim, etc.

Interested in replacing your windows before the real cold comes to the area? Give us a call at 636-296-8900 for your free estimate.

Downspouts are the part of your gutter system that actually carry the water from your gutter down to the ground. A 2”x 3” downspout has a maximum capacity to carry 6 square inches of water at any given time – 2 x 3 = 6. A 3”x 4” downspout can carry a maximum capacity of 12 square inches of water, doubling the drainage capacity of the downspout. So no matter what size your gutters are, if your downspouts cannot drain them quickly enough during heavy rain, they will overflow. Downspouts are “the rubber to the road” of your gutter system.

There are many types and styles of copper downspouts – round, square, smooth, corrugated and custom. Most copper downspouts are made from 16-ounce standard copper, as this is the most common copper used. Downspouts can be made from 20-ounce copper, but this is very expensive. Almost all custom copper downspouts are soldered at each turn (elbow) with 50/50 solder.

To hold the downspouts to the wall, special pipe bands or cleats are used. They vary in size, profile and style. From a very simple flat band to very decorative shapes and sizes, almost anything the mind can think up can be made. The bands are held to the wall with special copper plated screws if going into wood, and pin-bolt drives if going into brick or stone.

Copper downspouts can beautifully accent a copper gutter system.

There are many reasons why you could have overflowing or leaking gutters. Primarily, we find that leaking gutters have occurred as a result of inexpensive caulk that was used to seal the end caps or the miters (the corner pieces that turn either 90 degrees or 45 degrees). There are many kinds of cheap caulks available. We use only Geocel 2300 for the sealing of our end caps and miters. Geocell 2300 is designed to hold in heat or cold, on either extreme.

There are three ways to construct a miter on a gutter for a house. There is the hand tabbed method, where the miter is screwed together by tabbing the pieces together. This method looks clean but can pull apart with expansion and contraction and cause leaking gutters. Then there are pre-fab box miters. These are for the most inexperienced gutter installer. They require sealing the corner in three places. Because they are pre-fab, they do not always match the profile of the actual gutter, and this causes leaking gutters almost from the outset. The best method of doing miters is the strip miter. The strip miter is a narrow piece of aluminum, made to fit the corner as the two pieces of gutter come together. It allows for the actual expansion and contraction and looks very clean and works great. That is the method we use at St. Louis Gutter & Siding, Inc.

Another reason for overflowing or leaking gutters could be the age of the gutters. If the house has had gutters for 15-20 years, the house can shift ever so slightly, thus knocking out the drain possibility in the gutter. At that point then the water will overflow at the closest point where it cannot flow any more. This requires the replacement of guttering to give proper drain.

One last thought. If the gutters have not been cleaned recently, they may have debris in them causing the outlet tube to be clogged and not allowing water to flow into the downspouts. It can be as simple as a small stick and a leaf wedged in the outlet tube to cause them to overflow. Keeping them cleaned and free of debris is important to help avoid leaking gutters. If you have areas that are too high to reach safely for gutter cleaning, gutter protection should be considered.

Remodeling your home for restoration can make it look and feel as though you bought a brand new home. Home improvements can be costly. It is important to do research and plan each step to keep your costs low and still provide the look and performance you are after. Start your projects slowly by making exterior changes, such as vinyl siding, which can make a world of difference.

Because vinyl siding is so versatile and affordable, it is the most used type of siding in America. Vinyl siding is also available in a multitude of colors and styles, giving you control and flexibility to choose what you want for your home.

Performance Is Critical

Just as important as durability and good looks in vinyl siding is how the material performs over time and its ability to free homeowners from maintenance. Maintenance is a key issue for homeowners, and there’s nothing that will change that. Families today are busy with other activities, but want a good-looking home and don’t want to have to worry about painting, caulking, or other upkeep issues.

Color, style and maintenance aren’t the only concerns for vinyl siding. The framing in new construction often is not precise, and settling occurs on remodeling projects, which can keep the siding from being installed exactly. The newest products, including foam backing, which can cover a variety of substrates, provide more structural stability, so the panels can be placed over uneven facing without a problem.

Mitten Foam Back Cladding

Mitten, Inc. produces numerous collections of specialty and traditional vinyl siding along with accessories and trim for the exterior of a home. The foam back cladding lines from Mitten are InsulPlank and Frontier. Because of the weather resistant design of these lines of vinyl siding, the thermal foam backer will increase the insulation value while saving energy at the same time. For the high performance line of vinyl siding, durability and style play a major part and feature a Southern Beaded look and the historic architecture of the Board & Batten vertical placement. The brand also includes a Triple Three Profile, Grand Scallops or Shakes, and the longer panels of the North Country 50 collection.

Mitten Traditional Vinyl Siding

Mitten’s traditional vinyl siding lines, Cambridge and Oregon Pride, feature a low gloss color-rich finish and realistic wood texture. Premium collections protect the exterior and are manufactured to stand out from nearby houses. With the Procanna Series, bold colors are meant to make a statement, and the Sentry collection has a contoured locking system and distinctive silhouette. Cedar grain textures plus four profiles comprise the ACT (Advanced Color Technology) line that reduces the maintenance level.

With the various options available for vinyl siding, there is sure to be an option to suit every home and every homeowner’s desires.

There are a lot of gutter protection products on the market today. The key to solving your gutter protection problem is having a product that works for your situation. You may have a very particular problem. Our gutter protection options to help solve these problems include EZ Step Down™, LeaFree™ and Leaf Relief™. The kinds of leaves, seedlings, and critters that are getting into your gutters dictate which gutter protection option will work best for you.

While our EZ Step Down™ gutter protection works well on larger debris such as leaves and branches, some small debris such as needles, seedlings, and helicopter-type seeds can get stuck in the holes, requiring periodic maintenance. That means getting on a ladder, and on the roof.

Products such as LeaFree™ and other helmet-type covers work on many of these types of debris as well, but at a higher cost.

What’s in your yard? Often, versatility is the key. Leaf Relief™ is very versatile and affordable. It keeps the leaves, seedlings, needles, and pest such as birds and squirrels out. Leaf Relief’s patented Aluma-Perf™ technology keeps your gutters flowing, and you on the ground. Leaf Relief is a popular option because of its affordability and that routine gutter cleaning is no longer necessary, further reducing costs. Most homes will benefit from the Leaf Relief option for gutters.

For more information, get your free gutter system assessment on Leaf Relief or our other great gutter protection options.

Choosing a contractor can be a stressful task, and choosing the wrong one can be disastrous. Many homeowners in New York recently learned just how disastrous, and their misfortunes should be considered a lesson for everyone to do our research when choosing a home improvement contractor.

A good place to start your research is the BBB. Contractors, and other businesses, are rated on a scale from A+ to F- based on complaints received and how the are handled, years in business, insurance, and licensing. St. Louis Gutter & Siding has a BBB rating of A+.

Also ensure that any contractors you consider are properly insured and licensed and maintain Workers’ Compensation coverage. This is very important in the case that a worker is injured while working on your job.

More important research that you can perform to ensure you are choosing the right contractor includes getting references. The internet can be very helpful in this case, with Google being a popular place for company reviews. Asking neighbors, friends, family, and co-workers for references an also help.

Remember that if a deal sounds to good to be true, it probably is. Don’t hire a contractor who will only accept cash, does not have a physical address, or expects full payment up front. If you don’t feel comfortable with a deal, don’t accept it. Once you choose a contractor, be sure to get all details of your job in writing to avoid any and all confusion.

If you follow your gut and do your research, a home improvement job is going to be much less stressful because you know you can fully trust the workers you hire.

Get a free estimate with St. Louis Gutter & Siding.