Rain gutters and downspouts are the drainage system of the roof. They play the essential role of directing rainwater away from the roof, instead of letting it pool with the risk of causing indoor leakage. But there’s an additional accessory that is considered the extension of the downspout – no wonder it is called downspout extension. Such extensions also play a major role in managing water shed away from the home. Let us discover the huge value of downspout extensions.
Downspout Extensions: What are they?
Seamless or not, you probably know a thing or two about residential gutters. And chances are high that you know that the gutters are connected with downspouts – the long vertical pipes that act as the second (after the gutters) most crucial rails that channel water away from the roof and the home. The melting snow and the water of the rain falling on the roof end up in the gutters and flow direct into the downspout. Their last stop before they hit the ground? The downspout extensions.
As their name implies, these rather short pipes are extensions of the downspouts. And actually, there are more than just one type. The two main categories of downspout extensions are rigid and flexible ones.
• Flexible downspout extensions are ideal for corners or when there’s a need to connect with other extensions.
• Rigid downspout extensions do not bend as their flexible counterparts. They follow one straight line and shed water in one particular spot.
Flexible or rigid downspout extensions?
The choice between the two main types of downspout extensions mainly depends on your home’s structure, the drainage system, and the local weather. For example. If there’s a drainage system at a particular spot and you want the rainwater to land straight in there, getting a rigid downspout extension will be a great idea. You can have a gutter service contractor installing it to shed water at one particular spot. But if you want to expand the length of the downspout extension or have it travel around corners, getting a flexible product is the only right choice. Don’t forget to consider how often it rains in your location. If it rains often, it’s best to invest in rigid extensions.
The great benefits of downspout extensions
The whole point of having gutters and downspouts is to transfer rainwater as far away from the home as possible. And here’s where the great value of downspout extensions is revealed. Since they are the extensions of downspouts, they allow water to shed farther away from the home’s structure. Why is this so important? Because water shed repeatedly near the foundation of the building will eventually cause saturation. Therefore, it will raise some questions about the structure’s integrity.
With the downspout extensions, the water lands much farther from the house and so, the foundations, the entire structure is not affected. Hence, the possibility of mold infestation is diminished too. On top of that, you can use the downspout extensions to water plants and in fact, move them around a bit so that they will water the entire area.
With these special drainage systems, homes found in areas where they experience heavy rainfall will not flood, assuming that gutter cleaning and downspout inspection and unclogging from leaves and needles are parts of your annual to-do-list.
And it takes a call to your local gutter company to have these extensions replaced should there be damage, while the cost is low.
Rain gutters, downspouts, downspout extensions: home’s best friends
The triple action of rain gutters, downspouts, and downspout extensions can save you thousands of dollars and lots of sleepless nights should there be structural damage or indoor mold contamination. Some solutions to truly huge (potential) problems are so simple, it’s odd why don’t we all do the obvious. That’s, invest in good quality downspout extensions, downspouts, and gutters installation and in their good condition and have this drainage system take care of our home.
