Eavestrough Repair & Re-sloping · Cambridge
Eavestrough Repair and Re-sloping in Cambridge
Sound aluminum that has sagged or opened at a seam is a repair, and a good one lasts years. The repair quote says when it is a repair and when it is not.
Eavestrough fails in pieces: a seam here, a hanger there, an end cap that lets go, a run that has drifted off pitch. Each is a separate, usually short repair, and the condition for doing it is that the trough itself is sound metal. Aluminum that is merely loose or low has decades left once it is re-hung. Steel that is rusting through, or seams failing along the whole house, is a replacement conversation and gets called that.
Re-sloping a run that holds water
A trough that still has a puddle in it a day after rain has lost its fall. Hangers pulled out of soft wood, ice weight over a winter, or a run that was never set with a level will all do it. The repair lifts the low section back to a steady pitch toward the outlet and re-hangs it on screwed hidden hangers. On the century houses in Galt and Preston that means finding sound wood or sistering a board behind the hanger; on a newer house in Hespeler's subdivisions it usually means swapping spike-and-ferrule nails for screws along the whole run while the ladder is up. Standing water in Cambridge also has a by-law dimension: section 5.11 of the Property Standards By-law requires every eavestrough to be kept in good repair and weathertight, and a run that overflows onto the neighbour runs into section 4.8 as well.
Seams, mitres and end caps
Corners and end caps are sealed from inside with a flexible sealant that ages and lets go. A dripping seam is cleaned to bare metal, dried and resealed; a corroded or split mitre is replaced; an outlet that was cut too small or set too high so water overshoots it is resized rather than resealed. On sectional trough with a joint every 3 metres, several failing joints at once is a sign the system is nearing the end, and the repair visit says so.
Water behind the trough
Staining down the fascia or a wet soffit with a trough that looks fine is almost always drip edge. If the metal edge under the shingles is short or missing, water runs down the roof deck and behind the trough, feeding exactly the fascia rot that is so common on older Cambridge houses. The fix is an apron flashing tucked under the first course and lapped into the back of the trough, and it is one of the more valuable repairs there is for the price.
What a repair visit includes
- Clearing the affected run so pitch and seams can be seen — part of the repair, not a cleaning service.
- Re-pitching and re-hanging the low section on screwed hangers.
- Resealing or replacing seams, mitres, end caps and outlets as found.
- Drip edge or apron flashing where water is getting behind.
- Reconnecting or replacing crushed downspout sections and elbows, and checking that each discharge point meets the City's rule on walkways and neighbouring property.
- A plain report on the rest of the system.
Frequently asked questions
Can you fix one bay without redoing the whole run?
Usually. The low section is lifted back to pitch and re-hung, and the neighbouring hangers are checked. If the entire run has drifted, re-pitching all of it is the better job and not much more time.
The trough is fine but the fascia is wet. Why?
Most often missing or short drip edge letting water run behind the trough. An apron flashing fixes it. If the fascia is already soft, that becomes a fascia repair as well.
Will you reseal a steel trough?
Not if it is rusting through. Sealant on thin steel buys a season at most, and we would rather say so than take the money. If the steel is still sound and a single seam has opened, that is a different matter and can be done.
Serving Cambridge and surrounding areas. Contact us for a no-obligation quote specific to your property.