Black stripes on gutters

Nothing makes a house pop like bright and shiny gutters. If your house is more than a couple years old, your gutters probably have ¼ inch wide black streaks running down the front of them every couple of inches. There are several reasons why this occurs. Water hits the roof and as it flows over the shingles towards the gutters it carries material with it. Some of this material comes from the shingle and some of it is the organic matter that is growing on the shingle. Some of this mixture ends up dripping down the front of the gutter (in small amounts if the gutters are clean, in large amounts if the gutters are blocked and water is leaving the gutter system to slowly).

Water flows in a defined pattern taking the path of least resistance. So in the example above, the water mixture is dripping down the face of the gutter in a defined pattern over and over. This highlights the enormous power that water has to degrade the material it flows over. The black streaks that you see on your gutters are material deposits that the water is carrying. This occurs at a microscopic level and becomes more visible over time. If left untreated for long periods of time, the streaks can fuse into the paint and aluminum.

At this point they cannot be entirely removed by mechanical cleaning or chemical cleaning. If the black streaks are fused into the gutter the most efficient option is to repaint the gutters. There are many products that claim to remove these streaks. They may work to some degree. The results are minimal. If you want really shiny gutters your best bet is to repaint them and once they are repainted clean them at least once a year.

Please call us with any questions or concerns. We offer gutter clean outs, repair and painting. FLOBLU LLC 704-614-1676

https://floblu.net