When filled with water, rain gutters can become extremely heavy. As a result, the types made of flexible materials such as aluminum, vinyl, and galvanized steel can begin to bend and sag and their hangers can begin to loosen. As this happens, they cease to do a good job of draining rainwater efficiently, allowing water to pool along their lengths. This, of course, just exacerbates the problem, making them heavier and causing them to sag even more.

To determine if your rain gutters sag, check for signs of standing water or water marks along the inner sides of gutters. With a level, check the slope—gutters should drop about 1/4 inch for each 10 feet of run toward the downspouts.

spike-and-ferrule gutter hanger

To fix them, you may need to replace or, at the very least, re-seat their hangers. If the gutters are held by spike-and-ferrule hangers, use a hammer to drive the long spike into solid wood. If it does not grab securely, you may need to replace it with an even longer galvanized nail or--better--a long screw.

clip gutter hanger

To tighten clip-style gutter hangers, you will need to lift the roofing material along the eaves and refasten the hangers to the sheathing. Be very careful not to crack or create holes in the roofing.