Gutters clogged in heavy rain can sink you with repair bills

TOLEDO - (13abc, Action News) - As our area sees several inches of rain falling in just a couple days, concerns turn toward flooding.

But sometimes homeowners create their own problems.

One simple problem can turn into several thousand dollars in repair.

Homeowners do not want to see water spilling over their gutters, splashing next to their foundations.

But, unless there's heavy rain, you may not even know you have a problem.

Once a problem is obvious, many call roofing and foundation companies to keep water from coming into their homes.

Steven Naylor, vice president at SeaGate Roofing and Foundation has seen what damage clogged gutters can cause.

He showed 13abc a video of a home with so much water in the walls, drilling a hole created a faucet.

And not cleaning out your gutters could be a cause of some real problems.

Naylor says, "If you let this go, you could have mold, you could have structure damage."

You could have a $20,000 bill.

The City of Toledo knows leaves can cause problems. And even 2-months into winter leaves, are still being collected because they were covered in ice and snow.

Jeremy Mikolajczyk, director of Toledo's Streets, Bridges and Harbor says those leave are now "a little bit mushy and it's going to be tougher for the vacuums to suck them up."

Leaves can clog sewers and flood streets. So the city is encouraging you to clear the curbs and the sewer grates to let the water drain.

Pumps are in place in case water rises on several city streets, but don't let a few leaves in your gutter or your street leave you with a problem you could have avoided.

Nayor says flooding is "100-percent preventable."

He also advises you check your sump pump to make sure it's working properly.

If necessary, get a battery back up so water doesn't back up and drown your basement.