How do I seal the join in straight bit of guttering?
Question:This is a straight bit of guttering that runs along the front of a terrace and my house doesn't have a down pipe so it carries quite a lot of water that tends to leak out from the joint. I have patched it up with epoxy resin some time ago and it didn't do a great job. It has now deteriorated.
Answers:
Exterior Mastik.
It's a black flexible sealant specifically for wet areas. It works like kitchen caulking. You will need to clean all parts to be joined with something like acetone (nail varnish remover) or white spirit.
Run a bead of mastik at the ends of the guttering to be joined and press the connector into place. This should provide a watertight seal that will remain flexible.
Make sure not to let the mastik squeeze up into the guttering itself as this could cause a bump and lead to a blockage. Excess mastik can usually be cleaned off with white spirit BEFORE it dries. Drying usually takes 24 hours.
Epoxy Resin is too rigid and prone to the weather.
what type of guttering is it plastic or metal?
They sell a special caulk for gutters, h. depot or lowes should carry it just ask someone. Make sure you remove all the old caulk prior to applying new
The above guy is exactly right. You should be able to get a really good cauking at any hardware store. Not only clean out the old stuff, but make sure their is no debris or water in there at the time you are doing it. Just load it up with cauk and you should be good to go.
Try Mastic.
Epoxy will harden and crack over time, but you know that now. Use a clear silicone caulk. Caulk from the inside making sure the surface is clean and dry before applying.
Fill the joint underneath and on top with a waterproof sealant. Make sure the surface is dry before applying.
Ascertain the name of the gutter, you can sometimes find it on a bracket or the downpipe, failing that "spring " the lugs off the bracket, choose a warm dry day, and squirt sealant in-between, squeeze the lugs back. If you somehow found the name of the gutter, buy a new bracket.
Go to some place like Lowes or Home Depot and find something called "Gutter Seal". Its an extremely flexible caulk thats specially made for these situations. This will fix your leak for good as long as you apply it to a clean and dry joint.
Mastic will actually dry and harden over time. Thats what its designed to do. It created a hard shell and will eventually dry and crack and youll end up starting from scratch. Do it right the first time and make it the last time.
If you're in the UK, check out B&Q, you can get roof and gutter sealant or if it's Marley guttering, you should also be able to get replacement rubbers seals or a completely new joint.
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