Doncaster based Oak Leaf Products contacted DPR Ltd in January 2013 following an evening of very stormy weather. They discovered that water had been spilling over the roof gutters and penetrated the building, causing over £25,000 worth of building & stock damage. Numerous electrical products were water damaged along with the mains electrical fuse board to the building which was sited directly under a major leak.

Whilst the customer was insured, the damaged stock meant orders couldn’t be fulfilled, customers were left waiting and the process of replacing the stock was time consuming and stressful, not to mention the effects of no electricity for 24 hours until a new system was installed.

Oak Leaf Products owner, Mr Harry Smith, contacted DPR after seeing them on a google internet search. Within a few hours DPR’s highly trained roofers arrived at site with their own powered access platform they quickly identified the cause of the problem, which was the guttering. Debris, silt & leaves had clearly built up over time, which had then stopped water from running freely. Seeds had germinated in the damp silt and plants had begun to grow, causing the blockage to worsen. None of this was known to Mr Smith as it was completely out of sight. The irony of this catastrophe was that the main water outlet for the central blocked gutter was covered over with a few wedged Walkers crisp packets, he puts this down to careless staff on lunch breaks in his yard. The packets had got mixed in with silt and leaves and made a near watertight seal on the outlet.

DPR’s roofers proceeded to thoroughly clean all the gutters, bag and dispose all the debris and repair any damaged gutter joints. The gutter was then flushed out with clean water. All works were completed within one day.

Could the problem have been prevented?

Had Oak Leaf Products taken DPR Ltd’s offer of an annual site visit to clear and maintain their gutters, this situation would have been avoided. It would have cost the customer £300.00 p.a. and saved the devastation caused. Needless to say, Oak Leaf are now on the maintenance schedule for an annual visit by DPR and their team to ensure no more situations like this arise.

Why do blocked gutters cause so much damage?

Blocked gutters can cause major flood and damp problems. As the water can’t reach the outlets quick enough, gutters fill up very quickly and then overflow, pretty much like a blocked plug hole in a sink. Problem is they overflow to back and front. The front runs down walls and then penetrates inwards. The rear can overflow internally on many properties and obviously damage electrics and stock etc.

If you have a problem with damage to your roof caused by blocked gutters, please call our roofers on 0113 335 0043.