Downspout Clearing & Flushing · Kitchener
Downspout Clearing and Flushing in Kitchener
A downspout is the only part of the system that actually moves water away from the house, and it is the part most gutter cleans skip. On a Kitchener clay lot it is also the difference between a dry basement and a wet one in March.
Downspouts plug at the elbows. The top elbow catches maple keys and a wad of grit; the bottom elbow catches whatever got past the top and a season of sludge. On a side-split the lower downspout that takes two roofs' worth of water is the one that blocks first and floods the most. None of this is visible from the ground, which is why a flush test is part of every visit rather than an extra.
Clearing a downspout
- Flush. Hose in at the outlet in the trough, running. Clear water out the bottom in a few seconds is a pass.
- Rod. A drain rod or auger up from the bottom elbow breaks most plugs so they wash through.
- Open. A dense plug means the elbow comes off at its screws, the mat of keys and compost is pulled out by hand, and the elbow goes back with the screws oriented so they do not snag the next load. Rusted straps found along the way are replaced.
- Retest. Flush again, every downspout, until each one runs clear. A gurgle is a fail.
Underground connections
A great many Kitchener houses from the 1950s through the 1980s have downspouts that drop into a pipe at grade. Depending on the era and the street, that pipe may run to the storm sewer, to a soakaway, to the weeping tile, or to nothing, because it collapsed or silted years ago. The visit tests each one by running the hose and watching for backup. If it backs up, you are told, and the practical fix is usually to disconnect that downspout above grade and run it out across the lawn with an extension rather than to dig. What the pipe connects to is a question for the City's engineering and utilities staff, and this site does not guess at it.
The two-metre check
The City of Kitchener asks homeowners to keep two metres of open space around each downspout outlet so water drains onto grass or garden and not toward a neighbour, a walkway or a park. That is the standard each outlet is checked against: is there an extension or splash block, is it still attached after the winter, does it point away from the foundation and the neighbour, and has the ground beneath it washed into a hollow that sends water back to the wall. On the graded clay lots of Doon South and Huron Park this is the part of the visit that matters most, because a downspout against a foundation on clay is the classic cause of a wet basement during the thaw. New-build lots also have a grading plan and swales, and a downspout aimed into a swale that is not yours moves the problem next door.
Rain barrels and the City's credit
If you want a rain barrel, the downspout feeding it has to run clear and its overflow has to go to grass. The crew will fit a barrel diverter to a downspout while there. One to four barrels capturing 200 to 800 litres is what the City lists for the Basic 20 per cent tier of its residential stormwater credit; the application and the decision are the City's.
In winter
A downspout left part-blocked in the fall freezes solid and can split at the seam. A frozen downspout is left alone until it thaws, and the split, if there is one, is a small repair in spring.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my gutter overflow only at one corner?
Because the downspout at that corner is blocked at an elbow, almost every time. The other cause is a trough that has sagged so water pools away from the outlet. Both show up on the flush test and both can be fixed on the visit.
Should I disconnect my downspout from the underground pipe?
If the pipe backs up on a test, yes, in practice: run the downspout out to grass with an extension. If the pipe takes water freely, it is doing its job and can stay. Where it goes is for the City to say.
Do you take the extensions off for winter?
Only if they are in the way of the snowblower, and then they go back before the March melt. An extension that freezes solid is still better than water pouring at the foundation during a thaw.
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