According to the Sydney Morning Herald, architects have warned that thousands of homes are at risk because of the widespread use of high-front guttering that can direct overflow water into wall cavities and cause serious structural problems.
Water overflowing from the high-fronted gutters is not directed away from the house but back into the wall cavity. There, electrical wiring is exposed to the moisture and the water can rot timber frames and plasterboard walls.
The problem is so concerning to the Timber Development Association that the Sydney Morning Herald reported that its chief executive, wrote to the NSW minister, requesting the government take urgent action against manufacturers producing high-front guttering.
In the past two decades, however, high-front guttering - favoured by plumbers, builders and project home companies because it is cheap and quick to install - has dominated the market.
The Sydney Morning Herald suggested that as much as 85 per cent of new guttering installed on NSW homes is high-fronted, attached to a building's facia by a spring-clip system.
The State Emergency Service's learning and development officer says that high-front gutters certainly contribute to water flowing back into the house – that’s where the problem lies.
Last year NRMA Insurance nearly 50 thousand storm related claims, with overflowing high-front gutters cited as 1 of the 4 most common reasons for water entering homes.
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