Just moved into my house. The downspouts are shot, and need to be replaced, so I'm trying to figure out if I should get the gutters replaced at the same time.
Before I get someone in to give me an estimate, what are some good tips for inspecting my gutters? They're fairly old, half round painted metal seamless gutters. There don't appear to be any leaks, checking from the ground during a rain storm, but obviously leaks could be disguised when it's raining.
The home inspector said the gutters were OK, but old, and I should expect about 5-10 more years from them.
Should I stop up the downspouts during dry weather and flood the gutters to see if anything comes out? I'm concerned that the weight of the water might cause its own problems.
Assuming I do find problems, at what point does it become pointless to patch the gutters and I should just replace?
Anything I should examine with regard to the fasteners?