When it comes to home renovations that will improve your standard of living, most people will think of larger projects like their bedrooms, bathrooms or perhaps even their kitchen. Not a lot will look to their rainwater downpipes and think that they could use an upgrade, but for many Australian homes, that is certainly the case. Downpipes have quite an important role in the overall upkeep and survival of your home, so ensuring that they are in a good condition is pragmatic. Here are a few reasons why you might want to consider renovating your rainwater downpipes.

Catastrophic Failure

When rainwater downpipes finally do fail, it is not a small problem but rather a major catastrophe that can be quite dangerous. Because of the way they are situated against your home and how tall they often are, they can create quite a lot of force when falling and can damage cars, break windows and even hurt people who happen to be in the way. It is not a small break that is manageable, which is why you have to be so pragmatic when you even think that there could be some sort of structural damage to your rainwater downpipes, whether it be as little as a loose supporting strut or a wobbly screw. 

Holes

The holes in your rainwater downpipes can sometimes almost entirely defeat the purpose of having rainwater downpipes in the first place. Your downpipes are meant to keep water away from the exterior facade of your home by funnelling it safely to the ground. If there are holes in the sides, then this water will splash and leak all over the exterior of your home, which is not built to withstand constant lashings of water. If you have holes in your downpipes, no matter how small, you should consider getting them examined and potentially replaced.

Poisoning Garden

A lot of Australian households collect the water gathered by their rainwater downpipes in large tanks that are then used to water the garden. If your rainwater downpipes are old and rusted on the inside, then chips of metal can get absorbed into the rainwater tanks and make the water fairly harmful for the garden that it is then poured onto. Instead of providing nourishing liquid for your garden, this water will do more harm than good and can kill plants off if you are not careful. While that is probably not your main concern, for those who love their garden, it should be considered.