Gutters 101

GUTTERS are very important and people want to know why. To put it most simply they are necessary to protect your home from its worst enemy - water. If your gutters are old, damaged, sagging, missing parts or improperly installed, it is likely exterior damage to your home is sure to follow. A gutter that is missing, or that drains too close to the house will saturate the ground. This wet saturated ground can produce a variety of problems. It is a breeding ground for Mold and Mildew. It will eat away at foundations and basement walls. Leaks and cracks will develop and will worsen quickly in the winter months when the ground freezes and expands. Driveways and walkways will sink and rise, interior and exterior walls and floors can warp, bow or become wet, molded or stained. Entire homes have been destroyed due to water damage, which could have been easily and affordably prevented with a quality gutter system.

Gutters aren't glamorous. But unless there are long overhangs on your roof and your property is steeply graded, they're essential for routing roof runoff away from your home. Installed properly, gutters keep basements and crawl spaces dry, preserve topsoil, protect siding from backsplash stain and rot and shield windows and doors from water infiltration and damage. Poor rainwater drainage can lead to costly repairs If water overflows over the back of the gutter, damage to exterior and interior (via the cavity) walls can occur and damp can result. The gutter should be checked for debris and blockages and the fascia brackets also checked as they may have been damaged, causing the gutter to sag. If water overflows over the front of the gutter, this can be very annoying, both to walk under and because of the noise it can create.

Gutter Materials Gutters and downspouts - the vertical sections that send runoff down to the ground - are made out of aluminum, vinyl, galvanized steel, stainless steel and copper. Wood is also an option, but wood gutters are rare, except for restoration work. They're also expensive, starting at about $30 per linear foot installed and, depending on the wood species, running as high as $40 per linear foot. Copper is another material usually reserved for classic restorations. It's handsome, never rusts and never needs painting. But at about $30 per linear foot, it's also expensive.

Wood Gutters and Galvanized Downspouts This was the traditional construction system employed and is rarely used today. The original wood gutters were made from old growth cedar, a product that is rarely available today. Its substitution with new growth cedar or hemlock gutters has proven inadequate. Galvanized downspouts do not tend to last as long the newer products available on the market.

Continuous Aluminum Gutters and Downspouts This is the most common product used today. The gutter holds more water than traditional wood gutter, and this is the product, which is generally recommended. Prices range from $9 to $12 per lineal foot. When buying aluminum gutters, insist on primary aluminum, which is the thickest and most consistent kind. Heavy gauge aluminum and steel exceeds federal housing requirements. Avoid secondary aluminum, a recycled product that's often plagued by inconsistent thickness.

Vinyl and Plastic Gutters and Downspouts This is a commonly used material and often sold in do-it-yourself hardware stores. It is easily installed by the homeowner, and when properly installed is a good product. It is susceptible to damage by heavy ladders, as well as long-term deterioration by ultraviolet light from the sun. Vinyl gutters, besides being impervious to rust and rot, are easiest to cut to size; you can install them yourself in a weekend or less. But vinyl can get brittle with age or in extreme cold. And while gutter sections cost just $3 to $5 per 10-ft. length, they still wind up at about $3 and $5 per linear foot installed when you factor in the cost of couplings, hangers and downspouts.

Section II. - Construction Sectional vs. Seamless

All gutters are either sectional or seamless (or continuous). Sectional gutters are sold in pieces and installed as component systems. All do-it-yourself gutter systems are sectional, though some pros install these too. The sections themselves can be over 20 ft. long each or cut to any size with a hacksaw. Snap-in-place connectors join gutter sections to each other and to downspouts. All sectional systems have end caps, corner pieces and drop outlets for connecting to downspouts. The drawback to sectional systems is that all those seams can eventually invite leaks they also form weak points that can permanently sag and deform after high winds and/or rainfall. Seamless gutters won't leak at seams because there are none; sections join only at inside and outside corners and at downspout outlets. That's why they're the most popular configuration. Seamless gutters, made of aluminum, galvanized steel or copper, are extruded to custom lengths on site using a portable machine.

Seamless Fascia Gutters

Color Seamless Aluminum gutters come in more than 25 different colors - ideal for matching trim and house colors. Gutter colors are baked on enamel and are done at the factory.

Section III. - Features Gutter Protectors

What is the fundamental job of a gutter protector? Being a gutter protector is pretty tough work--24 hours a day, 365 days a year, year in and year out, the gutter protector has to defend your gutter, in all kinds of weather and wind storm conditions, against an assault of leaves, blossoms, twigs, birds, squirrels, balls, toys, and so on. However, there are some homes located under a canopy of trees--no daylight to be seen from late May to the end of November. It's these homeowners who would normally have to clean their gutters 5-to-6 times in the fall and another 3-to-4 times in the spring to keep their gutters clean and free flowing that find "suit and tie" maintenance a welcome alternative to cleaning gutters.

GuttaGuard. An economical all metal solid cover design. Sheds pine needles, leaves, twigs and other small debris. Each piece is 4 feet. Reinforced edge fits directly to gutter lip, making installation easy. Expanded mesh is rigid enough not to collapse under heavy debris.

The relationship you have with your contractor is an important one. You will want one who is qualified, trustworthy and capable of explaining the differences in various products and installations

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