What to Consider When Looking For a New Gutter System?

Gutters are the most important part of your home when it comes to protecting your slab, foundation, crawl space, and or basement from water damage.  If you start to notice leaks in your current gutters, erosion, natural areas around the home starting to wash out in heavy rains, etc., you need to react quickly to stopping those issues.

When your home is built, most homes get a standard five-inch gutter system with .024 or .025 aluminum, which is a very thin aluminum.  Most are thrown up by a subcontracted group for pennies and their ONLY priority is to get as many homes done in a day as possible.  This leads to improper sloping, poorly constructed downspout outlets, and lack of care taking when sealing corners or end caps, where most gutters leak.

Here are some very important things to think about when replacing your gutters:

(1) What thickness of aluminum should I get? 

-At minimum, .027 thickness should be used to keep the gutters more stable.  At .032, you are very well protected from things like high winds and tree branches/ debris     hitting your gutters in a storm.

(2) Is it really important to get a larger sized gutter and downspout?

-Absolutely the answer here is yes.  When looking the difference between a five-inch and six-inch gutter, the measurement is taken from the front lip to the back of the gutter.  However, the six-inch gutter is so much larger overall and takes 20% more water way from your roofline.  Downspout might be even more important.  Downspout at 2x3 size is only six square inches which in a heavy rain can't keep up.  Downspout at 3x4 size takes away twice as much water at 12 square inches.

(3) Is a guard or cover really necessary?

-Do you like to get up on a ladder and risking injury multiple times each year?  In 2023, over 500,000 people were treated for ladder related injuries in the United States.  Do you like to pay hundreds of dollars each year to clean your gutters?  If you don't you run the risk of clogging which can not only cause overflow and damage to your foundation, but can damage the facia, soffit and even cause water leaks inside your home!  Homes with lots of trees around really need to clean the gutters monthly during certain times of year to prevent issues.  Covers slow down and even prevent in certain cases having to deal with constant cleanings.

(4) What are some other things that I should know or ask when someone gives me an estimate for new gutters?

-Who is going to do the work?  Finding someone that has their own in-house team vs someone that's going to subcontract the work to the lowest bidder is very important. 

-Does the estimator that comes out really understand my roof design and how that's going to affect gutter placement, downspout placement, etc?  Sometimes, someone comes out and their only job is to get measurements and try to sell the job by offering the lowest price.  That person most likely isn't going to take enough care to really draw up, review, and try to solve the problems you are having.

-What type of miters (item used to seal the gutters at any corner) does the company use?  Hand seamed or strip miters are the way to go, as they involve less sealant and allow the water to flow through your gutter system more easily.  Avoid box miters if possible since the color fades over time and won't match the rest of your gutter system.  They also start to leak more quickly and lead to problems with your facia board.

-Is communication clear and as expected from the start?  If you have trouble getting the company on the phone or if they are late to their original sales appointment, do you think they are doing to be punctual and do quality work?  Probably not.  If your estimator comes out and spends time with you and can't leave you a quote before they leave, how long do you think you might have to wait to get that quote?  Most reputable companies can come out and make an accomplish list from the start, truly listening to your problems and the concerns you have.  They can also come up with solutions and give you an estimate onsite if they really value your time.