Ask most homeowners what protects their house and they’ll say the roof. Maybe the foundation. Nobody says gutters. But we see the same thing over and over: a roof that’s fine, and a wall or foundation falling apart underneath it, because the water coming off that roof had nowhere sensible to go.
We’re roofers. We’re up there every day, and honestly, a good chunk of the damage we get called about isn’t a roof problem at all. It’s a gutter problem.
Where all that water goes
The smaller stuff shows up too. Mulch gets washed out of the flower beds, and the lower part of the siding ends up covered in mud.
What to look at when you pick gutters
Most people choose the color first, which is fine, but I’d put these ahead of it.
Sectional gutters are joined with connectors and sealant, and that’s exactly where they tend to leak. Seamless gutters are made on site from one long piece of metal cut to your house, so there are far fewer joints to fail. Most people go with aluminum.
If your 5-inch gutters overflow whenever it rains hard, cleaning them more often won’t solve it. Switching to 6-inch gutters with larger downspouts usually does. It costs a little extra.
Slope is where a lot of DIY jobs go wrong. Level looks right when you stand back, but a level gutter holds water. It needs about a quarter inch of drop for every 10 feet so the water runs to the downspout. If it doesn’t, you end up with standing water, rust, and mosquitoes.
How we hang them
Before anything goes up, we check the fascia. Soft wood gets fixed first. Hanging new gutters on rotten boards is a waste of money.
Then we figure out where the water is going to end up. Ideally 3 to 6 feet away from the foundation, with extensions or buried pipe if the yard needs it.
For hangers, we use heavy-duty hidden ones, screwed into the rafters, not just the thin fascia board. About every 24 inches, closer if you get real snow. Spikes and cheap brackets look fine on day one and sag by the second winter.
Last, flashing. The drip edge has to reach into the gutter. If it doesn’t, water runs down behind it and rots the framing, and you won’t see it until it’s expensive.
If you’ve got oaks or pines around, guards help a lot. Micro-mesh or surface-tension guards installed properly are worth it. Even with guards, take a look twice a year, spring and fall.
Not sure about yours?
If your gutters sag, overflow, leak at the seams, or are pulling away from the house, another round of sealant probably won’t fix it. Call Sublime Roofing. We’ll look at how water actually moves around your place and tell you what it needs, even if the answer is “not much.”
Call us at (614) 918-0018 or request your free estimate online. You’ll find us at 6256 Seeds Rd, Grove City, OH 43123.
We also serve Columbus, Hilliard, Galloway, Groveport, Bexley and Upper Arlington.