A proper gutter system on the roof is extremely essential because it collects rainwater and diverts it to the ground, a few meters away from the house’s base. When water overflows from the roof, it falls on the house’s foundation, causing damage. Hence, having a roof gutter system is a crucial decision for all homeowners.
While having a roof gutter is essential, knowing how to install gutters is even more crucial. While professional service providers are there to install the gutters for you, many homeowners also try to install the gutter on their own. Due to a lack of expertise, many homeowners end up installing the gutter the wrong way, which causes the entire system not to work properly.
Also, it may happen that the gutter may not show issues initially but may start troubling after a couple of months. So, you should be aware of the various mistakes that homeowners often make while installing gutters. Here are some of the common gutter installation mistakes to have a check at.
Wrong Gutter Selection
The very thing is to choose the gutters wisely. The market is flooded with gutters of different materials, colors, and styles. You just have to choose something reliable and worth your house’s aesthetics. For example, you should choose a gutter color that matches the color of your house. Similarly, for a reliable selection, you can always go for a gutter made up of metal aluminum.
Checking out the other features of the gutter is also essential such as the hangers in the gutter. Also, it is essential to check the measurements of the gutter according to your house roof. At times, you may get confused because of so many options available. Hence, the best way is to get help from a professional to choose the right one. Contact Us!
Compromising on Price
Many homeowners think getting a cheaper gutter system will not cause trouble, rather will be beneficial economically. But in reality, a cheap gutter system will mean a low-quality product. When you invest in a low-quality product, it tends to break down soon, causing serious issues. The cheap gutter system can get damaged soon, causing water leakage and other issues. You will have to either invest again in repairing the gutter system or buying a new one. So, in place of saving money, you will end up spending more money if you rely upon a cheap gutter system.
Apart from spending on the gutter system, you may also have to spend money on repairing the damages done to the house because of the damaged gutter system. One of the best options is to call upon the professional gutter service providers to have a look at your house roof and suggest the right gutter option that will stay durable for a long time.
Gutter Size
The gutter size is highly eminent because it is the size that will determine the amount of rainwater it can hold. Small gutters can cause overflowing of water in case of heavy rains. Inefficient drainage of water overflowing will cause damage to the gutter and also to the house’s foundation. Of course, you install a gutter so that the rain water can fall a few meters away from the house’s foundation. But when this aim is not achieved because of the gutter’s smaller size, you will soon notice damages on the walls and other areas of the house.
So, how do you know which gutter size is appropriate for your house? Here are some factors that will help you in choosing the right gutter size.
- The amount of rainfall that your area receives
- The roof size of your house
- The house roof’s pitch
- Any area of the roof that faces water overflow
On average, installing gutters of 6 inches is ideal for maximum houses. But if you reside in an area where the rainfall is extreme or you have a larger roof, you will require an even larger gutter than the average size. In place of estimating the size, it is always better to get in touch with an expert who will measure the roof size and will estimate other factors to suggest a gutter size that is perfect for your house.
Wrong Placement
To get the gutters installed in the right way, it is essential to understand the working of the gutters. The downspouts of the gutter lets the water flow through them to the ground. The ideal way is to install the downspouts a few meters away from the house so that there is no damage to the house’s foundation. Also, there should be a good number of downspouts installed to enable proper draining of the water from the gutter.
When you don’t know how to install gutters in the correct way, you will face troubles such as overflowing of the rainwater and damages to the house’s foundation and walls. Excess water can cause dampness that leads to mood growth. Mood growth not only causes damage to the properties but also causes severe health hazards for the people living in the house.
Also, wrong gutter placement will cause other issues such as soil erosion or even infestation of pests and small animals. When such damages happen, you will have to spend a good amount of money to repair the damages.
One of the things that you should remember is to install the gutter behind or under the roof’s drip edge. When you do so, the water falls exactly into the drain through the drip edge. When the drip and the gutter system work together, the water drips into the gutter safely so that the other components do not get damaged due to water leakage.
But if you are novice in the process and end up installing the gutter just below the drip edge, then the water may drip also behind the gutter causing damage to the wood on which the gutter system is installed.
The Pitch
You are wrong if you think that the gutter systems are installed just on the house’s level. In fact the gutters are installed a little pitched or at an angle. The pitch is essential so that the water drains down properly from the gutter to the ground.
It is not enough to know that there should be a pitch in the gutter. The fact is that the pitch has to be appropriate to get the gutter work properly. If the steepness is not good enough, the water will deposit in the gutter and will not flow properly. Accumulated water later can cause contaminations and also wall dampness. On the contrary, if the angle is too steep, the water will flow so fast that it will seem like water overflowing. So, you will face problems in either case.
Ideally, the gutter should slope at an inch’s one-quarter towards the downspouts. But understanding the angle of the gutter towards the downspout can be difficult for the homeowners. So, this is another big reason why you should get in touch with a professional to install the gutters. The professionals will calculate the slope with a proper measuring tool and will use a sloped level to install the gutter towards the downspout correctly.
Hanger Spacing
Hangers connect the gutters system to the house and are an essential component of the gutter installation process. If you do not install the gutter with proper hanger spacing, you will soon notice sagging of the gutters and pooling of water. If the water pool gets too heavy, the gutter will ultimately get detached from the house.
The hanger spacing will depend upon several factors and one of them is the weather conditions where you live. Moreover, the hanger spacing should not be more than two feet. But if you reside in a location where you experience snow, you should keep the spacing even less than 2 feet. The snow along with water puts more pressure and weight on the gutter. Hence, the hanger spacing should be less to offer better support.
Most hanger manufacturers offer guidelines about the number of hangers to be installed and the hanger spacing distance. But if you are not sure, it is always better to contact a gutter installer. The professional will help you in putting up the hangers and also in installing the gutter accurately.
The Seams
Earlier, gutters used to have seams at a gap of every 10 inches. But with advancement, now seamless gutters are also available after noticing how vulnerable these seams are to damages. Often gutters with seams get damaged very soon, leading you to spending money either on repair or installation of a new gutter. But you can avoid such unnecessary expenses by installing a seamless gutter system.
You will have to hire a professional contractor who will make a gutter system for your house. The custom-made gutter systems are made on the spot by the professionals. Even though these are called seamless gutters, these are not absolutely free from seams. There are seams at the ends and at the corners. But again less seams are always better to keep stress of damages away.
If you wish to get a custom-made seamless gutter for your house, you should get in touch with a gutter professional today.
Gutter Installation
Aluminum material is the best option for getting the best gutter system for your house. But the aluminum material is soft and may get damaged if they get accidentally hit by the ladder or fall on in other ways. Most important point is that the damages to the aluminum material cannot be corrected. The only option left out is to change the entire section of the gutter.
If you do not wish to take this risk and do not want to spend unnecessary money, you should get help from experts. The gutter professionals have a practice at handling the gutters and so they hold them with care to avoid accidents. Also, when you hire the service providers, it becomes the responsibility of the providers to offer another gutter to replace the damaged one.
Moreover, to avoid all types of gutter installation mistakes, it is ideal to get in touch with a professional service provider. The professionals not only know how to install a gutter accurately but also will suggest several ways to maintain the gutter.
Why should you choose a professional to install gutters?
When you know about the common gutter installation mistakes, you can rectify them and can be careful while doing the installation yourself. But it may happen that you may go wrong again in some other way. So, it is always better to hire a professional to install the gutters in place of doing it yourself.
Here are some of the common reasons why you should hire a professional to install gutters for your house.
Attractive Built
Who does not wish to have a beautifully aesthetic house? While installing the gutter yourself, you may not achieve smooth results. You may leave things left out here and there. But when you get in touch with a professional, they will install the gutter in a perfect way so that it also enhances the attractiveness of your house.
Lesser Leaks
The professionals know the areas from where the water may leak from the gutter. The experts will offer special attention to these spots and will fix the gutter perfectly to ensure lesser leaks. But when you try to install the gutter yourself, you may notice several leaks when the rain starts.
Lower Maintenance
It is quite obvious that when a novice installs a gutter, there can be several loose ends that can lead to damages. For example, if you are not installing the gutter at the right slope, the water drips on the wood, causing the wood and also the gutter to get damaged. If you wish to save money on maintenance and repairs, you should contact a professional who will install the gutter in an appropriate way and will lower the maintenance cost.
Perfect Fit
While you may have gathered knowledge about different gutter types, it is hard to understand which gutter types suit your house the most. Only a professional can help in choosing the right gutter type by determining several factors like the roof type and size, weather conditions in your area, and others. Not only the professionals will help in choosing the right gutter type but will also install the gutter perfectly to offer a perfect fit.
Quick Installation
As you do not have experience in gutter installation, it may take you a long time in completing the task. Also, you may have to compromise with your other personal and professional tasks to complete the task of gutter installation. You can leave the task of gutter installation to the gutter experts while you complete your other important works. Also, the professionals are experienced in gutter installation and do not take much time in installing the gutter system for your house.
Customisation
Seamless gutter system is a new idea today. When you wish to have a seamless gutter, you will have to customize the gutter. It is only the gutter experts who can offer this task to you. The professionals will check the measurements of your house roof and then will customize a perfect gutter according to the dimensions.
Safety
Gutter installation can lead to several accidents such as falling from the ladder or so. The professionals come with proper safety gear and tools to avoid such accidents. Also, the professionals are aware of the techniques so they can offer the best results without compromising safety.
Insurance
Gutter installation or maintenance may at times cause property damages such as damage to the roof or walls. The chances of damage is high if you are doing the task yourself. But as the professionals are experienced, they do the installation carefully, avoiding any such damages. But if somehow a damage occurs, then the service provider covers the damages with the insurance that they offer to all their customers.
Customer Support
The responsibility of the professional gutter installation service provider does not just end after the installation of the gutter system. If you hire a good service provider, they will offer you after service support also. You may require them for maintenance of the gutter or at times for other issues. The professional service provider offers quality customer support to ensure stress free service to all its customers.
Conclusion
Gutter installation is a difficult task, yet many homeowners try to do it themselves. While installing the gutters on their own, most homeowners commit severe mistakes that cause damages to the gutter system and even to the house. Understanding these mistakes in advance and following the gutter installation procedure properly will lead to proper installation. But if you are looking forward to a great result, you should get in touch with a professional service provider. The professionals use their expertise and experience in offering you the best results that will go a long run, without causing much damage and expenditure.