Which Gutters Are Right For Your Home?

The very first thing to ask yourself when you are planning to install new gutters is, “Why?” This important question will help to answer the subsequent questions you’ll have before purchasing your selection.

In our experience as a local gutter service, here are just three reasons homeowners will be shopping for new rain gutters:

An Upgrade – Switching out the rain gutters can significantly impact the exterior style of your home, enhancing its look in a more subtle way than painting or new landscaping.

A New House – Designing a new home comes with a constant stream of choices about both appearance and functionality. Rain gutters included. Choosing the gutters that go on your house is important because they should last at least 15 years or more.

A Renovation – If the roof on your home is damaged, the gutters may have to be replaced, too. Or, they might just be aging and need to be replaced with new ones.

You obviously know why you are replacing the gutters on your home, but the reason usually has underlying motivations…

You want to sell your house.

You want to renovate but not spend a lot of money.

Your landscaping is getting ruined by ineffective gutters.

Determining your “Why” will give you direction while you are shopping. You’ll know what features are important or if you can go with a less expensive product.

Here are the questions you’ll have when it’s time to install new gutters.

HOW TO CHOOSE GUTTER MATERIALS?

The best part about choosing new rain gutters is choosing the style. Gutters can blend in or stand out against your home exterior, depending on your preference.

These are the options you will have, in order of lowest to highest cost:

VINYL & PLASTIC GUTTERS

Vinyl and plastic are affordable options that hold up well in most scenarios, besides extremely cold climates, where they will deteriorate. Vinyl and plastic gutters are efficient in nearly every region of the country, and they come in a wide range of colors.

METAL & ALUMINUM GUTTERS

These reasonably priced materials are attractive and durable. Both materials are available in a wide range of colors too. They are fairly lightweight and not difficult to install. Galvanized metals (coated with zinc to protect them) withstand rust and corrosion even better.

COPPER & STAINLESS STEEL GUTTERS

Of all the gutter materials, copper and stainless steel cost the most, but are the most eye-catching as well. Homeowners in Beverly who decide on these materials are looking for an elegant touch, and that’s what they’ll get!

WHAT ARE IMPORTANT GUTTER FEATURES?

Almost all of the gutter types above offer these options below:

SECTIONAL OR SEAMLESS GUTTERS

Sectional gutters – These types of rain gutters come in smaller sections, so they’re easy to install. In fact, most homeowners choose to install their own sectional gutters. This type is the more affordable choice, and they have more seams, which means there are more areas where leaks can occur.

Seamless gutters – Seamless gutters will need to be installed by a professional contractor because they need specialized tools. They are more expensive to purchase and install, but less likely to leak or wear down than sectional gutters.

K-STYLE OR HALF-ROUND GUTTERS

K-Style – K-Style gutters are far more popular because they look great with every style of home. They’re better for angled roofs, which are more common. This attributes to their popularity. And, they are not hard to install. Many homeowners are capable enough to install their own K-Style gutters.

Half-Round – Half-Round gutters are usually made of copper and steel, and they complement rounded roofs, popular before 1950, so they give homes a luxurious, established appearance. However, more modern styles made out of vinyl and plastic offer the best of both worlds, being lightweight and highly functional. Half-Round gutters are a lot harder to install, but easier to clean out, when the time comes for gutter cleaning.

DOES CLIMATE AFFECT GUTTERS?

The climate of your region will dictate a lot about the gutters you can have. As we already mentioned, some materials don’t hold up in cold climates.

The most important climate factor to think about is how much work the gutters will have to do. Basically, how much rain or water are the gutters going to need to withstand?

Professional gutter installers in Beverly can take several factors into account to get a good idea of the size and type of gutters that will work best for your roof.

WHAT IS THE FORMULA?

Luckily, the formula professional roofing contractors use is not a secret. Here are the pieces of specific information you will need to decide how large your gutters should be:

Average Rainfall – This statistic can be found online on the National Weather Service or the U.S. Weather Bureau website. You can also check the maximum rainfall intensity for your area. This is the max amount of rain that will occur within a 5-minute span.

Roof Square Footage – Square footage is a standard length times width calculation for standard roofs. But, you want to factor in all the surfaces of multi-faceted roofs.

Roof-Pitch Factor – A roof that is steep will collect more wind-blown rain than a less sloped roof. Determining your roof-pitch factor will help you estimate how much rainfall will be collected, regardless of the rainfall statistics found online.

DOES IT SNOW WHERE YOU LIVE?

Snowfall is included in average precipitation calculations, but you definitely want to consider the potential for ice dams forming on your roof. If it snows regularly in your state, you should seek professional guidance about the type of gutters that best prevent ice dams from forming, which could severely damage your home’s roof.

Of course, the final question is possibly the most important …

HOW TO INSTALL GUTTERS?

You also have to ask yourself if you’re willing to do the work yourself, or if you want to pay a professional to install your new gutters. Professional installation ensures maximum efficiency, instead of doing it yourself.

Most homeowners are better off paying a little extra for professional labor, knowing that the job will be done right. Another bonus of hiring Beverly Gutter Cleaning to install the gutters is that we can help you answer all your questions about gutters so that you are able to find the perfect style and type for your home.