Tips in Installing a Rain Gutter at Your Place

We might seem oblivious of the obvious fact as we tend to notice things that embellish our homes and gutters are not supposed to do that. However, they play an important role in the proper maintenance of the sewage system in our homes. Rain gutters are the essential element that maintains a proper functioning of a home sewage system. It is important that we have it installed before any problems occur. It is now integrated in smart homes as a means to save rainwater and harvest it for other use like washing the car, watering the plants or other purposes. Rain gutters can be installed by yourself or with the intervention of experts who can get it done in few minutes. So, my purpose to write this today is to share the tips that you need to consider when installing a rain gutter at your place.

You may want to choose a home without gutters, but every homeowner knows that to protect his investment, he will surely leave out gutters from the list of house essentials. Gutters are normally installed outside the house so that when it rains, the water is effectively collected and directed away from the house to either a water tank or a flower/plant bed. Gutters are essential in preventing soil erosion, or any damage to the house foundation and structural problems.

So, if you need to either replace or install gutters on your home. This is not a very complicated job even though it sounds as if it is quite extraordinary. There are a couple of decisions that have to be made before you can install it though.

First you will need to decide if you are going to use pvc or metal guttering. Vinyl guttering is very easily installed but the brackets and clamps are exposed on the outside of the guttering for everyone to see. It does not look that bad, but you have to decide if this is what you want. Metal guttering on the other hand is as simple to put up and you can hang it with spikes that are pretty well hidden from view. You will have to also decide on color as there are a variety to choose from now.

Once you have decided on your type and color the next thing to do is to measure your house in order to determine the amount needed. You want to measure across your house at the bottom of the pitches of your roof. Remember water will free flow downhill and you want the gutter to catch it here and divert it to the downspouts. After you have this measurement you divide this number by the length of each piece of guttering and round up to the next whole piece. This is the number of pieces of guttering to buy. The next thing you need to calculate is your downspouts.

Downspouts are what your gutter diverts the rainwater into. You will need at least one if not two on a straight run. The way you determine this is by figuring the pitch or slope on your guttering. Gutters have to have one quarter inch slope every ten foot in order for the water to drain. That is one inch every forty foot. So, in a nutshell, if your guttering is going to be 40 foot in length you put a downspout on each end. In the middle of your run make a mark where the gutter will mount. At each end make a mark one half inch lower than the center mark. This is a one quarter inch drop every ten feet. Now make a chalk line and install the gutter starting at one end or the other and work the opposite way. This provides the slope evenly in both directions and makes it less noticeable to the eye of the viewer. After you have connected the guttering across the fascia board now you install the downspouts on each end and use the clamps to clamp them to the wall.

Remember gutter channels come in either 4,5, 0r 6-inch channel and the 5 inch is the most commonly used. Downspouts come in either 2×3 inch or 3×4 inch and are usually corrugated. If you live where there is a lot of rain or snow, or there are a lot of trees around your house then go with the 3×4 inch. This will accommodate more runoff and will not stop up as quick from leaves. The downspout is corrugated in order to slow the running water a bit to keep it from gushing out the bottom of the downspout.

Once your gutters are installed you need to place a diverter under your downspout, and this is usually plastic and fits right under the downspout with the higher end of it next to the house. This points the drain water in the direction of flow without it creating a hole in your lawn from the rainwater. Some people and you may consider underground drainpipes to divert the water even further.

If you are looking to install a rain gutter, then contact the best in the field, ABC Seamless Rain Gutters in South Florida.