I bought a house 1 year ago in MA. It is a 30s Dutch Colonial w/ wood gutters. The gutters are 75% gonzo w/ partial facia,soffit involvement in places ( I haven’t removed them yet so extent is unknown). Regardless I think a repair or reline is out. I want to keep the house looking good and protect it the right way w/o breaking my bank too bad. So, I’m looking at 4 standard options:
1) removal of gutter system.
2) replacement w/ wood
3) a new aluminum seamless w/guard system (my neighbor paid $2K 1yr ago w/ virtually identical house for seamless).
4) Copper (probhably not fiscally responsible/possible)
I’m new to the FHB board and construction (1yr as renovation helper). I’m looking for advice on how to address this situation. Hopefully w/o kicking off a gutter donnybrook.
Oh, an interesting note is the house has a ~12yr old addition and the wood gutters there are gone as well. Surprising to me as a new guy I would have thought they would be OK.
PS: Do these seamless gutter guard sytems actually work or is it marketing & sales BS ?
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I've done a lot odf wood gutter and have written about it here at BT. Reply again if you can't find it in advanced search.
I also just discoverd that Brosco is marketing an extruded PVC Gutter - material similar to Azek
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Were the original house gutters lined with metal? Or were they just left unlined.
Sounds like the ones on the addition were just wood and didn't hold up well.
Here in Maine most all the wooden gutter in our area has a metal liner to extend the life of the wood .I just bought some replacements for an upcoming porch job-4"x5" boston pattern fir gutter $11.75 per foot.
IMO you should line it if you're going to replace it,but as you can see that cost wise the alum "k" style gutter is going to be easier on the wallet.
Copper prices have escalated sharply,so the difference between alum. and copper will be large
The gutters were unlined.Just lead worked into corners, downspouts, terminating the gutter @ returns...Probhable they got zero maint. What is the life expectancy of lined wood vs Aluminum ?Piffin: ( I did try the advanced search. Many results were 3-4yrs old)
Edited 6/6/2006 5:46 am ET by greenmacheen
Lined wooden gutters could last 80 or more years with periodic maintenance.
I really don't know what you could expect with alum.
There may be hope to replace pieces of your wooden gutter and use Abatron epoxy to repair other parts-then perhaps line the whole thing.Maybe it's too far gone for this type of action-I guess you won't know for sure until furter inspection.
Good luck and post some photos if you wish.
Walter
The ones on the island here that got good maintanance lasted eightysome years befopre they needed to get a lining. The old way was to clean them and linseed oil them every year. I have been using an epoxy coat to seal them in lately. Just about as easy as linseed, cures quicker, and lasts longer.Biggest problem is that owners and 'caretakers' don't clean them often enough.
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I think not cleaning them often enough is a universal problem no matter what kind of gutter system one has.
I looked at a flat seam porch roof with lined wooden gutters I installed 8 or 10 years ago just a short time ago.He told me the gutter was leaking over the stairs.
After inspection it turned out that his tall evergreens around the house had dropped needles since the job was done-and the gutter was completely filled with wet debris-never been touched since finished.Water was just running over the top since it couldn't flow to the drops-not leaking yet,but almost rusted thru because of no maintenance.
I work on Vinalhaven a lot and those wooden gutters were never lined there either.I've started lining a lot of them-especially if they're on a slate roofed house.
Same thing common here. A couple years ago, an older couple called me tio investigate the cause of water in their basement. As I walked up to this house - having never seen it before, I noticed that the gutter six feet away from the entry had water bleeding up over the top and running down the siding - no overhang.
There were little trees growing in the gutter and the debris left there. when the lady came to answer the door, I pointed over to the wet wall and asked, that is right about where your cellar walls are leaking , isn't it?"She was amazed at my psychic abilities, brought me in and showed me the inside, then I explained about the gutter and the need to clean it. Her husband slinked oaround and shriveled up as she said something about how he didn't get to it yet this year. That gutter hadn't been cleaned in at least three years.
i'm sure there was rot happening at the sill inside the wall, but they didn't want to tear anything open, fearing the cost.It'll only get more expensive as years go by.
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What product do you use? Does it soak in or leave a hard finish on the surface? I understand that the latter is a no-no since it can trap moisure.
Generally I prefer the GITROT. It is made for this sort of thing. It is low viscosity and takes a long cure time - a full 24 - 30 hours depending on temp.IO've also used one from MAS, but disremember the exact product name.
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Just found a good wood gutter resource John C. Leeke wood gutter preservation brief. Restoration guy out of ME. Looks pretty informative.
He has a reputation in Maine of being somewhat of a BS artist.
Check it out carefully.
OK. Will do. I read the sample of the brief actually. Searched the library online they don't have the actual book. I'll look around.
Check out these solid PVC gutters made in Taunton MA.
I have not tried them, but I have a place for some in a few weeks.
http://www.advancedtrimworks.com/residential_products.htm
Those PVC gutters look interesting. Kind of old and new. Did they just come out or have there been PVC gutters like this for a while ?I've only had minor experience working w/ PVC boards... maybe 2-3 jobs. Not nearly as much fun to work with as wood that is for sure. But it seems the way to go for exterior near gutters and really exposed to H20.Actually I just got back from the local lumber yard & they suggest PVC facia and soffit in place of pine and coil wrapped PT. With a membrane (ridge vent type stuff) ventilation system. Looks durable but $$$$. Any thoughts on using this PVC for trim ? Is it as great as it is made out to be ? Or another fad w/ just as many trade offs as w/ wood in the long run 20-30yrs ? Any articles in FHB working w/ it ? (got to get that DVD/CD set someday for a reference)
"Those PVC gutters look interesting. Kind of old and new. Did they just come out or have there been PVC gutters like this for a while ?"
I would say they showed up about a year ago. I intend to try them on a couple of short runs.
"Any thoughts on using this PVC for trim ? Is it as great as it is made out to be ? Or another fad w/ just as many trade offs as w/ wood in the long run 20-30yrs ?"
Time will tell. The usual concerns are expansion/contraction, heat resistance, and UV resistance. That some of the manufacturers suggest not painting the PVC dark colors is of concern to me.