General Gutter Questions

[Elgato]

Here in Tucson we have three choices for gutters, not counting plastic. Seamless now runs about $20 a foot or more. Home Depot sells painted steel and Lowes sells painted aluminum. Both are very close in cost. $10 for 10 ft sections.
The aluminum is very light but also very flimsy. Looks like the least little contact would dent it.

Opinions?

I am leaning towards steel.

I know you are not supposed to mix aluminum and steel parts.

However, all I can find is aluminum painted rivets.

Also, the aluminum brackets appear much nicer and readily available. Has anyone used aluminum brackets on steel gutter?

Thanks

 

[theoldwizard1]

I am assume the seamless price is installed. Pay the man.

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

$20/ft is hard to believe. Is it a complicated roof, does that include downspouts and installation?
Fittings, brackets, ends etc cost will add up quickly.

 

[jack stand]

Aluminum gutter has been used "back east" on every house built (at least south of the heavy snow line) for the last 30+ years. That's a lot of houses.
Your concern for some kind of super strength is unnecessary. Fastened every 2' it will easily support a man on a ladder leaned against it, and can fill up with water or ice (if not maintained) without concern.

 

[jack stand]

$20/ft is hard to believe. Is it a complicated roof, does that include downspouts and installation?
Fittings, brackets, ends etc cost will add up quickly.

It may be expensive, I'm out of touch with pricing and especially with the retail side. 10 years ago in the mid Atlantic area big builders were paying around $5/ft, now this would be a "production" builder that had 100+ homes a year for the gutter contractor.
Would it be possible that in AZ there's simply not a bunch of gutter being used and a very short list of contractors to do it (price)?

 

[jack stand]

When I was "around it" they'd price....
Lf of gutter
" down spout
Inside/outside corners
and possibly a few specific issues like an angle bay.

 

[Viper98912]

How many feet are you looking at? I would also assume hardware will start adding up quick. And being up on a ladder in tricky areas; forget it, I'd rather pay than DIY.

 

[Skooterj]

4 Years ago I paid $360 for a complete, seamless gutter install in a custom color. Thinking I have about 170 feet of gutter, 5 downspouts. 5 inch gutters with 3x4 downspouts. $20 a foot seams really high.

 

[NWOhioChevyGuy]

On my garage build I had seamless 6" gutters done with 2 3x4 down spouts this spring and it ran me around $10.50/foot here in MI.

I did get one quote that was almost 2X that figure.

 

[Bretny]

Steel gutters? I doubt it. In the hot AZ sun I wouldnt use plastic. In fact I would never use plastic if you get alot of sun or any snow/ice.

 

[nmk_61802]

I am assume the seamless price is installed. Pay the man.

Also keep in mind that you are probably not pricing apples to apples. As old wizard says, I also assume the $20 LF price is installed. While your $10 per 10FT section is only one portion of the materials required, also one of the cheapest items in the list. You still need hangers, down spouts, end terminations, downspout adapters, elbows, coupler, caulk, etc. All the fittings are the expensive part. When I priced it out two years ago, I couldn't purchase the material for the same price the seamless guys would supply and install it for, and I got a better product...no brainer in my opinion.

 

[Professor Fate]

10' sections means leaks every 10 feet.

 

[jack stand]

10' sections means leaks every 10 feet.

...not to mention the appearance and the difficulty of proper flow on longer runs. The guys I knew that ran a lot of gutter balanced drainage and appearance. Without careful planning, particularly on a house "hipped" all the way around (no gable ends) it's not too hard to have a portion right up under the shingles, to another part of the house where the bottom of the gutter was below the fascia board. This usually can be handled by additional downspouts.
Obviously it's not rocket science but planning and expertise goes a long way even with something as simple as guttering.

 

[Bretny]

I have found that if you have to join two sections of gutter together just overlap them and screw them together. Way nicer looking and a whole lot stronger than those crappy **** joints they sell.

 

[Major Woody]

Continuous aluminum gutters are the way to go. Good gutter companies will usually provide gutters in a slightly heavier gauge for a small upcharge. It's worth it. Get the hidden hangers, not spikes. Prices tend to vary quite a bit so get 3-4 quotes.

 

[rburke65]

Just write the check....you’ll be glad you did.

 

[LeonardY]

I have a two story home. It cost $400 for seamless 5 inch gutters installed. The back of the house gutter is more than 30 feet. Well worth it!

I also found a gutter company that would make custom lengths. I needed 14 feet. But that was for a single story add.

 

[Bretny]

If we are going to talk price I paid $360 for two 50ft gutters and one 22ft gutter installed. That was prob about 2014 though. I got a quote for the same job a week prior for $1400..I nearly hit the floor when the guy streight faced told me that.