Benefits of Seamless Gutters

Gutters should be replaced almost as often as the roof, so roughly every 20 years. This is a good long while, and in the meantime, your home’s rain gutters should do their job with very little effort on your part besides gutter cleaning and routine maintenance.

If you haven’t needed to replace your gutters lately, it’s probably a good time to begin considering the options. More than likely, your options have changed since the last time you shopped for gutters, either when you built your house or the last time you had to replace them.

Styles and types of materials improve drastically over a period of just a few years. This means your next gutters will be more efficient, lighter and more attractive than the current ones on your home.

Seamless gutters are one of the new options available.

What are Seamless Gutters?

One of the major improvements in rain gutters is the invention of seamless gutter systems.

Seamless gutters are installed in very long sections, opposed to standard gutters which are only available in sections between 10 and 20 feet. They are made on-site in many cases with a special machine, eliminating the difficulties of transporting such long, narrow materials.

Many gutter installation companies have their own machinery and are able to do the entire process on their own – measure, manufacture and installing your seamless gutters – in less than one day!

Since they are built to size, it is possible to have seamless gutters that extend over 50 feet, with the longest length of a seamless rain gutter around 100 feet without joints. This offers homeowners the choice to have a single piece of lightweight aluminum in whatever color they choose.

Benefits of Seamless Gutters

Traditional gutters have been popular for so long that it can be hard to believe how another choice can be a lot more effective. To determine if seamless gutters are a smart choice for your house, you need know the benefits of them so you can also understand why there is a noticeable price difference between the two.

There are many benefits of seamless gutters over traditional gutter systems:

Better Curb Appeal – With joints just at the corners, seamless gutters have a noticeably sleek look. Seamless gutter fabrication machines cut out holes for downspouts, which have to be present every 20 to 30 feet, so that they are smooth and correctly sized. The measurements also help the curb appeal of your home without being too overstated or obvious.

Easier Care – Less joints mean there are fewer chances for debris to cling on or get stuck within the gutters. Water drains through more smoothly with less clogs. As a homeowner, this will likely make you very pleased, since it means you won’t need to clean them out as often. Seamless gutters only need 1 yearly cleaning. In contrast, some regular rain gutter systems must be cleaned 2 to 4 times a year in order to keep them functioning well.

Lower Chance of Leaks – Standard gutters can leak at any joint as soon as the gutters start to pull away from the home. Loose fasteners are also a problem that can cause gutter leaks. Getting rid of joints throughout the entire length and width of your home reduces the likelihood of leaks (which protects your windows, porches, and landscaping).

Prevent Pests – Clogged gutters will attract animals and insects that are able to hide inside of them or build nests with the materials that are present. From there, insects, birds, squirrels and chipmunks have easy access to your attic and will destroy your roof, resulting in hundreds of dollars’ of damage. Keeping that buildup out of your rain gutters makes them less attractive for pests.

Eliminates Waste – Measuring for seamless gutters and then manufacturing them on site ensures that your gutters will be the correct size without having additional pieces that were cut off to match the exact length of the home. This is an eco-friendly process that lowers your home’s carbon footprint. Also, there is no need to destroy the excess or see it end up in a landfill.

Longer Lifetime – Seamless gutters are designed with the newest technology and the best materials available. This leads to fewer leaks, a smaller chance of rusting and reduced risk of the gutters pulling away from the house. Longer lasting rain gutters also protect your home, including the exterior walls, windows and surrounding soil.

Seamless Gutters Installed by a Professional

Seamless gutters typically need professional installation due to their size and the training and machinery required to build them. Most homeowners don’t have own the equipment required to produce seamless gutters, nor do they have the knowledge of how to program these machines to make exact cuts.

Seamless gutters are more expensive, but once they are professionally installed, you will understand their value which pays for itself over time via less repairs and longer time between replacements. If you have questions about the value of seamless rain gutters, speak to a gutter installer who offers both traditional and seamless gutter systems to decide if the price difference and benefits are worth it for your budget and needs.

Installing these extra-long rain gutters is not a project that a single person can handle safely. Professionals can install a section up to about 35 feet or so by themselves, but anything longer than that requires a second person.

For gutters that are less than 35 feet, they will start in the middle and work their way to each end, securing the gutter every few feet. For gutters any longer, the installation team will start in two places (1/3 of the way from each end) and secure those sections due to the length and the weight of the seamless gutter.

Paying for professional seamless gutter installation also means that your warranty will be intact in the event of an accident or storm damages.

Seamless gutter installation is not a recommended DIY home improvement project. Homeowners can easily damage a long gutter by handling it improperly. This can damage the gutter’s appearance as well as its effectiveness. Southfield Gutters is proud to offer seamless gutter installation to all homes and businesses in the Southfield area. Call 248-306-8627 now for more information!