Why Gutters?

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  • leehljp
    Just me
    • Dec 2002
    • 8429
    • Tunica, MS
    • BT3000/3100

    Why Gutters?

    I have been contemplating taking our gutters down for the last 6 months. Only half the house has them.

    So the question is: When are gutters more beneficial than a nuisance? I have maintained them and my mom has in the past, just because they were there. But since half the house does not have them and there are seemingly no side effects for that part, I am thinking of taking them down from the half that has them.

    Your ideas please.
    Hank Lee

    Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!
  • wreckwriter
    Established Member
    • Mar 2006
    • 449
    • South Florida
    • BT3100-1

    #2
    At my house they're only installed in places where the water runs down so hard it'll cut a trench without them.
    http://www.wreckwriter.com/

    Comment

    • Salty
      Senior Member
      • Feb 2006
      • 690
      • Akron, Ohio

      #3
      I would say it would depend on if your house has a basement.
      It has always seemed to me that when a person digs a huge hole in the ground and then builds a house over it, he then needs to keep the water from filling the hole.
      Many many years ago they built homes that would take advantage of natural springs running through the basement but not any more. And, no matter how we try, many times but not always, eventually, if there is enough water trying to get in there it will find a way.
      Gutters, downspouts and drain pipes help to take that water, which might otherwise find its way into the basement, and drain it away from the foundation. At least that is what I'm thinking!!
      Why doesn't the word 'planing' show up in my computer spell check?

      Comment

      • Jim Boyd
        Veteran Member
        • Dec 2002
        • 1766
        • Montgomery, Texas, USA.
        • Delta Unisaw

        #4
        Here in my neck of the woods there isn't anything called a basement. Here gutters are usually over walkways so you do not get extra drenched when coming in out of the rain. Personally, I don't like them.
        Jim in Texas and Sicko Ryobi Cult Member ©

        Comment

        • LCHIEN
          Internet Fact Checker
          • Dec 2002
          • 20920
          • Katy, TX, USA.
          • BT3000 vintage 1999

          #5
          Plus side of gutters:
          1) avoid erosion of the ground and destruction of flower beds
          2) avoid splashing water that keeps your siding damp and makes it weather faster (Yeah that's what my siding co. tells me - the sidings bad because I don't have gutters)
          3) keeps you dry when you enter under an eve.

          Reasons why its bad:
          1) looks only so-so when new and painted and after awhile looks worse.
          2) plugs up with leaves
          3) washes out where the downspout exits
          4) causes roof edge damage where the gutter nails penetrate the finish and allow the boards to rot behind the gutter. Then looks bad when the gutter sags as a result.
          Loring in Katy, TX USA
          If your only tool is a hammer, you tend to treat all problems as if they were nails.
          BT3 FAQ - https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...sked-questions

          Comment

          • Crash2510
            Senior Member
            • Feb 2006
            • 830
            • North Central Ohio

            #6
            gutters are important if you have drainage problems around your house without them water can lay around the foundation of your house and cause it to prematurely crumble
            Phil In Ohio
            The basement woodworker

            Comment

            • leehljp
              Just me
              • Dec 2002
              • 8429
              • Tunica, MS
              • BT3000/3100

              #7
              Thanks for the replys. We do not have a basement. We do have good drainage and run off. We also have excellent sod/grass, and bushes next to the house. There is minimal effect of water run off (from the roof) anywhere there are not gutters. There are no problems of water draining onto entrance ways.

              So, It looks like it will be safe to take them down.

              Thanks.
              Hank Lee

              Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!

              Comment

              • LCHIEN
                Internet Fact Checker
                • Dec 2002
                • 20920
                • Katy, TX, USA.
                • BT3000 vintage 1999

                #8
                Originally posted by leehljp
                Thanks for the replys. We do not have a basement. We do have good drainage and run off. We also have excellent sod/grass, and bushes next to the house. There is minimal effect of water run off (from the roof) anywhere there are not gutters. There are no problems of water draining onto entrance ways.

                So, It looks like it will be safe to take them down.

                Thanks.
                it also depends upon the kind of rains you have.
                If you just have light, misting showers then you are oK,
                but if like on the texas gulf coast, you have torrential thunderstorms,
                then you can have serious downpouring from your roof that will cause damage to your lawn, garden, A/C compresor etc that are under the eves.
                Loring in Katy, TX USA
                If your only tool is a hammer, you tend to treat all problems as if they were nails.
                BT3 FAQ - https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...sked-questions

                Comment

                • leehljp
                  Just me
                  • Dec 2002
                  • 8429
                  • Tunica, MS
                  • BT3000/3100

                  #9
                  Originally posted by LCHIEN
                  it also depends upon the kind of rains you have.
                  If you just have light, misting showers then you are oK,
                  but if like on the texas gulf coast, you have torrential thunderstorms,
                  then you can have serious downpouring from your roof that will cause damage to your lawn, garden, A/C compresor etc that are under the eves.
                  We get the heavy thunderstorms alright. Some big ones. Our AC is OK as it is already located where there is some runoff (no gutter) but minimal where it is located. There was some thought put into the location of that AC outside unit.
                  Hank Lee

                  Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!

                  Comment

                  • Ken Massingale
                    Veteran Member
                    • Dec 2002
                    • 3862
                    • Liberty, SC, USA.
                    • Ridgid TS3650

                    #10
                    It's as Phil said. You need to get the water away from the foundation of the house. Saturated ground around the foundation as soft, a house is heavy and will settle into soft ground.
                    As for care of gutters, a yearly spraying with a bleach/water mix and a strong hose or pressure washer rinse will keep them mostly white. Covers are cheap and keep debris out, mostly. They need to be raised and the gutter hosed out to clean the small debris about every 5 years. Drain pipes attached to the down spouts put the runoff well away from the foundation. Also, termites prefer moist soil which is another reason to keep the foundation area as dry as possible.
                    Check the soil under your house near the foundation after a period of extended rain, if it's wet there's a problem. Water is creeping under the foundation from outside.
                    ken

                    Comment

                    • crokett
                      The Full Monte
                      • Jan 2003
                      • 10627
                      • Mebane, NC, USA.
                      • Ryobi BT3000

                      #11
                      I need to clean my gutters. Seems like I just cleaned 'em though. As for covers for gutters. I had them on the old house and hated them and got rid of them. Stuff still got in and now I had covers in the way when I tried to clean the gutters out.

                      Anybody know if these work? http://www.rainhandler.com

                      There was an ad in Family Handyman
                      David

                      The chief cause of failure in this life is giving up what you want most for what you want at the moment.

                      Comment

                      • cwsmith
                        Veteran Member
                        • Dec 2005
                        • 2737
                        • NY Southern Tier, USA.
                        • BT3100-1

                        #12
                        The primary purpose of gutters (or "eavestrough" as they are called around here) is to conduct the water away from the foundation. By themselves, all they will do is pour the rainwater to one corner or another, so they must be used with a good downspought (drain- or rain-pipe, as it is often called) system that will take the water as far away from the foundation as possible.

                        Having the proper pitch and a "clean-out" type downspought will go a long way to reduce debris from building in the gutter. As I recall, there was a snap-together vinyl system a few years ago by a company called "Rain-Go" that had a self-cleaning downspought, but I haven't seen them recently.

                        I've seen Japanese-type architecture where chains are used instead of downspoughts. The water will simply run down the chain and into a gravel drainage ditch that flows away from the house. With the proper pitch to the gutter, there is less chance of clogging up the drain. With heavy rain, the water will just gush out of the drain, taking any debris with it. But, in such architectural style, crushed or washed stone drainage is often part of the landscaping.

                        CWS
                        Think it Through Before You Do!

                        Comment

                        • LinuxRandal
                          Veteran Member
                          • Feb 2005
                          • 4889
                          • Independence, MO, USA.
                          • bt3100

                          #13
                          Originally posted by crokett
                          I need to clean my gutters. Seems like I just cleaned 'em though. As for covers for gutters. I had them on the old house and hated them and got rid of them. Stuff still got in and now I had covers in the way when I tried to clean the gutters out.

                          Anybody know if these work? http://www.rainhandler.com

                          There was an ad in Family Handyman

                          Around here, gutters were added later. As these houses were pre WWII when the eaves, were much larger (overhang droping water away from the house). The houses that don't have them, need to have soil added occassionally, sloping away from the house (but I see that required on homes with gutters, for sale under various loan programs, on a regular basis). I looked at the rainhandlers years ago, as I saw them once on TOH (this old house). They don't work as well in a heavy, heavy storm, but are great for normal rain. What isn't great is the price (last time I looked, around $16 for a five foot section uninstalled). MAKE SURE YOU CHECK CODES, if you have them now, in my area, you are required to keep or replace them.
                          She couldn't tell the difference between the escape pod, and the bathroom. We had to go back for her.........................Twice.

                          Comment

                          • bfrikken
                            Senior Member
                            • Apr 2005
                            • 727
                            • Michigan, USA.
                            • BT-3100

                            #14
                            Its an interesting question. I've only known people to put gutters up, not take them down. I guess my point is, People that usually don't have them up here in Michigan, eventually end up getting them, and those that have them don't end up taking them down. Read into that whatever you want.

                            Comment

                            • jziegler
                              Veteran Member
                              • Aug 2005
                              • 1149
                              • Salem, NJ, USA.
                              • Ryobi BT3100

                              #15
                              If you had a basement, I'd call the gutters a definate must. Without a basement, I don't know.

                              When I bought my house, the previous owner had removed most of the gutters and was in the process of replacing them. When it rained, water made it into the basement. After waiting a while, he finally got them back on. The basement is now dry.

                              They can definately help with the drainage. I still don't have them everywhere, but the areas without them have such small roof areas that it's ok, plus the water all lands on brick, so erosion is not an issue. Careful landscape planning and adequate overhangs probably make gutters unnecessary in some places.

                              Jim

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