Find a Seamless Gutter Contractor Near Me
If the gutters on your home are sagging, leaking, or broken, it might be time to think about replacing them. The shallow troughs that channel rainwater into downspouts and away from your foundation come in many different varieties, making it hard to choose. Seamless gutters (a.k.a. roll-formed) are highly popular for their durability and lack of leakage. Formed on the truck at your job site, they have no seam and only have joints where the parts meet at your roof corners.
While other types of gutters can be installed by skilled DIYers, it’s essential that reliable contractors handle the install of seamless gutters. Seamless gutters are designed to fit your home precisely and are affixed in single pieces. They must be installed by professionals who are experienced working with the material of your choice. Visit Spout Gutter Pros today for free quotes from licensed, insured seamless gutter contractors in your area.
What Are Seamless Gutters?
Seamless rain gutters are installed in long pieces, custom-created to fit your home. They are usually made from aluminum, copper, steel, or vinyl. They are extraordinarily leakproof as their only joints are at the corners of the roof where they wrap around. Without seams, the chance of leakage is minimal, making them one of the most popular gutter choices available. Also known as “roll-formed,” seamless gutters are fabricated on a truck at your house and secured with steel hangers. They come in a variety of colors and are designed to blend seamlessly into the soffit and fascia of your home.
Seamless Gutters vs. Regular Gutters
If you notice your rain gutters are leaking or sagging, it may be time for a replacement. But what’s the difference between seamless gutters and regular gutters, you may wonder? There are quite a few. Following, we’ll break down the distinctions between the two including the costs, manufacturing processes, and maintenance.
- Cost: Traditional rain gutters are manufactured out of vinyl, aluminum, copper, or steel in pre-cut sections of about 10 or 20 feet and are pieced together with many seams. Vinyl gutters cost between $3-$5 per foot, aluminum $6-$12, steel $9-$20, and copper $25-$40 per foot. Seamless gutters come in heavier forms of the same types of metal and cost about $3-$5 for vinyl, $4-$9 for aluminum, $8-$10 for steel, and $15-$25 for copper. Installation of sectional gutters will be lower in cost as they can be affixed by the homeowner or a general contractor. Seamless gutters need to be installed by experts, so they will carry a higher labor cost.
- Materials: Seamless and sectional gutters are made of similar materials—aluminum, copper, painted steel, and vinyl—but seamless are traditionally of better quality. Vinyl is the cheapest, doesn’t tend to rust, and doesn’t need to be painted, but has a tendency to deteriorate in extreme heat or cold, cracking easily and needing replacement more often. Steel is the strongest and can withstand even the worst weather, but can rust if not treated properly, and weighs a lot, making installation more labor-intensive. Copper and aluminum are a great option as they do not rust, come in many colors, and will last a long time if well-maintained.
- Manufacturing: Sectional gutters are manufactured in a factory in pre-cut 10- or 20-foot sections. They are then mitered and sealed together on-site to fit your home’s dimensions. Seamless gutters are manufactured on a truck at the site by running a metal sheet through a gutter-forming machine, creating long, continuous pieces that are cut to the exact dimensions of your house.
- Installation: Regular gutter sections are joined together by connectors and then each section is sealed with miters and caulking. They are typically affixed to the home via a spike and ferrule bracket system behind the fascia. Seamless gutters are attached in one continuous run via heavy steel hangers that are screwed in tightly to the home.
- Maintenance & Durability: Sagging and clogged gutters can cause backups and flooding of your home, so it’s important to maintain your gutters properly. No matter which type you choose, you’ll want to make sure leaves are cleaned out regularly, leaks are sealed, downspouts are free of debris, and water is drained away from the home.
- Leakage: Regular gutters are more prone to leakage due to all of the connection points. It’s vital to check all of the joints and seals over time as they will wear out and leaks will occur. Seamless gutters are much more durable as they are made from one long piece of metal and only have connection points at the corners and downspouts.
Benefits of Seamless Gutters
When choosing a rain gutter system for your home, you need to make the decision between regular (or sectional) and seamless (or roll-formed). Sectional gutters are fashioned from pieces of gutter that are joined together at the seams, mitered, and sealed. Seamless are constructed to the exact size and specification of your home on a truck that comes directly to your house. While sectional gutters are cheaper and easier to install, seamless gutters have many benefits that make the higher cost well worth the expense. Following are some advantages to choosing seamless rain gutters:
- Perfect fit: Because seamless gutters are custom-created to fit each property, and are installed by expert craftspeople, they are much less likely to sag or become dislodged over time. Sections are a little more expensive to repair as the entire gutter might need to be cut away and replaced, but they are made of hardier material and shouldn’t need to be fixed as often as sectional gutters.
- Little maintenance: Traditional gutters require quite a bit of maintenance as they have seams and joints which are susceptible to debris buildup and animal nesting. Seamless gutters require very little maintenance as they have no joints to catch leaves and other detritus. If you choose seamless, you’ll spend very little time cleaning and maintaining your gutters.
- Fewer clogs and stoppages: Twigs, leaves, and other rubble tends to gather more in sectional gutters, catching on the seams and causing clogs. The clogs often become sizable, resulting in flooding and overflow which can damage your home’s walls. Seamless gutters are more popular because they are created as one long trough that has less of a tendency to back up and cause overflows.
- Less likely to leak: Because sectional gutters are put together with joints, they contain more places for leaks to form. While miters and caulking might hold for a while, the joints inevitably will wear down as the weather and time take their toll. Seamless gutters have no joints, except where they meet at the corners, so are less likely to leak over time.
- Longer lasting appeal and functionality: Seamless gutters are crafted to your exact specifications and are designed to match the look of your home. They offer great visual appeal as they blend right into the soffit and fascia of your house. Many offer a baked-in enamel finish that lasts for decades without being painted. Or, if your house is a custom color, most can be painted to match the home’s exterior. And because the fastening system is more secure, they provide more reliable functionality, catching water and keeping it away from your walls.
- Increasing your home value: Investing in seamless gutters can increase the overall value of your home, as they are highly valued by buyers. While installing seamless gutters will cost more initially due to the need to hire professional installers, you will realize the value over time. Seamless gutters are long-lasting, good-looking, and require very little by way of maintenance, providing good value for your money.
How Much Do Seamless Gutters Cost?
When comparing regular and seamless gutters, you’ll probably notice that seamless cost more overall. So, are seamless gutters worth it? On average, seamless gutters will cost you anywhere between $3-$25 per foot, depending on the material you choose. Add in the cost to custom cut the material, labor cost of around $2.50 per foot, delivery costs (depending on where you live), the gutter size (6” gutters cost $3-$5 more than 5” systems) and you’ll soon find it’s not an inexpensive project. But seamless gutters are way more durable, look great, and last longer, making them a smart choice over time.
Factors That Affect the Cost of Seamless Gutters
When pricing out the cost of installing seamless gutters, it’s important to take into consideration the many factors that will go into the job including the cost of materials, labor, delivery, cleanup and disposal of old gutters, and more. Following are some factors that may influence the cost:
- Materials: The most commonly used materials for gutter fabrication are (from least expensive to most) vinyl, aluminum, steel, and copper. You’ll want to make your material choice based on your budget, overall aesthetics, and durability. Gutter contractors will need additional items during the installation process, such as fasteners and flashing, that may add to the cost.
- Labor & Delivery: Labor costs are different around the country and contractors price their services differently. Similarly, some materials are more readily available in some parts of the country than others, so there may be additional delivery costs.
- Home size: Seamless gutters are priced out by the foot, so larger homes will cost more than smaller ones. Large homes also have more drainage areas and downspouts which will add to the overall cost of materials. If your home has more than one story, that also adds to the cost as larger crews will be required, along with ladders and/or scaffolding. Contractors will require additional safety equipment and insurance to tackle the additional height.
- New install vs. replacement: If a crew is replacing old gutters, you will have to figure in the cost to remove existing gutters, break them up and haul them away. If it’s a new install, you’ll have to take your location into consideration. If you live in a part of the country that sees more inclement weather, you may need wider and thicker gutters than in a more temperate state. These utilize more material to fabricate, so they will cost more than smaller gutters.
- Roof: The height, slope, and pitch of a roof make a difference in the cost as well. Safety issues involved in installing a gutter on a steep roof, as opposed to a flat one, could make the job more dangerous which will incur higher labor costs.
- Ornateness: If you live in a home that is more ornate—like a Victorian or Antebellum—it will have more gables, corners, etc. than a more modern home. Installing seamless gutters on a house like this will entail adding additional elements such as brackets, elbows, and caps, all of which will be charged separately.
- Extras: Cleaning out gutters is a messy, annoying job, so many people choose to add gutter guards to their gutter systems. If you decide to invest in leaf/gutter guards—whether they’re screen, surface tension, or fine mesh—you will see additional costs on top of those already listed.
- Seasonal: In parts of the country that have seasons, you will often find that gutter contractors offer deals during the off-season. If time isn’t entirely of the essence, look into installing your new gutter system during the late fall or early spring to save some money.
Seamless Gutter Installation
The one-piece design of seamless gutters allows rainwater to flow freely, down the spouts, and away from your home. Unlike sectional systems, seamless gutters are manufactured and assembled at your home using a special machine. The pieces fit your house perfectly and are installed by being screwed securely into place.
Can You DIY Seamless Gutters?
While traditional gutters can be installed by a handyman or even an experienced homeowner, it’s crucial that seamless gutters be installed by a professional. Sectional gutters don’t have to be precisely measured as they come in sections that can be welded together as needed and installed via a simple spike and ferrule bracket system. But seamless gutters are fashioned onsite to fit the home exactly and are installed in long, single pieces that fit snugly under your roofline. It’s vital that you find an experienced seamless gutter contractor who designs, creates, and installs these drainage materials on a regular basis.
How to Install Seamless Gutters
When researching the installation of seamless gutters, you’ll note that everyone recommends hiring professionals to do the job, rather than trying to tackle it yourself. While sectional gutters are relatively easy for the experienced do-it-yourselfer to handle, seamless are another story altogether. Following are the typical steps service professionals take to install seamless gutter systems.
- Measuring: Seamless gutters are custom-crafted to fit the contours of your home exactly. Because they are manufactured on-site, it’s vital that the gutter contractor measure carefully so the materials are cut and rolled precisely to your specifications.
- On-site manufacturing & assembly: The single-piece gutters are cut on-site using a special roll-forming machine that is fed sheets of the chosen material. These will not have seams as each will be the exact length of the wall, meeting only at the corners and downspouts.
- Placement and installation: There are several methods for attaching the gutters to the eaves, but the most popular is the use of hidden hangers that are screwed into the fascia. The gutters are then slid into the hangers, resulting in an almost invisible mounting. Then the gutters are fitted with end caps to stop water from overflowing at each end.
- Downspouts: Once the gutters are in place, elbows are attached at the end, facing the appropriate direction for water flow. Then, downspouts are secured to direct water away from the house towards a designated drainage area.
- Addition of gutter guards: There are many types of gutter guards that can prevent the build-up of debris. They don’t necessarily prevent stoppages or clogs but can definitely lessen the amount of time you need to spend cleaning out the gutters, especially in places that have seasons and lots of foliage. If you choose to add guards to your gutter system, you can choose between the following types:
- Mesh gutter guards are sheets of metal with holes drilled into them that cover the gutter and keep the debris out. They are attached directly to the roof shingles.
- Nylon gutter guards fit right into your gutter and help keep snow and ice from building up.
- Bottlebrush guards sit in the gutters and face upwards so leaves and junk can land on top while water flows past.
- Foam gutter guards are made from plastic and fit right into the gutter, blocking debris from falling in and causing blockages.
Seamless Gutter Repair & Maintenance
Homeowners invest in seamless gutters as they are less likely to rot, crack, or develop leaks. But unless the gutters are well-maintained, repairs may become necessary over time. It’s important that you perform regular maintenance and hire experts to repair your gutter system, thereby extending its lifespan for decades to come. Some common seamless gutter repair and maintenance issues include the following:
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- Clogged/blockages of gutters or downspouts: Leaves, twigs, and other debris can clog your gutters and downspouts, especially in inclement weather. In order to prevent clogs, you’ll want to inspect your gutters and downspouts on a regular basis and clear them manually, preventing costly backups. You can perform this maintenance yourself, or hire a handyman for anywhere from $20-$50/hr.
- Leaking: One of the advantages of seamless gutters is they are less likely to leak as they have no joints. But if you do notice a small leak, it can be repaired by applying silicone caulking or roof cement. If the leak is larger, you will have to have it patched with metal flashing, preferably from the same material used to create the gutters, that are sealed with silicone caulking. This work can also be performed by a handyman.
- Holes/cracks: Holes and cracks must be patched, again with metal flashing and silicone caulking or roof cement. This too can be fixed by experienced DIYers or a handyman.
- Denting: With seamless gutters, if a portion becomes dented or damaged, you can’t just cut it away and replace it as you can with sectional gutters as it’s all one long, continuous piece. Your best bet is to try to first try to pull the dent out yourself with a small hammer or pair of pliers. If somehow, it’s become squashed enough to impede the flow of rainwater, then you may have to replace the entire gutter “run” which can be costly.
- Sagging: If your seamless gutters were poorly installed, or become packed with debris, they may begin to sag and pull away from the wall. They may also have become filled with water, creating a mosquito breeding ground. In that case, a contractor will need to clean the gutters and re-affix them to the fascia.
<></>: As seamless gutters are made of treated metal they will not rot, but a good, well-maintained gutter system will prevent water from splashing back onto your exterior, causing roof and foundation rot.
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