What should one know when selecting a contractor for gutter installation?

Many professional eavestroughing contractors out there install gutters on daily basis and most of them do a good job.
It's what they do for a living. The purpose of this paragraph is not to make you think that we are the only ones who excel in this
trade, but to list few things you should expect as a standard when selecting aluminum eavestroughing contractor. 

1. Seamless gutters - Some companies will stress how they do seamless gutters and how this is some special
gutter with no seams. What word seamless refers to is that one piece of gutter is made continuously and not out
of 10 ft. pieces put together. Any contractor with gutter forming machine is able to produce seamless gutters.
This is definitely a standard today.

2. Mitered gutter corners - Gutters should only have one seam on every corner. Some contractors who are
not very skilled in gutter installation will sometimes want to use pre-made corners. This way each corner on your home
actually ends up having 3 seams. These corners are more likely to leak and they are also not as sturdy as mitered (one seam)
corners. Sometimes, over time pre-made corners will even lose its alignment with the rest of the gutters and then it all
appears unsightly. Mitered (one seam) corners are definitely a standard.

3. Large square downspouts - If you have decided it's time to replace your gutters you should obviously expect some
improvements to come with this new installation. One of those improvements should be larger downspouts. If your home is
currently equipped with 2x3 inch rectangle downspouts, 2.5x2.5 inch (small square) downspouts or round galvanized steel
downspouts these should definitely be replaced by 3x3 inch (large square) aluminum downspouts. 3x3 inch downspouts enable
more water flow and they also look good on any size home. You should definitely ensure that 3x3 downspouts are
installed on your home.

4. Hanger brackets - Gutter is attached to the fascia board by either a spike/nail and ferrule or hidden hanger
brackets. Hanger brackets are a better option because they are screwed in. There is a difference in quality between different
types of hanger brackets. Hanger brackets that clip on both sides (front and back of gutter) are the best quality type.
View a photo of a quality hanger bracket here.

5. Leaf guard - It is sometimes a good idea to install leaf guard on your home. If there were trees around my home I would
definitely install it. It's important to select a quality aluminum leaf guard. Plastic ones cave in over time. Foam insert leaf guards are
little better, but are likely to retain leaves on top of gutters. Aluminum leaf guard is currently the best option on the market.
View a photo of quality leaf guard here.

6. Gutter slope - Water has to run down those downspouts. If water is sitting somewhere in your gutters it will
eventually freeze and cause damage to the gutter and gutter corners. Having a larger amount of downspouts is
better because that way water doesn't sit anywhere. With a proper amount of downspouts better slope can be created.
When gutter slope is being configured a good contractor needs to find balance between functionality and appearance.

Those would be some things to consider. Please feel free to give us a call if you have a question not covered in the above text.

Give us a call if you would like to receive a FREE QUOTE!

647 500 4422

Copyright © 2021 bramptongutters.com