Installing your own roof gutter systems is a relatively easy diy project as long as you aren’t afraid of heights because you will be working off of ladders, your roof, and/or scaffolding. According to the Home Safety Council, falls from ladders are the leading cause of serious injuries and the leading cause of accidental deaths around the house. With that in mind I want to take a moment or two of your time to talk about ladder safety before I get into the project at hand.
Ladder safety tips
· Select the proper ladder for the job. When working on the exterior of your home, an extension ladder is always your best choice. For a single story home a sturdy Werner, Model: FE1016-2 16 Ft., Type 1 fiberglass extension ladder will be all that you will need. These ladders are available at most home centers for less than $200. I prefer fiberglass ladders over aluminum ladders because fiberglass doesn’t conduct electricity and will provide you with a little protection if you accidentally come into contact with live conductors. This protection is well worth the extra money you will spend for a fiberglass ladder.
· While we are on the subject of electricity, be extra cautious when working around the overhead wires carrying electricity to your house. Stay as far away from them as possible.
· When working with ladder always observe the 4 to 1 rule. For every 4 feet of height above the ground the ladder extends, the base of the ladder should be out a distance of 1 foot from the side of the house i.e. if the top of the ladder is 10 feet above the ground, the base of the ladder should be a minimum of 2.5 feet from the wall.
· Always make sure that you place the ladder on level ground and make sure that all the locking mechanisms have engaged fully.
· Wear nonslip sole shoes, always face the ladder and employ the three point s of contact rule when climbing. The three point rule requires that both feet and one hand or both hands and one foot must be in contact with the ladder at all times.
· Keep your body centered on the ladder and don’t over reach. A safe way to judge whether you are reaching too far out from a ladder is the position of your belt buckle, if your belt buckle extends beyond the side rail of the ladder you are reaching too far. DO NOT OVER REACH. MOVE THE LADDER!
· Never work above the safe level of a ladder. For an extension ladder this safe level is the fourth rung from the top and for a step ladder it’s the second step from the top.
Employing proper ladder safety may make a job go somewhat slower but it’s far better to take more time in completing a job than it is to end up in the hospital or an even worse place, the morgue.
The tools that you will need to install a gutter system.
· Hacksaw or power miter saw
· Pop-rivet gun
· 3/8” cordless drill/driver w/belt holster
· Twist drill bits
· 4” metal hole saw attachment for drill/driver
· Nut drivers for the drill/driver
· Chalk line
· Tape measure
· 3/8” drive ratchet w/7/16” socket
· Needle nose pliers
· Right and left hands aviation snips
· Caulking gun
· Outdoor silicon sealing compound
· Extension ladder
The materials that you will need to install a gutter system
· Gutters
· Fascia brackets
· Downspout outlets
· Downspouts
· Downspout elbows
· Downspout brackets
· Spherical end caps
· ¼” X 2” long stainless steel lag screws
· 3” wide aluminum strip
· 3/8” long, self-tapping, hex-head, stainless steel screws
· 1” X #8-32 machine screws with nuts
· 1/8”D X ¼”L pop-rivets
Now, with all your materials and tools ready and waiting, it’s time to begin installing your new gutter system.
Steps to follow when installing your roof gutter system
· If the fascia board is 40 feet or less in length mark the high point of the gutter system at one end of the fascia board by measuring down 1 ¼ inched from the roof’s metal drip edge. Keeping in mind that the gutter must slant downward ½” for each 10 linear foot of run, measure down the appropriate distance and make a mark at the opposite end of the fascia board i.e. if the fascia board is 35 feet in length you would measure down and make a mark 3” down from the metal drip edge. To calculate this figure you divide 35 by 10 multiply by 0.5 and add 1.25 or length of fascia board in feet/10 X 0.5” drop/10FT + 1.25”. If the fascia board is longer than 40 feet in length, it’s good practice to slope the gutters down from a center point and have two downspout systems, one at each end of the run. Another option is to slope the runs down from ends with one downspout where the two runs meet at the center.
· Snap a chalk line between those two marks to show you the sloped line of your gutter system
· This is an ideal time to check the fascia boards for rot or any other damage that you need to repair before installing the gutter system.
· Locate the tail ends of the rafters. As a rule the rafters will be spaced 16” O.C. Look for tell tale signs of their location such as nail heads. Mark the chalk line at every other rafter end.
· Carefully drill a 3/16” pilot hole through the fascia board and into the rafter tail at each location marked on the chalk line.
· Coat the threads on the stainless steel lag screws lightly with silicon before driving them home with the ratchet and socket. The silicon not only seals against moisture entering the fascia board and rafters, it makes screwing the lag screws in much easier.
· Cut the gutters to length using the hacksaw and aviation snips or with a power miter saw fitted with a carbide metal cutting blade. If the run requires more than one section of gutters overlap them 8” and secure them with pop-rivets or 3/8” self-tapping, stainless steel screws. As an added touch, seal the overlapped gutters with silicon. Also, make sure to locate the screws or pop-rivets in the sides of the gutters, never in the bottom of the gutters. If the gutter has to extend around the corner of the roof , cut the appropriate angle at the end, which is usually a 45° angle.
· Install the spherical end caps. To fasten them in place with pop-rivets, hold them in position with a single self-tapping screw while you drill 1/8” holes for the pop-rivets. Don’t forget to replace the screws wit pop-rivets.
· Seal the end caps with silicon sealer.
· Turn the gutter upside down and mark the location of the downspout at the low end of the gutter using a downspout outlet as a guide. Draw an outline around the outlet and then drill ¼” in the center. Turn the gutter over and cut the actual opening using the 4” metal hole saw.
· Snap the gutters into their mounting brackets that you fastened to the fascia boards.
· Drill a 3/16” hole through the front of the gutters using the hole in the bracket as a guide.
· Secure the gutters to the brackets using the 1” X #8-32 machine screws and nuts.
· Form strip miter joints at the corners by wrapping the aluminum strip tightly around the underside of the gutter and secure with 8 pop-rivets. From v-tabs at the front and back top edges and bend them over and inside of the gutter. Seal with silicon.
· Install the downspout outlet and secure using four pop-rivets.
· Attach a downspout elbow to the outlet using screws.
· Position another elbow against the house and measure between them.
· Cut the downspout to length and slip it over the crimped ends of the elbows and secure to the house with downspout brackets. Use two brackets for a single story house and three brackets for a two story house.
· Position the discharge elbow so the water runs away from the house. If you have a basement moisture problem you may want to add another section of downspout to the discharge elbow to carry the water even further from the house.
· If you used aluminum gutters and downspouts, you can spray paint them to match your house using Rustoleum or some similar paint.
Congratulations on a job well done and on knowing that you have just saved yourself hundreds of dollars by doing it yourself; not to mention the pride you’ve received from knowing that you did yourself.
