How to Install Gutters | eHow

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Murray Anderson

I learned home repair and maintenance hands on. Over the past 30 years I've built sheds, decks, fences and gates and planted numerous trees and shrubs. Inside I've done all the common jobs like repairing and installing toilets, plumbing and light fixtures plus I've transformed three basements from bare concrete floors and walls into warm , bright family rooms. I write on home maintenance and repair for DoItYourself.com and answer maintenance and repair questions online at MyHomeImprovement.com.

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Gutters (or eavestroughs) aren't just a "nice to have" accessory. Gutters perform an important role in helping keep water out of your basement. Properly installed gutters will catch water coming off your roof and channel it well away from your home's foundation so it can't work it's way in and create a musty smelling (or, even worse, moldy) lower level. While installing long seamless gutters or highly decorative gutters (like copper) is best left to the professionals, sectional gutters (usually made of vinyl or aluminum) can be installed by a handy homeowner (and hopefully a friend or two).

Look at the outside of your home and determine how you would like the gutters to channel the water. You want the gutter to catch the water as it comes off the roof and channel it to an area where it will drain away from your home.

Measure along the edges of your roof. Gutters often come in 10-foot sections, so this will determine how many sections of gutter you need. Add 10 percent to your measurements for wastage (you will need to cut some pieces to fit).

Combine the roof measurement with your gutter layout plan to calculate the number of other gutter components you will need (corners, elbows, end pieces, drop outlets). You will also need mounting brackets for every 24 to 30 inches of run.

Begin at the end of your roof away from the downspout location and measure down 1/2 inch from the edge of your roof and mark it. Move to the downspout end and again measure and mark down 1/2 inch from the roof edge. Use a string level to be sure these marks are level with each other and adjust them if necessary.

Calculate the slope you will need so the water in your gutters will flow towards the downspout. (Gutters should slope down 1/16 inch for every foot of run or 5/8 inch for every 10 feet.) Measure down this distance from the first mark at the downspout end.

Excerpt from:
How to Install Gutters | eHow