I need advice on a gutter renovation project

gutters
Photo Lia O’Donnell

I’m new to midcentury home owner and would love everyone’s advice on a gutter project. The roof is flat with a very slight pitch and no gutter except that little one tacked over the front door. Where the water actually drains off the roof is quite inconvenient. One company suggested installing a gutter along the whole length of the front and back of the house with rain chains. But they also suggested a K profile gutter in brown aluminum to match the copper edge of the roof. It sounds like a questionable plan from a design perspective. Would love to hear alternative ideas.

  • I think you’re asking the right question. I would increase the height of the lip and add scuppers with rain chains in specific locations. If you have to do a gutter I would do a box gutter. And color would depend. If you’re keeping the existing house and trim color then I would go white so it blends in.
  • We used half round gutters with rain chains. The gutters match the fascia color, and the rain chains align with the roof beams.
  • If you add gutters, they should definitely be custom-fabricated box gutters which, visually, would just extend the existing fascia out another 6″ or so. I would go with galvanized steel with a white factory-applied enamel finish, so you do not create a galvanic reaction where the steel makes contact with your copper drip edge flashing. K-style gutters would look HORRIBLE on your house! Half round gutters are not typically associated with MCM homes, and I think they would also look out of place. The rain chain locations look fine, but I would add one at the third joist. I think it would look odd if you had them at only two of the three joists. Your best bet would be to contact a COMMERCIAL roofing company with a full sheet metal shop. What kind of climate do you live in. What type of roof do you have, and what condition is it in?
  • I had a flat roof nightmare that was greatly improved by adding additional guttering and an additional down spout. In, my case I had a bad leak due to water and leaves collecting. To add to matters, there was a deck on my roof that was not property installed. I had to have the whole deck removed. The roof was repaired with some incredible rubber roofing and the deck replaced. I haven’t had any more problems
  • We have a similar roof angle. Gutters (white to match the trim,) along the length of the low side, downspouts at each end. The house had gutters originally (1963) and we replaced them last year. Our downspouts route into buried tile pipes that lead to the quarry lake in the back yard.

You can read more tips about this topic here.

These are only few of the thousands tips that midcentury home owners share with each other’s in our exclusive Facebook Group dedicated to them. If you own a midcentury house, and are not already a member, join us now!