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Do-it-yourself Gutter Installation Guide

Ujwal Deshmukh
Rain gutters keep the surroundings of your house clean and take the dirty water away from your house. Therefore, it is necessary to install a proper gutter system at your residence. Let's see how to do the same.
Rain gutters, which are also called eaves trough, are mainly responsible to drain rainwater from the roof of your house or apartment and having them properly installed is a necessity.
This prevents the dirty odor of stagnant rainwater in your surroundings and keeps your house clean. Installing them is not a difficult job, you can do it all by yourself. All you need is proper planning, knowledge of the procedure, and all the required material.

Instructions

Things You Will Need
  • Drill machine
  • Screwdriver bits
  • Hacksaw blade
  • Measuring tape
  • Ladder
  • Rust-proof screws
  • Silicon caulk
  • Caulking gun
  • Chalk line
  • Carpenter's level
  • One string level
  • Gutter sections and other components such as the elbows, end pieces, corners, and drop outlets

Procedure

Planning

Take a look at your house and determine the spot to affix the eaves trough. See that you select such a spot that will catch the rainwater from the roof and direct it somewhere away from the house.

Calculating

Measure the roof length, so that you can cut and fit the gutter sections properly beneath the roof. A section is normally about 10 feet long. By knowing the section length and also the roof edge length, determine the number of sections you will have to fix to the roof edge.
Now, take a look at the layout, so that you can estimate the number of components you would need to attach. Install brackets after every 20 inches or so to properly distribute the weight load.

Fixing Gutter Sections

  • Before fixing the sections, mark a spot about ½ or 1 inch beneath the roof edge, away from the downspout as well as towards the downspout.
  • See that these points are marked properly by checking them with the help of a string level.
  • Now, the next step is to determine the slope, to enable smooth flow of water through it.
  • Calculate the slope from the very first marking at the downspout end.
  • Mark these distances with the help of a chalk towards both the ends.
  • Now, go at the downspout end and install the gutter components such as the brackets, corners, etc., with the help of a drilling machine, screwdriver bit, and some rust proof screws.
  • Take a ladder and set up the sections in the brackets and connect all of them with the connectors. See that you adjust the sections by cutting them with the help of a hacksaw blade
  • In order to avoid leakage from the pipes, take some silicone caulk and spread it over the length of the gutter section through the caulking machine.
  • Check all the fixtures and attachments to ensure that nothing is loose.
  • Have the elbow fixed beneath the drop outlet, and further measure and cut the downspout. Fix it at the bottom of the drop outlet.
  • Finally, attach mounting brackets to the downspout in order to hold it in place.
A suggestion is, to have someone amongst your family members or neighborhood to help. Being a DIY job does not mean that you have to work alone. This is because you are going to work on a ladder and sometimes your hands may not reach the difficult spots. If you think that you can do it on your own, make sure that you take all the necessary precautions.