Seamless gutter installation and replacement in Portland

Why seamless

Seamless means the gutter comes off a forming machine in the driveway as one continuous length per wall, with joints only at the corners. Hardware-store sectional gutter is joined every 10 feet, and in a climate where the trough stays wet for eight months each of those joints eventually weeps. That is why seamless gutters Portland installers hang have become the default for a house you plan to keep, and why most gutter replacement Portland homeowners pay for is sectional coming off and seamless going up.

Sizing for Portland

Portland rain is not intense. Most of it falls at well under a quarter inch an hour. What it does deliver is volume — atmospheric-river days that drop two inches over 24 hours — and debris. A gutter here has to carry a moderate flow while partly full of fir needles. That changes the sizing rules.

• 5-inch K-style with 3x4 downspouts on most single-story bungalows and ranches. The larger downspout matters more than the gutter size here, because it is the outlet that clogs first.
• 6-inch with 3x4 downspouts on two-story homes, cedar shake and other steep roofs that shed water fast, and any run collecting more than about 600 square feet of roof.
• An extra downspout on any run over 35 feet. One downspout on a 50-foot run is a common design mistake on 1970s–90s houses in Beaverton and Tigard.

Materials and finish

Ask for .032 aluminum — heavier than the .027 that comes on many quotes — in a baked-on color that matches your trim, with hidden screw hangers into the rafter tails every 24 inches rather than spikes. Unlike galvanized steel, the aluminum gutters Portland installers hang do not rust or need paint every decade. Copper and half-round profiles are covered on the half-round and copper page.

What a full replacement should include

When you compare quotes for a gutter installation Portland, Oregon contractors write up, check that each of these is on the page:

• Tear-off and haul-away of the old gutters and downspouts
• A fascia inspection before anything new goes up, with rotten boards replaced and quoted per foot
• New seamless gutters, mitres, end caps and downspouts
• Outlets cut to match the downspout, not punched with a 2-inch hole
• Downspout extensions, splash blocks or reconnection to the existing rain drain, so the water lands somewhere safe
• A hose test through every run and downspout

What it costs

Installed seamless aluminum in the Portland area typically runs about $11 to $18 per linear foot, partly because labor here costs more and many roofs are steep and cut up. Expect $1,700–$2,700 on a single-story bungalow (about 150 feet, four downspouts) and $2,600–$4,200 on a two-story (about 210 feet, six downspouts). Six-inch, fascia and guards should each get their own line so nothing hides in a lump sum. The pricing page has the full tables, and the post on what the price per foot buys explains how to compare quotes.

Homes that never had gutters

Less common here than in the South, but they still turn up: garages, 1950s ranches on the east side where a previous owner tore off rusting gutters and never replaced them, and additions where the builder skipped the back wall. A trench in the bark dust under the eave and mud up the siding mean the wall needs a gutter. New installation costs what replacement costs, less the tear-off.

Roofs without a drip edge

Cedar shake and many older composition roofs in Portland have no metal drip edge, so water can run down the fascia behind the gutter. On those roofs the gutter should be hung tight to the shingle line, or drip edge flashing added under the first course. It is a small line item that prevents the most expensive kind of rot.

What install day usually looks like

1. Tear-off. The old gutters and downspouts come down, and the old spikes are pulled out of the fascia.
2. Fascia check. With the boards bare, any soft wood is easy to find. Bad sections should be shown to you and priced before they are replaced.
3. Layout. A chalk line is snapped on the fascia for each run so the new gutter falls toward its outlets.
4. Forming. The machine in the driveway rolls each run to length from a coil in your chosen color.
5. Hanging. Hidden hangers are screwed through the fascia into the rafter tails, with mitres and end caps sealed at the corners.
6. Downspouts. Outlets are cut, downspouts strapped to the wall, and each one routed to an extension, a splash block or the old rain drain.
7. Test and clean-up. A hose runs through every gutter and downspout, and the old metal is hauled off.

Common installation mistakes

• Too few downspouts. One outlet on a long run is the most common design flaw on new and old houses alike.
• Hanging on rot. New gutter screwed into soft fascia looks fine for a season and then pulls loose.
• Flat runs. A gutter hung level to look neat holds water in a drizzle and grows moss by spring.
• Downspouts left at the wall. A new system that still dumps water beside the foundation has skipped the step that matters most.
• Thin metal to hit a price. The .027 gauge dents under a ladder and sags under a winter of wet needles.

Questions to ask before you choose an installer

• What gauge is the coil, and what is the color warranty from the maker?
• What hanger type and spacing will you use?
• How many downspouts, what size, and where will each one drain?
• Is fascia replacement priced per foot, and how will I be told if more is found?
• Is haul-away of the old system included?
• Will you hose-test every run before you leave?
• What is your CCB number?

Looking after new gutters

Seamless aluminum needs little, but it is not maintenance-free. Clean it twice a year, or three times under heavy fir. Flip downspout extensions down before the wet season. After the first big windstorm, walk the house and look for any run that has moved. Catching a loose hanger early keeps a sound gutter sound for its full 25 to 30 years.

Before you sign

Oregon generally requires contractors to be licensed with the Construction Contractors Board. Ask for the CCB number and look up the license on the CCB website before hiring, and get the scope, price and any warranty terms in writing.