All about Radius Gutters
Radius gutters are curved gutters shaped around the curvatures of a roof. They are one of the more difficult roofing installations and it is not recommended as a DIY project unless you are very experienced. Many people make the mistake of placing cut up pieces of gutter around the curve of their house. This will leak very easily; it is much better to install a seamless radius gutter in as few pieces as possible.
When installing radius gutters, the inexperienced DIY guy will not calculate the effects of gravity. A common mistake is to allow the center of the radius to be level or even lower than its ends. This causes the radius gutter to pool excess water, which is not advisable for even the most durable of metals like copper. The middle of the gutter needs to be the highest point to allow excess to flow out and down the system.
Sometimes you want to install better gutters when aluminum doesn’t cut it or if you add an addition. However, getting a measurement for pricing can be tricky. If your house is a new construction, you should be able to get the radius measurement from the initial contractor. Their plans should have the fascia radius. However, not all finished construction is what is should be so it is wise to take a sample template of the entire curved area. It isn’t too hard. Most contractors would come out and measure it for you, but here is a step-by-step to get the measurement yourself if needs be.
- Acquire a 4′ x 8′ sheet of foam insulation board.
- Attach the foam board under the eave of the turret with 1/2” screws and a a washer. Have another person hold the board while fastening.
- Use a Sharpie or magic marker and attach it to the end of a long stick then trace the curve.
- Remove the foam and cut out the curve with a razor.
- Transfer the curve on to an 8 ft. piece of paper (blueprint or butcher) with a marker.
- Roll it up and stick it in a shipping tube.
Given that radius gutters are formed by machine, the curvature tends to be the same if it is longer than 8ft. Again, this is how one could do it though we are more than happy to measure the radius for you before creating a radius gutter. We would rather have a 100% correct measurement, and don’t want to make the job last longer than it needs to.
