Does my home need gutters? (landscaping, work, house)

[RWilliams]

Hi,

I've noticed that in the community that I am planning to build in very few if any of the homes have gutters. I would think with all the heavy rain they would be needed. Is there a reason other than added building cost that homes wouldn't have gutters in central Florida?

Thanks for your help!

[sunrico90]

Originally Posted by RWilliams

Hi,

I've noticed that in the community that I am planning to build in very few if any of the homes have gutters. I would think with all the heavy rain they would be needed. Is there a reason other than added building cost that homes wouldn't have gutters in central Florida?

Thanks for your help!

Gutters are a great investment. First they protect the perimeter of the home, second they work great went a hurricane hits. They protect the "flashing" around the edge of the roof, therefore your flashing won't fly away. Also the house looks better. Get 5" or 6" continious run gutters, they are build to meet the need of the home. Get a few quotes so you can get the best price...

[scamutz]

They are a great investment and can be put on your home very cheaply. I would guess that most builders don't put gutters on homes because most other builders don't put gutters on homes. It makes sense though to keep the mulch in your landscaping and control the heavy rains that we get during the summer.

[mk1116]

If you do not put gutter on the home the downpour will kill anything growing beneath it, and also wash away the soil.

[RWilliams]

Thanks for the info. We had planned on going with gutters, homes here in upstate NY all have them. I just wanted to make sure there wasn't a reason other than cost that people weren't getting them. Thanks again!

[Nappy]

Originally Posted by RWilliams

Hi,

I've noticed that in the community that I am planning to build in very few if any of the homes have gutters. I would think with all the heavy rain they would be needed. Is there a reason other than added building cost that homes wouldn't have gutters in central Florida?

Thanks for your help!

The reason Builders in Florida don't install gutters is for two reasons. The first is because they could pose a potential warranty issue because they're attached to the soffit & facia. If you don't maintain or clean the gutters out regularly then this could cause damage to the soffit & facia. 2nd reason is because builders not make much profit on gutters because they can be done fairly inexpensive after you close on the home.

[MrTudo]

Not necessary.

But we have them

[pianogal]

I definitely advise to get gutters. We were having a real drainage issue on one side of our home every time we had a heavy rain. Part of the problem was that we installed a paver walkway down the side of the house to connect the driveway/front with the pool deck in the back. With all the water pouring off the roof and getting trapped between the walkway and the house, we had a real problem.

We had french drains installed in the walkway and gutters installed on the house. We've had downpours recently but no more water issues.

[121804]

Noticed the same thing when we were looking at homes! Our realtor told us that many times the builders don't want to take on the expense b/c buyers can put them on. Anyway, it sort of annoyed us; just seemed like a cheap move by builders.
We were looking in an area of excessive inventory & if we had bought in SW FL, that was going to be one of the terms of the sale--to have the seller/builder either put on gutters or take the price to install gutters from the sale price.
Can't see how NOT having gutters would be a good thing, so we were not about to take on an obvious must-have as an expense in this RE market.

[Prichard]

I personally don't like gutters, at least not all the way around a house. Some guttering might be necessary, but as far as I'm concerned, the less the better.

First, I think gutters are ugly. And, if they aren't ugly when they're put on, they will be. They get stained after several years and even preasur washing them doesn't help. Also, they detract from the architectural lines on nicer homes.

Second, like someone else said, they need to be nailed into the sofit. Often, water will seep into the areas where the gutters are nailed in causing rot - then you will need to remove your gutters, remove the wood and trim just to fix what your gutters destroyed.

Third, I hate cleaning gutters! I don't like climbing on rooves and scooping out bugs, leaves, debris, etc. And, if you don't do it, you will soon have wood rot, carpenter ants, and all kinds of nasty things eating your house.

Fourth, I have no gutters in the front or side of my house, and my landscaping does just fine, except in two locations, where I've installed some stones where the water pours down. This water is directed away from the house properly and I don't experience any errosion. The only place I have gutters on my ouse is around my screne porch, and it's bad enough that I have to clean those at least twice a year.