Any advantage to upgrading to 6 inch gutters vs. 5 inch?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is no reason in the world to use 6"

6" is what they use on large apartment buildings.

I'm a builder. Have built 2 houses for myself and used 5" both times. Don't waste your money.

I wouldn't listen to this "builder." Most are notorious for cheaping out on stuff. We've upgraded both of our homes to 6" gutters and 3x4 downspouts and the difference is very apparent at a minimal price difference (a few hundred bucks for a whole house). Do yourself a favor and get the 6" gutters. The big kicker isn't just the gutter size, but the downspout size. I think 5" gutters use a 2"x3" downspout. 3"x4" flow a LOT more which helps a few things. #1- Flush leaves out of the gutters/downspouts (don't need to have them cleaned very often and don't use those stupid gutter guards). #2- Catch all the water during storms.

Oh ya, apartment buildings can use even larger gutters. There are 8"+ gutters, you can google it yourself OP.

Came here to say this! I just had my gutters replaced and I’m glad I went with the 6”. I used Home Doctor in VA. Good luck OP

[Anonymous]

We upgraded to 6" about 8 months ago, and it was totally worth it. Ours were overflowing and wearing out siding in a few spots. They would also get clogged up with leaves and such despite regular gutter cleanings. No issues or overflow problems since.

[Anonymous]

Is there a thermal advantage in having black gutters over white gutters? Is ice less likely to form and/or would it be more likely to melt faster?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is there a thermal advantage in having black gutters over white gutters? Is ice less likely to form and/or would it be more likely to melt faster?

It might be a disadvantage, if it makes snow melt and then the meltwater refreezes before it can run off.

[Anonymous]

From what I've read online, it seems like switching to 6" and 3X4 is only a few hundred dollars. That's not that expensive to reduce the maintenance (how often they need cleaned) and allow for more water volume. It's not like the price is doubling so why not just do it?

[Anonymous]

I appreciate the discussion concerning 5 in. vs 6 in. gutters with the appropriate downspouts. I recently discovered that all my gutters are leaking at the seams, and I am lining up quotes to evaluate replacing them over the next week. I don't know what size I currently have. I also don't know how long this has been a problem. I've only owned the home for around two years and the only thing my home inspector noted about the gutters was the screws were pulling away and needed to be re-seated.

Are 6 inch gutters heavier than 5 inch? Would they be more prone to pull away or fall off in bad storms? We get some severe gullywashers and heavy winds on occasion.

I have an end unit townhouse and the roof pitch doesn't seem steep. Would getting a larger gutter look noticeable compared to the house next door? What would a general per linear foot price for seamless aluminum range? I see a wide range online from the various home advisor type websites.

I realize these are a lot of questions, but I am concerned about being taken advantage of.

I saw the earlier conversations about negativity and generalizations but I think it comes from being burned in the past. Before the pandemic shut things down, I asked for quotes from 5 contractors to replace a decaying retaining wall. One never sent a written proposal or responded after two attempts; another stood in front of me and quoted a price, which was in line with what another contractor gave me. However when he sent a written proposal, he doubled the price on everything. It's an interesting process to go through, but it can also be disheartening.

[Anonymous]

As a professional roofer, I can assure you that the last person you want to listen to about quality building and construction is a builder. Builder grade materials are extremely cheap and they cut corners all the time. The cost difference between 5” and 6” is $1 per linear foot. With 5”, you need a downspout every 30’, with 6” its ever 40’, so depending on how cut up your roof is, 6” can actually come out a little cheaper if you can have 1 less downspout. I was surprised the first time I wrote up and estimate for both on a house that wasn’t too cut up and the 6” came out cheaper. What you really need to consider is the slope of your roof. If you have a 6/12 or higher, you should have 6” for sure. The water is going to run off faster and flood out the 5” gutters. A builder built a home for himself that my dad ended up buying later and you wouldn’t believe the corners he cut on his own home.

[Anonymous]

We put in 6” gutters and girthier downspouts because they looked better (copper) on our remodeled house.

[Anonymous]

Just did my gutters. It cost me an extra 90 bucks to go from 5 inch gutters to 6 inch gutters on the whole house. A no brainer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As a professional roofer, I can assure you that the last person you want to listen to about quality building and construction is a builder. Builder grade materials are extremely cheap and they cut corners all the time. The cost difference between 5” and 6” is $1 per linear foot. With 5”, you need a downspout every 30’, with 6” its ever 40’, so depending on how cut up your roof is, 6” can actually come out a little cheaper if you can have 1 less downspout. I was surprised the first time I wrote up and estimate for both on a house that wasn’t too cut up and the 6” came out cheaper. What you really need to consider is the slope of your roof. If you have a 6/12 or higher, you should have 6” for sure. The water is going to run off faster and flood out the 5” gutters. A builder built a home for himself that my dad ended up buying later and you wouldn’t believe the corners he cut on his own home.

This poster knows what he’s talking about. 6 inch is not much more than 5 inch. Labor is the same. My house gutters total cost was $1600 6 years ago, for the six inch. Seems the larger size helps leaves go down. It also looks better in my opinion, Have only had one gutter cleaning and there were barely any leaves in the gutter with before and after pictures.

[Anonymous]

The big pouring rains seems to get more extreme around here. It is not going to improve. If rain overflows the gutter, bad for your siding and window trim.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is no reason in the world to use 6"

6" is what they use on large apartment buildings.

I'm a builder. Have built 2 houses for myself and used 5" both times. Don't waste your money.

I wouldn't listen to this "builder." Most are notorious for cheaping out on stuff. We've upgraded both of our homes to 6" gutters and 3x4 downspouts and the difference is very apparent at a minimal price difference (a few hundred bucks for a whole house). Do yourself a favor and get the 6" gutters. The big kicker isn't just the gutter size, but the downspout size. I think 5" gutters use a 2"x3" downspout. 3"x4" flow a LOT more which helps a few things. #1- Flush leaves out of the gutters/downspouts (don't need to have them cleaned very often and don't use those stupid gutter guards). #2- Catch all the water during storms.

Oh ya, apartment buildings can use even larger gutters. There are 8"+ gutters, you can google it yourself OP.

+1
We are in the process of upgrading the builder gutters bc he cheaped out (our contract specified copper but not what size). One part of our house has consistent overflowing issues and needs to be upgraded to 6”. A large part of the cost is labor so I’d get the largest ones now so you’re not upgrading down the road as we get more of these storms that used to be called 50 or 100 year storms. The basement area where we have overflowing gutters gets water when they overflow. I’d do whatever you can to overbuild now to prevent having to upgrade later

[Anonymous]

I'd do semicircular (not K shaped) 6 inch gutters.

[Anonymous]

NP, planning to change gutters soon. I have done my research and concluded that, for my smallish house, 5-inch K gutters would suffice, and 6-inch would look too large. However, I prefer to do half round gutters as they would be a better fit architecturally. Also based on my research, I understand that hand round gutters hold less water than K shaped ones. Based on that, I am leaning toward 6 inch half round gutters. Anyone BTDT?

[Anonymous]

NP again. Just to add to the discussion, this video offers a nice short explanation as to why 6-inch gutters may not be a good solution for many.

In my case, however, I have not ruled out 6-inch gutters because I am planning half-rounds.