Half round gutters are an old-fashioned alternative to conventional square or rectangular gutters. This gutter style looks like a round open tube with its top half cut off and is classically made of copper, aluminum, zinc, galvanized steel, or other metals.
This type of gutter emerged in the early 1900s, with the invention of metal rolling machines. Half-round gutters used to be the most common but have since been replaced by more square or rectangular-shaped K-style gutters.
How Half Round Gutters Differ from Conventional K-Style Gutters
Half-round gutters are semi-cylindrical in shape and held in place by similarly shaped semi-circle brackets. A half round gutter’s interior is completely smooth, allowing for water to freely flow through it.
K-style gutters are rectangular in shape, with a flat back, flat bottom, and a ridged ogee-shaped front that widens out at the top.
The standard residential home uses a K-style gutter. The K-style is more popular at the moment because these gutters are easier to install, more durable, and can hold more water per foot.
Pros of Half Round Gutter Installation
Most of the pros of half round gutters come from the smooth, circular interior. Water flows much better through these gutters and the smooth surface makes for easier cleaning.
It’s much easier to clean dirt and debris from a smooth half round gutter. You don’t have to try to wipe around ridges or work to get any compacted organic matter out of a curve.
Half-round gutters are also less prone to corrosion and less prone to leaks since they have smooth interiors that lack the ridges of K-style gutters. This makes them lower maintenance and more durable.
Fewer leaks and less maintenance work are great reasons to go with a half round gutter system. These gutters can work in all weather conditions.
On top of that, half round gutters are quite decorative and have a historic appeal. Half round gutter systems are appropriate for older architectural styles and historic homes.
Cons of Half Round Gutter Installation
Half round gutters hold less water than K-style gutters. A K-style’s ridging might be more difficult to clean out, but this feature extends its holding capacity.
Cleaning might be easier with a half round gutter, but it’s also easier for debris to collect in these systems.
Half-round gutters tend to be more expensive than K-style gutters. That’s mainly because they aren’t as in demand.
These gutters can also be more difficult to install. You can’t just drill it into the roof’s fascia. Brackets must be measured, drilled, and then attached one by one. The gutter sections also have to be fastened together. Nails aren’t appropriate for connecting half-round gutters and some products require soldering.
The Half Round Gutter Installation Process
Half round gutters are hung, not drilled, in place. To install them, you will need to attach a bracketing system, prepare the gutters, hang them in place, solder them together, and then attach the downspouts.
Here are the steps.
- Mark out the pitch.
Begin by marking out the gutter’s pitch. The standard gutter pitch (or slope) is half an inch down for every 10 feet across.
To find this, start at the high point of the gutter’s run and mark where the bracketing screws should go. Hold a bracket and piece of gutter against the fascia here. Then mark the screw hole placement with a pencil.
Go to the downspout end and use a water level to make a matching mark. Then mark the gutter’s low point directly underneath it. Use the pitch guidelines of ½” down for every 10 feet across to determine where the low point should be.
Now snap a chalk line between the two points.
- Attach the gutter brackets
Affix the gutter brackets to the roof. Screw them into the fascia’s rafter tails where the chalk line is. Drill pilot holes into the rafters, then screw the brackets in.
The ideal spacing varies. Manufacturers often recommend spacing no more than 36” apart, but at least 32” is safer since gutters in areas with more ice and snow need more support.
Brackets must be placed at the corners and ends.
- Cut out downspout holes
Now cut out holes where the downspouts will go.
Find these holes by measuring from the end of the roof to the points above where each downspout will go.
Transfer those points to the gutters along with marks for the downspout brackets.
Cut out appropriately sized holes with a saw or shears.
- Set the gutters in place
Hang, connect, then solder the gutters to set them into place.
First, place the gutters into the brackets by hooking the back edge to the brackets. Secure the front edge with pop rivets, spring hooks, or screws.
Then join the gutter sections together. If the half round gutters are made of aluminum, you can use slip-joint connectors, pop rivets, or aluminum gutter cement. If they are made of copper or steel, it’s best to solder them.
- Install the downspouts
Completely assemble the downspouts and elbows. Position the downspouts to point away from the house and towards the property’s underground water drainage system.
Drill and secure the downspout brackets in place. The brackets should go above and below the downspout elbows.
Half Round Gutter Installation Services
Contact AGR Roofing & Construction for gutter installations and gutter repairs. We’ve been installing roofs and gutters throughout Nebraska and Iowa for over 20 years.
Our professional roofing team is experienced in installing conventional, specialty, and old-fashioned gutters. And our work comes with exceptional customer service, including complimentary consultations and total waste removal.
