Gutter installation/attachment questions

[Jay-T]

I just had new soffits, fascia, and seamless gutters installed on a 3-story house I own. I had this done after a new roof (with all new plywood decking, etc.) was put on a few weeks ago.

My question is about how the gutters get attached to the house. Since it is an old house, some parts of the fascia are aluminum wrapped contoured would trim, and other parts are flat fascia. Where it could be done, the contractor screwed the new gutters directly into the fascia with no overhead hanging straps. But, for other areas, the contractor needed to use hanging straps that get attached to the roof.

For the areas where hanging straps needed to be attached to the roof, how should that be done?

I always thought that the hanging straps should be attached by lifting the first row of shingles and then nailing or screwing the straps to the roof underneath that first row. However, this contractor just placed the metal hanging straps on top of the shingles and screwed them in through the shingles into the roof decking.

A neighbor of mine who owns a number of properties that he has had rehabbed said that's how they do it now. When I said I thought that could cause roof leaks he said that they use clear caulk where the screws go in to prevent leaks. In my case, the contractor didn't use any caulk - he just screwed the straps through the shingles and into the roof decking.

So, how should these hanging straps be attached to the roof?

[aemeijers]

If your roofer used the self-sealing ice dam membrane on the lower 3 feet of the roof (required by code here in snow country, for new construction, and maybe for full tear-offs), you should be okay. I probably would have made other arrangements while the roof deck was bare, just for looks, but roofers hate doing any special touches that slow them down, being paid by the job and all.

[EXT]

There is no way that I would accept gutter support straps screwed on top of and through the shingles, caulk or no caulk. That is a lazy shortcut. The bottom edge of the shingles should droop into the gutter to deposit the water into the gutter, how does the shingle do that if the gutter support strap is mounted over the shingle. Sounds like water damage coming in short order.

[Jay-T]

I hadn't thought about that aspect of it -- meaning how the shingles will direct the flow of water where the straps are screwed in. I'll look at that more closely tomorrow.

It does look like a lazy shortcut to me, but I just don't know what the standard way of doing it is supposed to be. I'll keep searching to see if I can find that information somewhere.

[hrhofmann]

You got the fast easy method, too late now, but double-check there is a waterproofing membrane all along the lower edge, and that there is caulk around the screws, you might have to carefully remove one to see.

[Bob F]

I've never seen gutters installed that way. If it were my house, I'd demand the damage to the roof be properly repaired, and the gutters properly installed.

Just another reason to D-I-Y.

[Jay-T]

Thanks hr(bob) and others.

It looks like I did get the fast, easy, crappy, and wrong method of hanging the gutters. There is definitely no caulk around the screws.

I did some

searching and found gutter installation videos and they all show that when using the gutter roof hangers with straps the straps get nailed on under the shingle -- not through the shingles.

One brand of the hangers is Amerimax Home Products 5" Mill Finish Roof Hanger with Strap (21030). Here's a link to a photo that shows them being mounted under the shingle:

[Southern Storms Seamless Gutte]

The t strap is connected directly to the middle of the gutter in to the gutter hangar. The strap would lay directly flat on top of the shingles. Therefore, the shingles would directly drip into the middle of the gutter catching every last drop. Can spray paint straps to color of roof after caulked and should be fine for next 20 years if done properly.

[John]

I may be misunderstanding the product you are talking about but ...

Making holes in your shingles sounds like a really bad idea! Strap type gutter hangers should be nailed into the roof sheathing *under* the shingles (and under the rubber ice guard if so equipped).

John

[Jeremiah Roper]

replying to John, Jeremiah Roper wrote: Actually roof warranty is void with most manufacturers if you lift the shingle and screw underneath. Anything sticking up under a shingle like a screw head, will work it's way through the shingle quickly causing a much bigger problem. Screws or nails work out over time and it only takes one summer to poke up through the roof. I've personally seen it. Now I install straps on top.

[trader_4]

The man said nails.

The man said nails.

The roof deck is full of nails holding the deck on. I guess any nails holding hangers would be subject to different loads and might pull out easier. And if screws or nails wind up pulling out, what does that say about using them on top of the shingles too?

Not on my roof, you wouldn't. I wouldn't have brackets over or under the shingles. If normal brackets that go into the fascia were used in most places on the job, I don't see why they couldn't be used everywhere. The mistake here was not planning out the whole thing ahead of time. That's what I did when I got a new roof. I checked all the soffits, gutters, replaced some rotting wood that I found, so that when the roofers came, it was all good to go. And if I saw any gutter hangers nailed to the roof, I would have said, woooah, what's up with this?