gutter problem.. need ideas

[Thehardway]

I have a 12:12 pitch roof with currugated galvalume metal roof over SIP's.

I am afraid that if I install gutters, ice will tear them off as it slides off the roof.  I don't see any good way to install snow birds or ice breakers on the roof as the SIPS don't give you much to fasten them into. I'm thinking of just putting some gravel beds with drainage tile under the eaves and calling it good or maybe even some rainwater collection ponds but the runoff sometimes overshoots depending on how hard it rains.  Wondering if anyone has some outside the box ideas they could share.  My goal is just to prevent water and mud from splashing up on the side of the house.   Also concerned about snow and ice sliding off an hitting someone/something.

[beenthere]

I leave the gutters off. Handle the water when it gets to the ground. Tolerate the drip on the noggin, but enjoy not having ice dams and having no gutter-cleaning tasks.

[rfm7fxfox]

I definitely wouldn't put gutters on that roof I would think the ice would rip em off and with that kinda pitch the only way to clean em would be up and down a ladder! make a nice drainage system around the house with some nice stone, dress it up nice and it will look amazing!

[mmhailey]

Hardway,

We live in a house here with a large part under a 14:12 pitch. I initially had gutters installed all around, but in the 12 years since moving in, have removed them all except over the entrance door.  This is my theory, and it totally unproven :D

My first suggestion is forgo the gutters, and keep a gravel drainage area under the eaves. The gravel will absorb the runoff, and prevent mud. It looks from your picture you have a stone or masonry stem wall, which also protects the siding from splash.


Second suggestion: I assume you left some amount of overhang with the Galvalume. Probably an inch or so....  Place the gutters in a position not right up against the roof, but lower it a bit so when the snow slides, the speed it comes down takes it out past the gutter. However when it rains the water drips into the gutter, and down the spouts.





P.S. Did I mention cleaning gutters is a PITA and even if you don't have trees close now to drop leaves in them you will some day.....

[laffs]

id go with a chrushed stone and a weed mat under that . maybe a retainer wall of stone or timbers to keep the stone off the lawn
Brent

[john_boylan]

My sister in Kings Mill, Williamsburg, has poured wide pebbled concrete troughs up to the foundation under the eaves to catch the normal rainfall and direct it away from the foundation. Sorta like the slightly sloped foundation stones I've seen around some of the historical structures in the Raleigh-Durham area.  Planted landscape beds outside the troughs serve to control any overshooting water and ice.  It is very attractive.

[PineNut]

My gutters consist of a cement-lined drainage around the house. Works good and easy to clean out with a leaf blower. I do have short gutters over the entrances but no down spouts. They do require a little cleaning.

[jamesamd]

Out of the box!
The cover (shield) from a leafless gutter,notched to fit the corragated roof,epoxied in place.
About 6" from the gutters,should collect the water and launch the snow/ice over the edge.

I've always disliked boxes,too confining>

Jim

[D Hagens]

Gutter less gutters, ever heard of it? I've done 3 jobs in 16 years using this concept; it's a very interesting and unique way of doing gutters. Google it, you might find it works for you. 

[Thehardway]

Thanks to all for the many great ideas.  I looked up the gutterless gutter system and it is pretty interesting but it is set up for a shingle roof, I'm not confident that it would work with my set up.  When it rains each corrugation is like a mini viaduct with a stream of water at fairly high velocity. I also fear that it would not handle the ice issues.

I think I am going to go with the no gutters approach and use a catchment of some type at the ground as so many of you reccommend. I don't want to clean gutters.  I might take a road trip to williamsburg and check out the historical way of doing it.

Also might consider using pervious concrete.

I won't get to it til spring so if anyone has additional insight I would appreciate it.

[Don_Papenburg]

I use 6" half round aluminum gutter on my house. The outer edge of the gutter should be at least 1" below the plane of the roof.  If you have "plastic ice" that tends to curl down as it slides off the edge, you need to lower the gutter a bit more. Half round gutter is fairly good at self cleaning.  Mine have been up for ten years now and still never had to clean them.
downspout baskets would be a problem area if you use them.

[pappy]

  A gutterless gutter system would be disastrous up in these parts with ice damming 

[thecfarm]

I did not want the mud slashing up on my foundation. I bought a truck load of ½ stones. Put a border of PT 2x4, should of used 4X4 and put the stones inside of that. I used a weed barrier under it, just some carpet from work. Have to keep the grass and weeds out of it. Just some vegetation killer keeps it clean. I do have sand for back fill all around my foundation too.

[D Hagens]

 
  I did a quick search online to see what people consider gutter less gutters to be and from what I can see it's way different then what we've done.
We build them from scratch, they are part of the house and you don't see them at all. What I see online is some pretty cheap tin stuff that's more of an afterthought.
What I've built was always applied to houses with steep roofs and would have no problem handling ice as the sheets would flow over one another as they hit the gutter then fall to the ground.
I definitely put something up as the rain, snow and other mess would splash up against the side of the house unless you put a short skirt up on the sides of the house. This helps and stops a lot of mess.

[beenthere]

D
You have my interest up, now how about some details about what you do with the built-in method?

[D Hagens]

D
You have my interest up, now how about some details about what you do with the built-in method?

Hard to explain without pics, wish I had pics.
Have you ever seen the old style gutter systems on flat roofs? Where they use the membrane to form a gutter.
Basically if you take that concept build it into the end of your roof line and eliminate your fascia you will have a gutter system that's functional and non-visible.
The downspouts we designed them to run inside of the walls, PVC pipes that ran to drain tile.
It's a great, strong and efficient system that's bullet proof. Very labour intensive but the end results and the look of it is pretty neat.