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New Gutters Buckled Under Weight Of Snow?

  • 19-01-2013 7:55pm
    #1
    Ginger83
    Registered Users Posts: 3,526 ✭✭✭


    Hi all, we had Niagra black gutters fitted 18 months ago and there was heavy snow all day yesterday. The snow slid down the roof and hit the gutters, the brackets snapped under the weight the left the gutters dangling off the fascia.
    Has anyone had any experience of this happening?
    I searched online to find it say the brackets should be a max of 800mm apart but ours was 750mm, well within guidelines. The manufacturer states a 10yr warranty so I am wondering what would be best to do? Should I go back to the place I bought them or the manufacturer?


Comments

  • #2
    Al Capwned
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,721 ✭✭✭Al Capwned


    tbh, op, i'd just get new brackets and re-fit. They aren't designed to bear the load of a roof full of snow, so i doubt that either the manufacturer or the fitter would be liable. Says he leaving himself open to be corrected. :)

    I re-fitted a lot of gutters after the last heavy snow two years ago, and in some places, i spaced the brackets at 550/600mm.


  • #3
    CJhaughey
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 14,907 ✭✭✭✭CJhaughey


    Countries that have a lot of snow have plates running horizontally across the roof to stop the whole lot sliding down and either killing/injuring someone or breaking the guttering.
    http://inspectapedia.com/roof/Snow_Guards.htm


  • #4
    kkelliher
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,583 ✭✭✭kkelliher


    Ginger83 wrote: »
    Hi all, we had Niagra black gutters fitted 18 months ago and there was heavy snow all day yesterday. The snow slid down the roof and hit the gutters, the brackets snapped under the weight the left the gutters dangling off the fascia.
    Has anyone had any experience of this happening?
    I searched online to find it say the brackets should be a max of 800mm apart but ours was 750mm, well within guidelines. The manufacturer states a 10yr warranty so I am wondering what would be best to do? Should I go back to the place I bought them or the manufacturer?

    This happened on hundreds of houses in the snow of late 2010. Gutters are not design to take a point load which is the case with melting and movement of mounds of snow. A gutter is designed to carry the weight of drops of water and then the weight of flowing water within the gutter. When snow melts and slips down a roof it has a massive amount of weight and pressure and gutters have no hope.

    As stated above it is relativly simple to refit the brackets and add a few more if required.

    As a point of note, it would be covered by your insurance if you wished to go down that route but I would not see if been of benifit to you in the long run given the likly cost of repair


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