Which gutter

[88v8]

There are so many forum hits from the search 'gutter'..........

I need a flat-back gutter no more than 2" deep to take the runoff from a small roof. Any more than 2" and the bottom will occlude the window head.
Longbottom don't offer a cast iron variant less than 3" deep.

Any options for something Period looking, iron or cast ally?
It will sit quite low, so very visible.

As a last resort I suppose I could cut down the Longbottom OG with the angle grinder, only need 12' or so.

Ivor

 

[MikeG]

I guess a lead-lined oak gutter isn't the look you're going for.........

 

[88v8]

Alas not.
And I suspect, nay I'm quite sure, that if I were involved in the leadwork it would leak like a sieve

Ivor

 

[Flyfisher]

If you only require 12 feet of guttering then it could easily be made from a single roll of lead, so no joints and less risk of leaks. Having said that, perhaps a sIngle length would be prone to failure through expansion/contraction - I've no real idea how lead guttering is made or how any joints are handled to avoid such things, unless each short length flows into a lower section like a sort of 'waterfall'. But with only two inches of depth to play with that might prove difficult in this case.

Just thinking out loud really - I wonder if there's a lead expert out there who would know? :wink:

I've seen Wickes advertising something called 'mini line' guttering but as far as I can tell it's only 'mini' in width (2 inches) and not depth.

 

[Abi Cott]

I've seen Wickes advertising something called 'mini line' guttering but as far as I can tell it's only 'mini' in width (2 inches) and not depth.

It's quite shallow as well. Probably about 2" high. I've carried a fair bit of it but not measured it recently. However it's fairly ordinary plastic stuff and designed to fit a 2" downpipe

 

[MikeG]

If you only require 12 feet of guttering then it could easily be made from a single roll of lead, so no joints and less risk of leaks. Having said that, perhaps a sIngle length would be prone to failure through expansion/contraction.....

Maximum length of a single piece of lead is restricted to about 5 feet (1500mm) to reduce splitting due to expansion/ contraction. A 12 foot gutter shouldn't be made in one piece.

 

[DJH]

Maximum length of a single piece of lead is restricted to about 5 feet (1500mm) to reduce splitting due to expansion/ contraction. A 12 foot gutter shouldn't be made in one piece.

This is generally correct Mike especially when using the thinner Codes (thicknesses) of lead sheet. However the thicker the lead sheet the longer in length it can be used, for example, Code 8 lead can be used up to three metres (10 feet) in length depending that the width does not exceed certain parameters. These restrictions on the lengths that lead sheet can be used are based on the lead being fixed at one end and to a certain degree along one edge. This is usually about one third to halfway down one side from the head fixings and vary for flashing or cladding applications.

In the case of lead lined wooden gutters where the lead sheet does not need to be secured and can therefore expand at both ends, exception can be made to the recommended sizes of lead sheet.

Doug

 

[DJH]

Just to expand (pun intended ) on this topic about gutters I was asked to have a look at some leadwork on a country house built within the last ten to fifteen years as there was ingress of water at the parapet gutter and below the coping stones.

There was a distinct lack of drips (steps) in the construction of the gutters which allow for the expansion and contraction of lead sheet. To compensate for this rubber (neoprene) "expansion" strips have been used.

Here's the result...



The rubber joints have failed spectacularly resulting in fatigue cracks in the lead sheet. An attempt has been made to repair these cracks (this is not the only area suffering from this problem ) by welding the sheet together. It will fail again.

I suppose the moral of this is don't let anyone talk you into non standard solutions to traditional methods...

Doug

 

[88v8]

Give an idiot a length of lead... quite possibly the wrong thickness - and a bag of bronze holdfast nails and let him loose on the roof of the conservatory/lean-to he's rebuilt, and he leads around the upstands of the roof hatches he's put in and makes a back gutter and in hard rain it leaks. The woodwork is cedar so it doesn't rot, but it drips on the doormat. He can't find the leak, which was probably due to inadequate lap in the 25 degree roof, and by the time he sells the house he's been in for 30 years, some of his then 27 year old last-for-ever leadwork is beginning to crack where he's overstretched it.
Lead. Not so easy.

The notion that I might make a gutter with an outlet that wouldn't leak might have occurred to me 30 years ago.
But not now.

Longbottom have an ogee gutter with a 2.1875" back. Cat no - where did I put the cat - is 0840 something. It's not dimensioned in the cat, so I rang them. That will do the job. The excellent Longbottom, kings of cast iron..

'Can I email you an order?'
'Oh no - suitable accent - there's no computers ere'

And it will arrive in their own lorry, along with some of their 2" arm-and-leg pipe and fittings. Their own lorry. Carriers? Pah!!!

I shall paint it in Epoxy 121 two-pack. Without a top coat, that weathers to a nice lead paint-look, and should never ever require repainting. Never is a variable concept of course.

Ivor

 

[Feltwell]

Longbottom are definitely one of those companies that refuses to embrace the modern age. They will send small items by carrier, but when I asked them if I could pay by credit card over the phone, I got a "Oh no - we're firmly in the cheque era my friend, pop one in the post". Their range is fantastic and their knowledge is excellent so I really hope they survive.

However, especially for the larger contracts which come up, other foundries with a much more basic range have invested in things such as selling pre-finished painted ranges online. If you're a contractor that will be a very attractive option, as the painting stage prior to putting cast iron up is time consuming and needs a dry secure area - not easy on a site.

There is a large part of me that thinks that businesses such as Longbottom need to retain the stuff they're very good at and are well respected for - breadth of range, depth of knowledge, customer service, product quality - but also accept that the world has changed and buy in the expertise to set up an online catalogue and ordering, invest in the kit or look at having an external contractor offer a pre-painting service, etc etc.

For your average bod in an old house who needs some cast iron bits Google will point them towards the likes of Classical Rainwater, which is part of the giant Saint Gobain building products group. I just Googled "cast iron guttering" and Longbottom didn't appear. I really hate it when these old knowledgeable businesses disappear, and I hope so much that Longbottoms don't join that group.