Gutter Screws

Which is better, gutter screws or gutter nails?

The simple answer is Gutter screws! If your gutter installer wants to use gutter spike and ferrule method to hang your gutters, do yourself a favor and get another installer.

Common sense and the over whelming evidence proves nail spikes do not work. Most of you are familiar with these large nails working loose and need pounded back in place each Fall when you are up there cleaning the gutters.

The spike and ferrule method involves a metal tube that is placed inside the gutter for strength and to keep it from bending. The spike is driven through the face of the gutter at the top, through the ferrule and into the wood fascia board.

Why do they become loose every year?

As the temperature changes from hot to cold, your gutters will expand and contract.

As the gutter warms up, it expands laterally, but the spikes try to keep it from expanding.

This force puts a large amount of pressure on the spike and over a period of time will force them out. The longer the gutter run, the more noticeable this problem is.

Once the spikes have been pulled out, they have lost their ability to hold, so no matter how many times you hammer them back in, they will get loose again.

A sagging gutter is a good indication that you have loose spikes.  As it sags, it accumulates water in the low spots. This extra the weight in the gutter intensifies the problem. 

A far superior installation is to use hidden hangers with screws.  The wood grip screws should be at least  a # 10 x 1.5 inches long and be made from stainless steel or have a corrosion resistant coating.

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