Metal roofing · Sydney
Guttering and Downpipes in Sydney
New gutters, downpipes and fascia, either with a new roof or on their own.
- Trade
- Certificate III roof plumber
- Work
- Re-roofs, new roofs, guttering
- Material
- Metal only. No tile.
- Area
- Sydney, west prioritised
What is included
What you are actually buying
Gutter replacement
New gutter set to a proper fall, on brackets at the correct spacing.
Downpipes reviewed, not copied
If the roof always overflowed, replicating the original layout reproduces the fault in new steel.
Fascia where it is needed
Brackets fix into the fascia. New guttering on softened timber will pull loose.
Connected to stormwater
Confirmed to actually take water, rather than assumed. A failed underground connection looks exactly like a leaking gutter.
Not included, deliberately
We work in metal only. No tile restoration, repointing or roof painting, no internal ceiling repairs, and no small leak chasing as a service. Job size is not a limit either way: there is no lower cut-off, and the crew scales up to roofs of around a thousand square metres.
How it works
From the first phone call to the clean up
We work out which fault you have
Overflow along the whole run is capacity. At one point is fall or a sag. Cleaning fixes neither.
You get told if it is not a gutter job
Sometimes it is a downpipe, sometimes it is the stormwater connection, and sometimes it just needs clearing.
Old gutter down, fascia inspected
The first look at the board behind it, and the point where a bigger job either appears or does not.
Brackets, fall, new gutter
Set to run downhill to the outlets, in a colour that suits the roof and the fascia.
Downpipes and connection
Added to where capacity was short, and connected properly at the bottom.
The detail
What you should know before you commit
Guttering is the part of the roof that everyone can see and nobody thinks about until water is coming over the front of it.
It sits with a roof plumber because it is roof plumbing, which means it does not have to be booked as a separate trade after somebody else has finished the sheets.
What actually fails
Gutters fail in a small number of predictable ways, and it is worth knowing which one you have before deciding whether to repair or replace.
Rust along the back edge
The back of the gutter sits against the fascia where it stays damp and is never seen. It rusts through there long before the visible front does.
Sagging between brackets
Once a gutter sags it holds water permanently, and standing water rusts it out. The cause is usually bracket spacing or a bracket that has pulled out of soft fascia timber.
Wrong fall
A gutter has to run downhill to the outlet. If it does not, it pools regardless of how new it is.
Not enough downpipes
Overflow in heavy rain is frequently a capacity problem rather than a blockage. Sydney storms deliver a lot of water very quickly and an under-drained roof simply cannot move it.
Doing it with the roof rather than after it
If a roof is being replaced, the gutters are already accessible, the fascia is exposed, and the roof edge detail is being remade anyway.
Replacing guttering at that point costs far less than bringing someone back for it later, and it avoids the situation where new sheet drains into a twenty year old gutter that fails first.
The reverse case is also worth naming. If your roof is sound and only the guttering has gone, replacing just the guttering is a legitimate job and we will quote it that way.
Work out which fault you have before paying anyone
Guttering problems get diagnosed as blockages by default, because cleaning is the obvious response. Frequently it is not the fault.
Watching where the water goes during the next heavy fall tells you more than another clean will.
| What you see | Most likely cause | Does cleaning fix it? |
|---|---|---|
| Overflow evenly along the whole run, in heavy rain only | Not enough downpipe capacity for the roof area | No |
| Overflow at one point, rest of the run coping | Wrong fall, or the gutter has sagged there | No |
| Water still sitting in the gutter an hour after rain | Fall is wrong or the run is level | No |
| Overflow at the back, running down the wall | Roof edge or gutter to fascia detail is wrong | No |
| Overflow after autumn, clears up once cleaned | Genuine blockage | Yes |
| Rust staining down the fascia | Gutter rusting through at the back edge | No |
| Gutter visibly dipping between brackets | Brackets pulling out of water damaged fascia | No |
The one that gets missed
Too few downpipes is the most common cause of overflow on a Sydney roof in a serious downpour, and it is the one that cleaning, guard and even a new gutter will not fix. If the original roof was under-drained, replacing the gutter without adding a downpipe reproduces the fault in new steel.
Want this priced for your roof rather than in general?
What a gutter replacement actually involves
More than swapping the visible channel, because the things a gutter fixes to and drains into both matter.
| Step | What happens | Decision point |
|---|---|---|
| Old gutter down | Removed in sections | First look at the fascia behind it. |
| Fascia inspected | Timber checked for water damage | Replace where it has softened. New brackets will not hold in it otherwise. |
| Brackets set | Fixed at the correct spacing and to a fall | Fall direction confirmed against outlet positions. |
| Gutter run | New gutter set to the brackets | Profile and colour to suit the roof and fascia. |
| Downpipes | Positions and quantity reviewed, not just copied | Add capacity here if the roof has always overflowed. |
| Stormwater connection | Downpipes connected to the existing drainage | Confirm the connection is sound rather than assumed. |
Guard, tanks and the things people ask about
Three questions come up on nearly every guttering job, and the honest answers are shorter than the sales versions.
Is gutter guard worth it?
Under trees, generally yes, especially where the gutter is high or awkward to reach safely. Without overhanging trees it usually is not. It lengthens the cleaning cycle rather than ending it, and guard over a gutter with the wrong fall still overflows.
Can I run a rainwater tank off this?
Yes, and a metal roof is the usual choice for it because it sheds cleanly. The tank side needs an accessible first flush device, a leaf screen at the inlet, and an overflow that goes somewhere legitimate rather than against the footings.
How often should gutters be cleared?
Twice a year suits a suburban house with no overhanging trees. Under trees it is more, and the timing matters more than the count. Clearing before storm season is worth more than clearing on a fixed date.
Reading your own gutters before anyone comes out
Most of what a roof plumber will tell you about your guttering can be worked out from the ground in one wet afternoon and one dry one.
It is worth doing, because it tells you whether you are looking at a clean, a repair or a replacement before anybody quotes.
| When | What to look for | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| During heavy rain | Which part of the run overflows | Evenly along the whole length means capacity. At one point means fall or a sag. |
| During heavy rain | Water coming over the back, down the wall | The roof edge or the gutter to fascia detail is wrong. Not a blockage. |
| An hour after rain | Water still sitting in the gutter | The fall is wrong or the run is level. Standing water rusts a gutter from the inside. |
| Any dry day | The gutter line, sighted along its length | A visible dip between brackets means the fascia behind has softened. |
| Any dry day | Rust staining down the fascia | The gutter is rusting through at the back edge, which is the part nobody ever sees. |
| Any dry day | How many downpipes serve each run | Too few for the roof area is the most common cause of overflow, and cleaning does nothing for it. |
Do this before booking a clean
If the overflow happens along the whole run in a downpour on a gutter you cleared last autumn, another clean will not change anything. That is a capacity problem and it is fixed with a downpipe, not a ladder.
Common questions
Guttering: common questions
Can you replace the gutters without replacing the roof?
Yes. If the roof is sound and only the guttering has failed, that is a job on its own and it gets quoted on its own.
My gutters overflow in heavy rain. Are they blocked?
Sometimes, but not always. Overflow in a serious downpour on a clear gutter usually means there are not enough downpipes for the roof area, or the fall is wrong, and neither is fixed by cleaning.
Do you replace fascia as well?
Where it is needed. Damaged fascia behind an old gutter is common and new guttering fixed to rotten timber will not hold, so it gets raised before the work rather than after.
Is gutter guard worth installing?
Under trees, generally yes, particularly where the gutter is hard to get to safely. Without overhanging trees it usually is not, and it reduces cleaning rather than eliminating it.
How do I know if my fascia is damaged?
You usually cannot until the gutter comes off. The warning signs from the ground are a gutter dipping between brackets, rust staining down the fascia, and brackets that look like they are pulling away.
Can you add extra downpipes without replacing the gutters?
Sometimes, and it is worth asking about. If the gutter is otherwise sound and the problem is capacity, adding a downpipe is a much smaller job than a replacement.
Do you do gutter cleaning?
Not as a service on its own. Gutters are cleared as part of a job we are already on, and a dedicated cleaning business will do it more cheaply than we can.
What size gutter do I need?
It depends on the roof area draining into it and how many downpipes it feeds. The practical test is whether the existing run overflows along its whole length in heavy rain, which points to capacity rather than size alone.
Can guttering be replaced in winter?
Yes. Unlike a roof replacement, the house is not open to the weather while guttering is being changed, so it is far less weather dependent.
Will new guttering match my roof?
Colours are chosen to suit the roof and the fascia. On a re-roof they are usually specified together, which is one reason doing both at once produces a better result.
Should the gutter match the roof or the fascia?
Either works and it changes the look. Matching the roof makes the roofline read as one band, and matching the fascia makes the gutter disappear into the trim.
Other services
The rest of what we do
Full re-roof
We take the old roof off and put a new metal one on. While it is open we check the timber underneath and replace anything that has rotted.
Tile to metal
Swap a tile roof for steel. The tiles come off, we check the frame is right for the change, and the new roof goes on in sheet.
New roofs
A brand new roof on an extension, a rebuild or a new house. We start at the bare frame and finish the lot.
Next step
Get your roof measured properly
On the roof where we can get to it, off satellite imagery where access is awkward. You get a figure for your roof, not a rate applied to a guess.