Stephen wrote:
Hello,

My gutter is about 9 metres long. A chap went up a ladder to clean it
out and said the seals were beginning to perish. He said they were not
a problem now but might be in the future, but he didn't say how long
into the future. Is it just a matter of replacing the joins or is it
best to rip the whole length down and replace whilst we have some nice
weather? If we did replace the gutter, what is the longest single
length you can buy? I see Screwfix and toolstation only sell 3 metre
lengths, I presume because of transport considerations. A builder said
you can get 4 metres lengths but even those would require three joins.

Thanks,
Stephen.

Contrary to popular myth, the more joints you have, the less chance it has
of ever leaking.

As has already been mentioned elsewhere in this thread, guttering expands
and contracts - a lot, and if you have a 5m length, you are going to lose at
least 50mm of this in winter, and as it pulls itself through the joint, it
drags out the rubber seal underneath.
Given that each piece only usually overlaps into the joint and at outlets by
about 50mm, after a season or two, the seals are mangled.
If you use shorter lengths, say 2.5 or 3m and more joints, you are giving
the gutter more space to expand and contract without displacing these rubber
seals.

--
Phil L
RSRL Tipster Of The Year 2008