This is the half of the system that decides whether any of it worked. The gutter collects water off the roof, which is the easy part. The downspout answers the only question that matters afterward, which is where all of that water is going to land. Emptying it a step from the wall means the roof has been carefully funneled into the ground right against the foundation, over and over, every time it rains and every time the snow on the roof melts.
Getting it right is rarely dramatic work. It is adding an outlet so a long run is not straining through one drop, extending discharge past the drip line onto ground that falls away, moving a downspout off the low corner of the lot, or carrying the water underground to a point where it can leave. None of that is glamorous and none of it shows in a listing photo, which is exactly why it is the first thing skipped and the last thing anybody inspects.
Walk the perimeter in the rain, or run a hose through each downspout. The spot each one empties into tells you more than any drawing of the system will.
How much roof drains into each run decides how many drops it should have. Runs that overflow at one end are often short an outlet rather than short on cleaning.
Water has to leave toward ground that falls away from the house and away from walkways, low corners and the neighbor's side yard. Sometimes that means relocating a downspout entirely.
Once the extensions or the buried line are in, water goes down each one and somebody watches the far end. If it does not come out where it should, it is not finished.
Drainage pricing depends mostly on how far the water has to travel and what is in the way. Adding a downspout to an existing run is a modest job: an outlet, the pipe, the straps. Surface extensions are cheaper still. Buried line is where the number climbs, because it involves digging, and digging costs more through hard ground, tree roots, established landscaping, driveways or a fully finished yard than it does through open dirt. Two-story runs and awkward access add labor. The length of gutter feeding the work, the number of drops it needs and whether existing downspouts can be reused all move the total as well.
Far enough that it lands on ground sloping away from the foundation and keeps going. There is no single distance that works everywhere, because it depends entirely on your grade. On a lot that falls away sharply, a short extension does the job. On flat ground, or where the yard slopes back toward the house, the water needs to be carried much further before it is genuinely gone rather than just relocated.
Often, and it is a clean solution when the yard cooperates. The water gets carried in buried pipe to a point where it can discharge to daylight, well clear of the house. Two things to keep in mind: the outlet end has to actually be lower than the inlet, and buried line can collect debris over time, so it should be accessible enough to clear rather than sealed away and forgotten.
Frequently because two roof planes drain to a single downspout that empties there. A large share of the roof is being delivered to one small patch of ground, and the ground cannot take it that fast. Splitting the roof between two outlets or moving the discharge point usually solves it. It is worth checking before assuming the problem is the soil.
In summer, not much, as long as the driveway drains away from the house. In winter it becomes a different question, because that water freezes where it spreads, and the spot you walk on is now the spot the roof drains onto. Discharge points that cross walkways, steps or driveways are usually worth relocating for that reason alone.
Formed on site from a coil, so a straight run carries no joints except at the corners and the outlets. That matters, because joints are where leaks concentrate. Size and downspout count get decided by your roof, not by habit.
Learn more →Sagging runs, water still standing in the trough two days after a storm, corners that weep down the fascia. Most of it traces back to pitch that drifted or fasteners letting go, and neither one requires replacing the whole house.
Learn more →They reduce how often somebody is on a ladder at your house. They do not end it. Products differ enormously in how they shed fine grit and how they behave in a downpour, so the real question is which problem yours has.
Learn more →Twice a year is the rhythm most houses here need, weighted toward after the leaves drop. What neglect costs is not a full trough, it is water going over the front lip at the one spot you would never choose.
Learn more →Takes about a minute, or call 801-823-6018 and skip the typing.