Plan on one downspout for every 20 to 50 feet of gutter, with no more than about 700 square feet of roof draining to each one. Those are Snohomish County's published surface-water numbers. A roof valley that dumps onto a short run, or one long eave with a single outlet, needs more. Water spilling at one end of a clean gutter is the usual sign of too few.
Count the roof that drains to each run, not just the feet of gutter.
Backed by Wood & Wood Seamless Gutters, more than 30 years in the gutter business.
The two numbers to check
Snohomish County's surface-water guidance gives a simple pair: space downspouts 20 to 50 feet apart, and let no more than 700 square feet of roof drain to each. It is one county's advice, not a New England code, but it is a sound starting point.
The roof number matters more than the gutter number. Two houses with the same eave can shed very different amounts of water.
What raises the count
A roof valley, where two roof planes meet, pours a concentrated sheet onto a short stretch of gutter. That spot may need its own outlet. So may a long single run where all the water travels to one end before it can drop.
Adding a downspout also spreads the water out at the ground, so less of it lands in one place beside the foundation. Why gutters overflow covers the other signs to look for.
How we price them
Downspouts are their own line, priced per foot of downspout: $14 a foot installed, $16 for 6-inch, elbows included. A two-story side takes more footage than a ranch, so tell us the stories on each side. Downspout installation has the detail.
Call to install: every step
Three ways to start
- Call (617) 401-9301. It is answered any hour, and a missed call gets called back.
- Send the short form on the home page with your street address, and your number lands in your inbox.
- Text or chat through the chat window on this site.
Understand what you actually need
About fifteen minutes on the phone: the length of the roofline, the number of stories and the trees around the house. The roofline is measured remotely, so nobody comes to the house to sell. You get your price the same day, from the published per-foot rates.
- Gutters still in good shape: Gutter Clean Pro goes over the gutters you already have, from $18/ft.
- Gutters that need replacing: new gutters with the guard built in. T-Rex (continuous hanger) from $25/ft, or DoublePro (two filtration layers) from $30/ft.
- Fascia that cannot be drilled: Hover Pro, quoted for your house.
- Complex rooflines, third stories and copper are quoted separately, and we say so on the call, never after arrival.
Your plan, in writing
You get a written quote and your StormRail plan: photos of your house, the system, the gutter size and your color choices. The certified installer works from that same plan, so you and the installer are never on different pages.
A deposit capped at one third
Massachusetts law caps a home-improvement deposit at one third of the contract. We hold to that in every state we work in. Your quote names the exact figure before you pay anything.
Material ordered and confirmed
Your Alu-Rex system is ordered through the Alu-Rex distributor and confirmed before an install date is set, so the date you get is one the material can meet.
Scheduled with a certified installer in your county
A certified Alu-Rex installer working in your area takes the job, and you get the date without chasing anyone. In season we're typically booking four to six weeks out. We'd rather tell you that now than promise you Tuesday and send whoever happened to be free. Emergency work — a collapsed run, active water in the basement — gets triaged ahead of the queue.
Installed
The installer fits the system on the plan you already approved. Any balance is due as your quote states.
After the install
We check in after the job is done. Each system carries its own written Alu-Rex warranty:
- Gutter Clean Pro: manufacturing lifetime limited, clog performance lifetime limited, including coniferous areas
- T-Rex: manufacturing lifetime limited, clog performance 25-year prorated limited
- DoublePro: manufacturing lifetime limited, clog performance lifetime limited, including coniferous areas
Questions homeowners ask
How far apart should downspouts be?
Snohomish County's guidance is 20 to 50 feet apart.
How much roof can one downspout handle?
Snohomish County's guidance is no more than 700 square feet of roof per downspout.
How do I get a price?
Call (617) 401-9301 and tell us where your downspouts come down now. We count and price them on the same call.
Compare the systems before you call: all gutter guards, Gutter Clean Pro, T-Rex, DoublePro, and the full price list.
Sources
- Snohomish County, WA: Gutters and Downspouts snohomishcountywa.gov/6944/Gutters-and-Downspouts
Get a number for your roofline
One call is enough to start: the address, how many stories, and what grows over the roof. The published per-foot rate is the starting point, and the full scope and total are confirmed in writing before you pay anything.
Call (617) 401-9301