Gutters and downspouts are an extremely important aspect of any roof design and IT IS NOT GOOD TO DESIGN A ROOF THAT IS GUTTERLESS!
This 6 year old house has no gutters anywhere and never has.
Can you see where a large portion of this roof rain water ends up?
A gallon of rain water is contained in an area 21" x 11" x 1". During heavy rains not only does this water rush to the point indicated by the red circle, but all over the roof to the left. Where does it end up?
Right at the stairwell!
This leads, of course, to the basement.
Huge holes have been dug into the soil behind the stairwell lip.
You can look into the large holes there all the way down into oblivion.
HOUSES DON'T MAKE VERY EFFECTIVE BOATS!
But look further.
Mud, muck and debris collect at the bottom of the stairs.
And clog the drain, which leads to the sump pump...
And rots the wood trim at the base of the doorway...
And fills up the pit!
My client returned to the house a few days later during a heavy rain and sent me a video she calls "Dancing In The Rain."
The sump pump could not keep up!
What a mess!
And this was just one problem of many all around this house. And all were water related - draining, cascading, splashing, rushing water!
My recommendation: houses are often built without gutters as the designer thinks it helps the house to retain an architectural appeal. It might do that, but form over function is often a very bad idea! There was not only damage to trim and roofing all around the house, but major soil erosion as thousands of gallons of water collect around house. That pressure will work on the foundation over time, doing unnecessary, and perhaps one day catastrophic, damage. Gutters are essential to collect and divert roof water. Further, these gutters MUST be large enough, with downspouts large enough, to handle the amount of water the roof collects! The downspouts that this rain water is diverted to must, that is MUST, carry that water well away from the house! And grading, of course, that also encourages water away from the house, cannot be an afterthought. As stated above, HOUSES DON'T MAKE VERY EFFECTIVE BOATS!
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