Can You Paint Rain Gutters?

painting gutters

Some of our clients in West Jordan and Orem ask the team here at Capitol Exteriors if you can paint rain gutters. The answer is yes, you usually can, but you probably don’t want to. We’ll explain why.

Rain Gutter Material

When you think about painting anything, the first thing you want to consider is what it’s made of. That can matter. For instance, if you have vinyl rain gutters on your West Jordan or Orem home, you have to purchase special paint that’s formulated for outdoor use and that will stick to the vinyl and not peel off. This type of paint is best applied with a sprayer. This would be hard to accomplish on a ladder, and you would have to cover your roof and your home to prevent overspray.

Both aluminum and steel gutters can also be painted, but you cannot paint galvanized steel gutters. And you wouldn’t want to, because the value of galvanized steel gutters is that they are covered in a material that protects them from rust and corrosion.

Prepping Your Rain Gutters for Painting

It’s essential that your rain gutters be completely clean before you paint them, or the paint will not stick. Cleaning them — and possibly scraping off the old, flaking paint — can be a tedious process.

Don’t make the mistake of buying gutter wash at the home goods store and cleaning your gutters with a hose. That’s fine for a routine cleaning, but if you’re painting your rain gutters, you’ll need to scrub them first with detergent, vinegar and water. Then you’ll need coats of primer and acrylic before you get to the painting stage.

Oftentimes it is best to remove your gutters before you paint them. It makes the job of cleaning and painting your rain gutters easier, but removing them and reinstalling them can be quite aggravating, and you’ll need helpers.

Should You Replace Your Gutters?

You may discover in the removal process that your rain gutters are not in the shape you thought they were in. You may find holes in the gutters or brackets that need replacing.

If your gutters are more than 15 years old, you may save a lot of time by opting for gutter replacement rather than painting your gutters.

The Last Word on Painting Rain Gutters

Since painting rain gutters is so much work, the only good reason to do it is to change the color to better match your home. However, most rain gutters are some shade of white, and these will match any color you paint your home. One exception would be if you paint your home white and your rain gutters are ecru or off-white — then they can look dingy. When your rain gutters are too old to paint, rely on Capitol Exteriors for rain gutter replacement, repair or installation.

At Capitol Exteriors we provide quality workmanship and customer service, honesty and professionalism. We stand behind our work on every project and strive for excellence. It is through this belief that we attribute all of our success and look to build lasting relationships into the future.

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