5 Things to Look For When Hiring a Gutter Contractor

Darren Driscoll • Apr 30, 2019
Nobody spends a lot of time taking Pinterest photos of their gutters or talking about them on HGTV. But they’re one of the most important parts of your house.
 
Especially in the Tampa metro area! Our torrential rains are no joke.
 
Your gutters protect your home. Which means your gutter contractor had best be someone good at his or her job.
 
But how can you know?
 
You’ve got to do a little research. Here are some things to look for.

1. A ton of positive reviews.

Look, customers aren’t exactly unaware of Google+, Yelp, and Facebook recommendations.
 
If a gutter company can’t get great reviews, something’s wrong.
 
Limping along with ten or twelve reviews means one of two things.
 
One, they’re new and untested. Or two, they do mediocre work. Not bad work, because then they’d have lots of bad reviews. Just mediocre work.
 
If they have tons of reviews but they aren’t very good reviews, well, that’s no better.
 
By the way, we recommend reading reviews. Stars aren’t the only thing that matters. It’s important to make sure the company demonstrates qualities you care about.
 
As of this writing, Rain Control Gutters has tons of reviews. Over 190 Google reviews with a 4.9 star rating.

2. Investment in the local community.

People who care about the community treat you like a neighbor and a friend. People who are just in it to make a buck treat you like a transaction.
 
The differences are subtle, but they matter.
 
We’ve been family owned, and locally owned, since 1975. That’s over 44 years of experience, all while living and working in Tampa. We support our local organizations, events, and people.

3. Seamless aluminum gutters.

Please don’t bother hiring a gutter contractor who will slap up the same vinyl gutters you can get at a big box store. Ugly seams and built-in leaks are no way to protect your home. Not here.
 
Even if you don’t hire us, please hire someone who does seamless aluminum gutters. Custom cut to fit your house. No seams, save for the places where the sections join at the corner.
 
Twenty year lifespans vs. ten year lifespans. What’s not to like?

4. Craftsmanship.

There are two things to consider here.

Materials.

Does the gutter company choose the best materials in the industry? Or do they try to stuff their own pockets by cutting corners and costs?
 
Shoddy materials won’t give you the results you’re looking for. And those gutters won’t last as long as aluminum gutters should.
 
Rain Control Gutters uses only the best materials. No skimping! 5″ gutters are the industry norm. We do 6″ gutters and only 6″ gutters. The thickest in the region.
 
We also use hidden hangers by Raytek.
 
Raytek hangers are the strongest in the industry. They’re rated for 200+ pounds of weight, which means you don’t have to worry about sagging gutters. They stay flush to your house. They’re capable of withstanding high winds.
 
And be careful, because some companies even use galvanized steel instead of aluminum. There’s a reason aluminum became the industry standard. Galvanized steel doesn’t resist rust as well as aluminum does.
 
By the way, despite using the best materials in the industry we still keep our prices reasonable. Seamless gutters should cost $4 to $6 per foot. If you’re hearing quotes any higher you’re about to get price gouged, and you should steer clear.

Workmanship.

It can be hard to measure workmanship but again, just look at the reviews.
 
“I highly recommend Rain Control Gutters. Their pricing is very reasonable and you can see they take pride in their work by the excellent job. They are a family-owned business and they are very personable. They not only do an excellent job but they left the work area clean as if they were not there and they were extremely fast getting me on the schedule .” – Diane Schmidt
 
If they have them, you can also look at some of the photos of the work the company has done in the past. Does their past work look like something you’d want on your house?

5. Professionalism.

There is just no excuse for failing to be professional at every step of the process.
 
First, let’s talk about the free estimate process. Other contractors say they’ll be there Monday and then show up on Thursday. We are there to provide the estimate when we say we’ll be there.
 
If they’re lazy about earning your business, how hard will they work when they have your money?
 
Prompt, friendly, and caring. Good customer service. That’s what you deserve, and that’s what you need to look for.
 
Ask a few more questions. Are they bonded? Insured? All reputable gutter contractors are. We are. We also provide warranties, including a 50-year paint guarantee.
 
Bonus question: how secure are they in the work they do?
 
Recently, we went ahead and published a list of all our competitors in the Tampa Bay area. Look, we want you to be happy. We’re here to put you first.
 
We also are secure in knowing there will always be enough work for us because we take good care of our customers.
 
Can other companies you’ve considered say the same?
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