A guttering question

[Penny29]

Hi,

We are attaching new PVC guttering to our new extension and our barn.

The local builders merchant's has the twisted arm thingies (sorry for lack of technical terms - if anyone knows the French for the thingie I would be so grateful!) & the crochets de fixation de tuile (the little hooks which hang from the the other things. But they want to charge over E2 per piece & we need 148 of each!

Does anyone know a cheaper place  (Perigueux or Limoges) to get them?

 

[Iceni]

Sorry I do not know the name of the 'thingy' you need but when you find them I suggest you buy as many as you will possibly need. We inherited plastic guttering but when we tried to extend found that all the local brico's now only sell metal guttering and fittings. Luckily we were doing whole roof sides so it did not matter.

As an aside, the plastic guttering leaks on the joints, the metal does not and we are sticking with the metal and will probably replace the plastic at some point.

We have learnt in France, buy everything you think you will ever need when you see it, it may be your last chance.

[Bobc]

"We are attaching new PVC guttering to our new extension and our barn."

Perhaps consider using traditional zinc guttering and downpipes rather than the hideous pvc replacements.

Once installed they quickly weather to an old patina - plastic will always be plastic and has no place on old French buildings.

If you do not feel confident to do the soldering involved then there is a zinc system that does not require soldering - available from independant builders merchants that are part of the Batiland buying group - www.batiland.fr .

Regards,

Bob Clarke
http://perso.wanadoo.fr/grindoux

[Ron Avery]

[quote]"We are attaching new PVC guttering to our new extension and our barn." Perhaps consider using traditional zinc guttering and downpipes rather than the hideous pvc replacements. Once installed they ...[/quote]

Quite agree Bob

Plastic guttering is OK in Calais but will not last five minutes futher south in the heat and sun, its a false economy to use plastic.  Take a look around you, what do the French use?  They are not famous for wasting money and I bet 90% of the guttering near you is galvanised metal.  It is expensive and has to be soldered, but it lasts for years.

[Teamedup]

Around here many householders are taking down their  galvanised guttering, drainpipes and 'edging' and replacing with copper.

[Ron Avery]

[quote]Around here many householders are taking down their galvanised guttering, drainpipes and 'edging' and replacing with copper.[/quote]

TU

A) where is around here?  You in Monaco

 

B) Why?

[Teamedup]

I'm in the Alps. Even new builds are often finished with copper. It is very noticeable when first done ofcourse, but the weathering is pretty quick and there seems to be little asthetic value to it afterwards....well I don't think there is. My husband says that it will last a lifetime.

We have galvanised.

[Miki]

Penny,

It is not just the sun and heat, it is just as much a case of frost and the severe minus's that many southern regions including the Dordogne of course, can receive. Severe frosts can soon make the guttering and clips go brittle. Galvanised is dearer but will last much much longer.

[phylisbide]

When we bought our property the guttering, plastic, was punctuated all along the length by holes - about the size of a golf ball, every six or eight inches along. Not a device for watering hanging baskets methinks, but the result of heavy hailstones puncturing brittle old plastic. We are in 24 and the hail did a lot of damage to cars etc again last autumn. Anyway we have now replaced with galvanised and doesn't it look nice against the stone...

phylis