What matters for gutters in Bunbury
July is the test
July averages 145.5 mm, the wettest month of Bunbury's year. A gutter that copes with summer showers but spills over the front every July is too small, short of downpipes, or falling the wrong way.
Storm-torn gutters
When storms damaged more than 440 Bunbury properties in May and June 2024, gutters pulled off fascias were part of it. Once a gutter has been wrenched loose, brackets and joints rarely sit right again, and water gets behind into the eaves and walls.
Salt decides the steel
Gutters hold water and debris against thin metal, so they rust before the roof does. Koombana Bay isn't calm water for this purpose. It's part of Geographe Bay, which BlueScope's TB-35 classes as exposed, while Leschenault Inlet is the water it calls calm. For gutters the class matters less than you'd think, because BlueScope's gutter bulletin recommends Zincalume and standard Colorbond only more than 200 m from salt marine influence of any kind, and Colorbond Ultra more than 100 m. Closer to the bay than that, stainless is the safer pick.
Embers on mapped land
If the WA bushfire map covers any part of your block, the whole property counts as bushfire-prone. New gutters are a good moment to fit a metal ember guard, and the Shire of Capel notes renovations on bushfire-prone land may need to meet AS 3959.
Repair or replace?
A single leaking joint or a bent corner can be repaired. Rust along the runs, gutters that sag or hold water, brackets pulled out of soft fascia, or storm damage across a whole side mean replacement. Rotten fascia boards should be replaced at the same time. The national page on gutter replacement walks through the job, and Colorbond gutters covers the common choice.
Remember the downpipes. Wider gutters into the same lonely downpipe still overflow.
Before you agree to new gutters
- Will these gutters and downpipes carry a heavy July downpour off my roof?
- Which steel are you quoting, and what distance from surf or calm water is it listed for?
- Is any fascia rotten, and is replacing it included?
- Are you adding downpipes, or reusing the old ones?
- If my block is bushfire-prone, can you fit metal ember guard at the same time?
- Is the storm damage claimable, and will you document it?
Where we'd land
If the gutters need replacing, we'd go a size up or add a downpipe, because Bunbury's rain comes in a concentrated winter. We'd let the distance to the water decide the steel, not the price. And if the old gutters were torn off in a storm, we'd lodge the claim and get the insurer's say before ordering anything.
Want a roofer to take a look?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match it with a Find My Roofer certified roofer who specialises in that kind of work, and they call you to quote. Your number goes to them alone.