What Sunshine Coast gutters deal with
Storms that bring trees down
Cyclone Hamish in March 2009 knocked down at least 30 trees on the Sunshine Coast, and the May 2021 storm hit Maroochydore, Nambour and Buderim with hail and strong winds. Falling branches bend gutters, snap brackets and crush downpipes.
Rain outside summer too
Council says east coast lows can come through from January to June, and May averages 161.9 mm at the airport. Gutters here get tested in autumn and early winter as well as in the summer storm season.
Salt along the beaches
For gutters, downpipes and fascia, BlueScope recommends ZINCALUME or standard COLORBOND more than 200 m from salt marine influence, and COLORBOND Ultra from 100 m. Gutter undersides never get rinsed by rain, so salt sits there and works away from below.
Fibro-era gutters
Older homes from the shack era through to the 1960s and 1970s boom may still have asbestos cement gutters or downpipes, which ASSEA lists among asbestos roofing products. Don't cut or break them. Have them tested and taken down safely.
What to replace them with
COLORBOND or ZINCALUME steel is the standard choice. BlueScope warns that galvanised gutters can corrode early under a COLORBOND roof or glazed terracotta tiles. If you collect drinking water, the code bans lead in gutters, downpipes and flashings on that catchment.
Size and fall matter as much as material. The code asks for a fall of at least 1:500 and limits each downpipe to 12 m of gutter, so a good installer checks both rather than copying the old layout. See Colorbond gutters and the national gutter replacement page.
Warranty and licences
In Queensland, repairing or replacing gutters and downpipes counts as stormwater drainage work for home warranty purposes, so a job over $3,300 must be covered. The QBCC's metal fascias and gutters licence is the usual class for this work, and plumbing and drainage licences cover it too.
Questions to ask a Sunshine Coast installer
- Which steel grade suits my distance from the beach?
- Will you add downpipes or overflow slots, or copy the old layout?
- Are my old gutters or downpipes asbestos cement?
- Is the fascia sound, or does it need replacing as well?
- Is home warranty insurance included if the job is over $3,300?
What you can do from the ground
You can
- Look for rust streaks, sagging and gaps along the gutter line
- Note where water spills over in heavy rain
- Keep stormwater drains clear at ground level
Leave to a roofer
- Removing old gutters, especially if they might be asbestos cement
- Setting the fall and downpipe spacing
- Fascia and bracket repairs
If they were our gutters
Once rust has come through in more than one spot, we'd replace rather than patch. We'd ask for the steel grade by name for our distance from the beach, extra downpipes if the old layout overflowed, and an overflow path that sends water outside. And we'd get any pre-1990 gutters tested first. The Sunshine Coast hub has more on local conditions.
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.