Gutter Contractors in Nashville: 8 Questions to Ask First
Nashville has more gutter contractors than it did five years ago, for the same reason it has more of everything: the houses. A lot of the new outfits are fine. Some are a truck, a borrowed coil machine and a Facebook page. The questions below take about five minutes on the phone and sort one from the other before anyone comes out.
The eight questions
1. Are you insured, and will you send the certificate?
General liability covers your house if a ladder goes through a window. Workers' compensation covers the person on the ladder if they fall, so that you aren't the one being sued. Ask for both, and ask for the certificate to be emailed before the crew arrives, not shown on a phone in the driveway. A contractor who hesitates on this one has answered the question.
2. Does this job need a Tennessee license, and do you have it?
Tennessee licenses by job size. In Davidson County, a residential home improvement job priced from $3,000 to $24,999 requires a Home Improvement license issued by the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, and any job at $25,000 and up needs a full contractor's license anywhere in the state. You can check either on the state's license search. Most repairs come in under $3,000 and don't trigger it. A whole-house replacement with guards and fascia work on a large house often does. Not every county around Nashville has adopted the home improvement rule, so in Williamson or Sumner County the insurance certificate carries more weight than the license question. Either way, ask; the answer tells you whether they know the rule.
3. What gauge aluminum, and what hangers?
The right answers are .032 coil and hidden screw hangers every 24 inches. The wrong answers are .027, spike and ferrule, or a pause while they think about it. The gauge and the hangers are the two biggest differences between a gutter that lasts 25 years and one that sags in eight, and the price difference between them on a whole house is under $250. What the price per foot buys goes through both.
4. How are you sizing the downspouts?
You want to hear something about roof area, and you want to hear 3x4. A contractor who defaults to 2x3 downspouts, one per run, is quoting a system that will overflow at the far corner in the first spring storm. Ask how many downspouts they're putting on the longest run, and if the answer is one and the run is over 35 feet, ask why.
5. Will you check the fascia, and what does it cost per foot if it's bad?
The board behind the gutter is where old Nashville gutters hide their problems. A contractor who quotes from the driveway and finds soft fascia on install day either hangs the new gutter on rot or hands you a surprise. The right answer is that they check it with a screwdriver from the ladder during the estimate, and the quote lists a per-foot price for replacement in case some is found.
6. What's the warranty, in writing, and who backs it?
Two parts. The aluminum finish is warranted by the manufacturer, typically 20 years or more against fading and peeling; that comes with the coil regardless of who installs it. The workmanship — leaks at the corners, pitch, hangers pulling loose — is the contractor's, and it should be at least a year in writing. A "lifetime" warranty from a company that started last spring is worth what the company is.
7. Can I see a job you did two years ago?
Not a photo from last week. A gutter looks good the day it's hung. Ask for an address, or a name you can call, on a job that's been through two springs. A contractor who has been in Nashville a while has a dozen of those. One who hasn't will offer references from last month, which tell you about their manners and nothing about their hangers.
8. Is the estimate written, itemized, and good for how long?
The estimate should list, as separate lines:
- Gutter size and aluminum gauge
- Hanger type and spacing
- Downspout size and count, per run
- Corners
- Fascia replacement per foot, in case any is found
- Guards per foot, if any
- Tear-off, haul-away and extensions
It should be free. It should be good for 30 days. A number on a business card, or a price that drops if you sign today, is a sales technique, not a quote. The cost page shows what the lines should look like.
The questions that don't help
How long have you been in business? Everyone rounds up. The two-year-old job reference is the real version of this question.
Are you the cheapest? The cheapest quote on a Nashville house is nearly always .027 coil, spike hangers and 2x3 downspouts, which is the gutter you're replacing. Repair vs. replacement covers when cheap is actually the right call: when the fix is a $200 reseal and someone's trying to sell you new gutters.
Do you have a lot of five-star reviews? Some of the best crews in town have twelve reviews. Some of the worst have four hundred. Reviews tell you about the sales process more than the hangers.
What to expect from us
Our answers, for the record: insured, certificate emailed on request; licensed for the work that requires it; .032 coil and hidden hangers at 24 inches; 3x4 downspouts with roof-area sizing; fascia checked at the estimate and priced per foot; manufacturer finish warranty plus one year on workmanship; a written itemized estimate good for 30 days. The about page covers how a job goes. Ask any other gutter contractor in Nashville the same eight questions and compare.
Need gutter work in Nashville?
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