Over the years a wide range of materials have been used to flow water away from your roof to your drainage solution. On older homes it is not uncommon to see clay, wood, concrete, cast or asbestos for roofline solutions. However, now days there tends to be 3 main choices. Wood, Plastic or Metal.
With older roofline solutions failing over time, eventually as home owner you will be required to replace your fascias soffits and gutters but the question is which one is the best option?
Since we are a metal and plastic specialist, we don’t directly recommend wood as it requires much more maintenance and has a lesser life span. Wood is a still a popular choice though for cottage and rustic style properties but for most homes, wood is not the best choice.
Plastic
White plastic uPVC is a great, low cost solution for any home. Relatively easy to fit. Can be used to cap over and is seen on most homes. uPVC comes in 4 distinctive styles and can be chosen in a small range of colours outside of white. If you already have uPVC then it is easier to do a direct swap than completely change your roofline system.
Plastic will not deteriorate as quickly as other materials, however it can go brittle, crack and get damaged over time. Being a cheaper alternative to metal, it is not expensive to replace these parts as the time calls for it.
Plastic roofline solutions will need to be properly maintained by cleaning and unblocking on a regular schedule.
Metal
For early period homes, cast iron gutters were a common choice. Due to cost the trend for them died off with other solutions being used including concrete and eventually plastic.
With high end and period properties, cast and extruded metal is making big comeback. Being made from galvanised steel or aluminium means these solutions will never rust or decay but will still require proper maintenance over the years.
The main downside to metal is cost. For fascias, soffits and gutters you will be paying for a large premium over uPVC and beside less chance of being replaced, there is not much more benefit.
Conclusion
We would personally recommend uPVC to most of our customers. If you are looking for a more premium product or to keep a period look to your home, then this is when you need to look at metal solutions.