Cast-iron gutters sometimes droop forward so much that water splashes over. The cause has to be ascertained and remedied. If the gutter is of half-round pattern, it is probably fixed with brackets, screwed on underneath the soffit, and the front of the gutter has fallen because the brackets were originally too weak to support it, or they have subsequently become too weak, owing to rust. The brackets will then be found to have given way at A (Fig. 1). The remedy is to remove the brackets, and either to bend them upwards until they assume the shape shown in Fig. 2 or to have new ones made according to this improved shape. If the gutter is of ogee shape, and is fixed by screwing on to a fascia board, the falling front may be due to the back of the gutter having been cast too much on the bevel with the top, as shown in Fig. 4. The remedy is to fix a strip of wood along the fascia, for the bottom edge of the gutter to rest against, as shown at B (Fig. 3). If neither the brackets nor the shape of the gutter is at fault, it is possible that dry or wet rot in the soffit or the fascia has lessened the holding power of the screws. In such case the remedy is to fix new boards.

Fig. I.

Fig. 3.

Fig. 2

Fig. 4. Fixing Cast-iron Gutters.