DMR Gutters Pre-painted Colors for Aluminum Sheet Metal Page

How accurate are these paint samples?
If you need a color charts or some actual metal samples mailed to you for a more exact match-up e-mail me with your mailing address and phone #. These digital image of the color chart are just to give you a good idea of what colors are available. These colors shown here are a close approximation. Your monitor may show them differently than mine, and they are likely to print out different than what you see on your monitor. These colors shown here are not to be relied on for an exact match.

Are there any more colors than this?
I just have these color choices for gutter material with matching downspouts and elbows as shown above in these photo copy of their color charts those suppliers give us. I know compared to house trim paints this is a very limited selection. We do not have access to a primer coat gutter metal, but these can be painted to match your house. Although, keep in mind house paint will not last as long, be as smooth as this paint, and add to the cost, so it is well advised to pick one of these that will compliment your house best.

What's your cost for these colors other than just white or dark brown, which most Gutter Contractors offer as their main color selection?
Unlike most other Gutter Contractors I feel it should be a matter of customer service and satisfaction to offer the right color of pre-painted gutters and downspouts to look best on their house at no added cost. I would rather you were happy with the final results,so the new gutters look like they were meant to go on your house, so I do not charge extra for alternative colors, as you would have to pay with most Gutter Contractors.

How durable is this paint?

The aluminum sheet metal I get comes pre-painted in a flat form rolled up in a compact coil, which can be as long as 1,000' slit 12" wide to run though my gutter machine, which has hundreds of rollers that carefully shape it into a gutter shape without scratching or cracking that paint. I have one of the few gutter machines that has been kept out of the elements since it was new, which does make a big difference.

These are coated with a baked on enamel finish that is better than what could be painted over this. This paint is noticably better than the touch-up spray paint they sell us to use. They recently came out with literature about the new Teflon surface protector by DuPont that they claim is more scratch and stain resistant. I believe their main focus was to help it run through old rusty gutter machines better, but I'm imagine it would help it last better as well.

Frankly any product is only as good as it's weakest link, and in this case that would be the paint finish, considering how long they have made aluminum ladders, which are not painted at all. Even though this manufacturer claims to offer a life-time warranty on their paint finish it is not nearly as durable as most any automotive paint. It will scratch a lot easier, so their must not be as many coats of paint and it does not have a clear-coat over the color, like with most cars. Also, these gutters are not likely to ever get washed and waxed like car normally do, so I would not expect it to hold up nearly as well. Certainly not as they may claim in this warranty word game. Realistically what car paint have you seen that lasts more than 2 decades? Some may argue that my comparison is not fair, since gutters are not pummeled with rocks and road grime, but the first part of the car paint to fail is up on the roof of the car that's only getting hit with the Sun's UV rays, so that does not ring true. Fortunately the outer surface of a gutter is leaning down towards the ground, so it does not get direct Sun light hitting that surface, which makes a big difference.

Concerns You may want to consider:
Most Gutter Contractors only stock gutter parts in gloss White on one side and a satin Musket Brown on the other side. This is mainly so they only have to stock 2 colors of downspout and elbows parts, and only 1 coil they can flip around for the pre-painted side of choice to be on the outside of the gutter.

(a) They usually will not offer any other colors, or they will compel you to go with their slim selection by charging you a lot more for alternative colors. This is to save them the trouble of making a special trip to their supplier to get the right color you want, but it does not actually cost them any more for those parts.

(b) For some odd reason most Gutter Contractors get the high gloss white. It is the only color that is made in high gloss. The other colors are all satin paint, as with most house or trim paint, so this makes no sense.

(c) Many Homeowners have been well trained by now to choose that gloss white, suggesting it goes well with any house trim color you may have, I suppose like a white T-shirt? Although, light colors will also show the build-up of dirt and mildew stains more readily than a darker color, so I advise my clients to choose a darker color if that would work for them.

(d) These can be painted over as long as they are new or have been carefully cleaned, but it would require a lot of added labor and cost to paint the gutters and downspouts in the color you want. For touch-up it is recommended to use a light bodied spray paint, as opposed to a thick lumpy house paint. Years latter it is not going to leave such a thick ugly peal, which may be more trouble and costly to scrape smooth than it would be to replace all the gutters. I can sell you cans of matching paint, but it will fade much faster than the original paint:
http://dmr-gutters.com/del.htm