Gutters in Valbella, West Lake Hills, TX

Why did this Valbella home need gutters?

The back of the house had no gutter coverage, so every hard rain dumped water straight along the slab. In West Lake Hills, that runoff hits limestone-heavy soil that drains slowly and shifts over time. Adding a proper rear run stops water from pooling where it can do the most damage.

• Target area: the back roofline of the single-story home
• Focus: directing runoff away from the foundation
• Local concern: slow-draining limestone soil common to the 78746 area

What did we find when we inspected the home?

When the crew walked the rear elevation, the roof edge was dropping water in a straight sheet during storms. There was already a visible wear line in the ground below the eave where soil had started to erode. That kind of splashback is easy to miss until you see it during a real Central Texas downpour, but it slowly undercuts the slab and feeds moisture toward the foundation. The fix was straightforward: catch the water at the edge, carry it to a controlled drop point, and release it well clear of the house. We measured the run so the gutter pitched correctly toward the downspout locations, which is the part most DIY installs get wrong.

What materials did we use, and why?

We chose 5-inch Senox seamless aluminum for this job. Seamless gutter is formed as one continuous piece on site, so there are no mid-run joints to crack or leak when the metal expands in 100-plus-degree summer heat. Aluminum also shrugs off the rust that plagues older steel systems around here.

• 5-inch seamless aluminum profile, run along the rear eave
• 3-by-4-inch downspouts sized larger to clear water fast in heavy storms
• Concrete splash blocks set at each downspout outlet
• Single-story downspout drops for a short, direct water path

How did the installation go?

Because this was a focused rear-only run, the whole system went up in a single day on May 14. The crew formed the gutter on site, hung it with proper pitch, and connected the downspouts before setting the splash blocks. No return trips, no leftover mess.

• One-day install with on-site gutter forming
• Downspouts tied in and tested for flow
• Splash blocks placed to spread water onto the yard, not the slab

What were the results?

The finished system pulls water off the back roof and drops it a safe distance from the house. That protects the foundation from the constant wet-dry cycle that stresses slabs on limestone soil. It also keeps the rear grade from washing out during hail-season storms.

If you're planning other exterior upgrades, gutters pair well with roofing and siding work while crews are already on site. You can see our full gutter service through Austin Pro.