Gutters Demystified

Many assume that gutter installation is child's play, but I can assure you it is not. The pros reel off any length from an extruder-type gizmo and then have two pairs of hands to secure it. The schmos, like me, have to buy unwieldy 10 foot lengths, strap them on the roof of their ride and juggle them alone! Older systems use 7 inch spikes, which are giant aluminum nails- strange at best, lethal at worst. Gutter seams have to be caulked, the sections overlapped in the proper order and the entire length of each "run" needs an accurate slope to drain correctly. I did OK on our first house- I was in my 20's and more on the ball. However, when I discovered the (detached) garage of our present house had no gutter, I was over-confident and ten years more absent minded. So, while I successfully assembled and attached the "buggers", I completely spaced out the concept of slope. I must now add the fact that this gutter is directly below very large Mulberry tree (see tree-house picture- that's it). Following a big summer thunderstorm, I went up on the garage roof to deal with some dead branches. There seemed to be an awful lot of insect activity over by the back edge. I thought- what the heck is that  about? Looking over the edge I saw a plethora of yellow jacket wasps alighting on a a gutter filled with Mulberry soup!