You will never have to paint them.
Aged copper gutters.
Copper and zinc gutters can survive 60 years with minimum maintenance and well past 100 years if installed and inspected properly.
At the minimum you should choose 16 ounce copper gutters but depending on the weather and rainfall in your location 20 ounce copper may be a better choice.
But if patina isn t your thing you can keep copper gutters and downspouts shiny and warm colored by putting a protective coating on them each year and polishing them with a solution made for copper.
When allowed to age naturally copper can take years to develop what s called the verdigris patina especially in dry climates.
Copper gutters will transform from their warm metallic shine to a soft matte green.
Yes copper gutters turn green as they oxidize giving them their distinctive patina.
How long does it take copper gutters to oxidize.
If you know how to age copper artificially however you can achieve the same effect much more quickly almost overnight.
Think of the statue of liberty in new york entirely skinned in copper with a beautiful aged green patina.
Gutter quality copper gutters are fabricated from 16 to 20 ounce copper.
Available in seamless or in sections held together with rivets or screws and sealed with caulk.
Rather than corroding copper builds a patina on its surface which protects it from the watery destruction that befalls other metals.