Gutters and downspouts are critical to ridding the roof of water and getting it away from the home's foundation. For Michael Buchtel's home, which has a lot of roof-space, the issue of rain- and snow runoff is particularly important. Gutters and downspouts are an important part of any roofing installation, but are elements that are sometimes overlooked. Michael acknowledges that, for many people building a home, these items are some of the last items on a list of priorities — but they shouldn't be.

Betty King and John Spracklen neglected to consider the importance of proper drainage from their massive roof until late in the construction of their Kentucky home.

Since they didn't plan for drainage channels and ditches in advance, Betty and John had to retrofit their property with these after much of their landscaping had already been done. Without proper drainage, erosion would ultimately damage that landscaping.

Gutters and downspouts are not expensive, and they play a vital role in the roof doing its job. For any house, it's important to remove the water that runs off the roof as quickly as possible. The downspouts can be buried or positioned to carry that water away from the house.