Copyright 2018 The Honest Carpenter. Alexandra Trevino Rivets September 03rd, 2019 - 11:49:19. Most of these aluminum downspouts are held together with a pop rivet. Rivet-free, you can now start your project in earnest! Copyright © 2020 Acton Media Inc. All rights reserved. When the rivets are removed, you can often replace them with “gutter screws” (shown below). Insert the gutter screw into the existing spike hole. You’ll be left with the original 1/8” hole the rivets went into. You will undoubtedly need to mitre your gutter at some stage. (For a good visual description of how rivets work, just follow this link.). Or do you need to remove them temporarily while painting your house? Position the new ferrule inside the gutter, directly behind the existing spike hole. Before installing the new chains, locate the downspout's rivets, which should be located near the bottom and along the sides. Follow this guide on how to remove rivets, so you can return to the real task at hand, whether it be reinforcing a backyard shed, removing exterior awnings, restructuring steel-beamed walls or doing repairs on a boat. 1/8″ bits are fairly skinny. 1/8” pop rivets are the best size for gutter work. Made with Love by Oak City Tech. Learn how to replace the end cap on a residential rain gutter in a few easy steps with the Arrow RHT300 Swivel Head Rivet Tool. 4. Place the spout into the sealant and secure with rivets. A 6-in-1 screwdriver is all you usually need (I linked an 11-in-1 in the tool list up above). Pry each clip open, and twist the clip so it moves out of position on the lip of the gutter. Rivets are used to connect thin pieces of metal together to create a strong seal, but once you install the rivet, it can be next to impossible to remove. Carefully remove the nails to avoid losing the parts in your yard or damaging the roof and gutter. Overlap joins by minimum 100mm in the direction of the flow, then pre-drill. Place a slight amount of pressure on the drill trigger to start rotating the drill bit in the indentation. Prevent everything you can. You agree that BobVila.com may process your data in the manner described by our Privacy Policy. Remember that aluminum expands dramatically as its temperature rises. (In my project, I was removing a strap that held a downspout to a structural column. A long gutter on a one-story house can grow significantly putting all kinds of stress on sealants. Once drilled, remove the spout and run a bead of sealant around the opening. This short video will show you how to remove rivets with a drill, and how to replace them if necessary.. Tool List: Drill. Take off downspouts first. Simply select a drill bit and hold the point up against the rivet hole. Begin by selecting a HSS (high speed steel) drill bit with a diameter slightly larger than the hole in the rivet head. Remove clips by inserting a screwdriver between the gutter and each clip. Don’t press hard enough to bend it, and make sure you’re not angling the drill. Remove these rivets by drilling them out with a bit slightly larger than the hole in the center of the rivet. MATERIALS AND TOOLS Available on Amazon – Grinder – Power drill – Hammer – Punch. I always recommend using titanium drill bits to do this. Some removals will be permanent–you may no longer need the components your removing. If you need to move a downspout, it is generally better to replace the whole stretch of gutter instead of … Posted by Ethan Daniel James | Apr 1, 2019 | Blog. So, if you want to remove a gutter or downspout, you’ll often have to remove more than one rivet. Because most rain gutters feature decorative curves, installing rivets is often challenging. UPDATE* This video has been revised to address an issue with the initial drilling of the rivet. If you have a pop riveter, you can simply line up the old holes in components and install a new rivet in them. Hover with the tool so that you touch nothing other than the rivet head itself. The same can be done by using a flat head screwdriver or chisel and a hammer. Then, remove each gutter piece-by-piece from their hanging brackets. After the holes are drilled for your rivets, it's time to remove those clamps and start placing your rivets into place. MATERIALS AND TOOLS Available on Amazon – Rivet removal tool – Power drill. Run beads of roof and gutter silicone across the base and up the sides of the overlap. The rivet are aluminum and shear off easily. Step 2 - Removing the Pop Rivet Head This article and video will not only show you how to remove old rivets, it will also show you how to replace them with a simpler fastener–gutter screws. Your support is greatly appreciated! The Honest Carpenter is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Remove the old gutter spikes and ferrules (the large spacers that keep the gutter walls from collapsing while you drill), installing each new set as soon as you remove the old one. Normal caulks aren’t made to handle this movement, but the rubberized sealants are. You will be left with the small hole that was originally drilled for the rivet to sit in. Use the pry bar or hammer to pull out nails. How to Remove a Pop Rivet Without a Drill. Step 10 Drill a hole up through the gutter somewhere inside the oval you just drew. When you shop through these links, we receive a small commission at no extra charge to you. Some removals will be permanent–you may no longer need the components your removing. Hold the drill straight over the rivet and drill it to push it out entirely, being careful not to widen the surrounding hole. You want a bit that is just slightly too large for the hole–1/8″ is often the perfect size. Does your aluminum gutter or downspout leak? Rivets consist of two parts -- a mandrel and a body. Material List: 3/8″ Gutter Screws. How to Remove Gutters: Directions. Gutter screws can be installed using a screwdriver. Use the same method to remove each downspout. Make sure you can feel the components drawing together. Position the new ferrule inside the gutter, directly behind the existing spike hole. After loosening the rivets with your hands, pull out the downspouts and store or discard it, depending on your preferences. That's a good idea, but you risk grinding into the thin rain gutter. How Do You Remove Gutter Spikes Without Damaging Gutters. Then use a nail punch to tap the rivet heads out the other side. MATERIALS AND TOOLS Available on Amazon – Chisel – Hammer – Punch. Connect gutter sections with rivets and use caulking to smooth out the seams. Eagle 1 Blind Aluminum Pop Rivets (1/8" x 1/4", 42) Blind Pop Rivets - Gutter pop Rivets - Many Colors With Free 1/8" drill bit included (100 pcs, Clay) 5.0 out of 5 stars 4. When the head of the rivet is cut loose from the wall, the bit should punch the body of the fastener the rest of the way through. The first step is to remove the existing rivets. Just use a flat screwdriver or metal prybar end and tap with a hammer to slice the bottom off the rivet. Once the pop rivet has been removed, the downspout can be disassembled. Removing rivets may seem difficult but a couple small tricks make it a cinch. The screws come in a variety of colors (white and brown being the most common), and they’re short enough that they won’t create obstructions in gutters and downspouts. f) Place the spout into the hole and pre-drill all 4 holes on short sides of the flange for rivets. Cut your gutter peices with your pipe cutter or miter saw according to your measurements. The only way rivets can be removed is essentially by destroying them. After about 5-10 seconds, you should hear a different, lower sound coming from the fastener. Use the pry bar or hammer to pull out nails. Once you’ve got some leverage there, tap the dull end of the chisel with a hammer until the head falls loose. This hole determines the size, or thickness, of drill bit that will be required to remove the rivet. All you need to do is push the rivets into place. Flimsy materials such as thin metal sheets may crumple or even be torn off with too much force, leaving the whole point of removing the pop rivets useless. How Rivets Work Rivets How To Remove Fasteners . If you have a pop riveter, you can simply line up the old holes in components and install a new rivet in them. Pop Rivets have a small hole at their center. You can use the Phillips, flat-head, or nut driver options as required. Examine gutters to see if you’ll need to remove screws, nails, or rivets. Pull the elbow away from the connector. This video shows the removal and installation of blind rivets, a Disclosure: BobVila.com participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for publishers to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Use the same method to remove each downspout. Others will be temporary, and you will need to reattach some pieces later. Drill directly through the rivet hole with a 1/8″ drill bit. Then simply adjust your drill depth accordingly and drill out the rivet neatly. The drill bit will cut the rivet head away from the … Place the tip of the tool between the material and the rivet head and tap it with a hammer until the head breaks off. The proper amount of slope or drop for a gutter is 1/8” to 1/4” per foot; so, a ten foot long gutter should … “Pop Rivets” are most often used to pin together gutters, straps, and other thin pieces of metal on the exterior of a house. An excellent idea is prevention. The rivets will push harder, but they will snap into place. Examine gutters to see if you’ll need to remove screws, nails, or rivets. Pry each clip open, and twist the clip so it moves out of position on the lip of the gutter. Place the blades of your tin snips into the hole and start to cut it out. Gutter screws can be used to replace old rivets/. Remove clips by inserting a screwdriver between the gutter and each clip. Drill out any other relevant rivets, and pry apart the components. But, make sure you don’t break the bit! Also, many components that get riveted tend to be several feet off the ground, often up near a fascia or roofline. They’re very durable, they stay sharp for a long time, and they’re hard enough to cut through both wood and non-ferrous metals. Place your punch over the top of the rivet remnant and hammer out, using moderate force. Install rivets, reinstall the gutter hangers—and you’re done! All you need is a drill with a 1/8 inch drill bit. How to Remove Rivets With a Drill Bit. If you can’t get old holes to line up, new ones can be drilled with the same drill bit you used to cut the rivet. Others will be temporary, and you will need to reattach some pieces later. Phillips or flat-head slots, hex-heads, spiral threads, etc…. If done correctly, it will look as though a replacement never occurred. After the holes are drilled for your rivets, it's time to remove those clamps and start placing your rivets into place. Repeat for the opposite side until all rivets have been removed. Drill out the rivets connecting the upper elbow to the connector on the bottom of the gutter. Or, in some cases, simple pressure is enough to turn the gutter screw through the metal of the components even without a pre-drilled hole in place. You can clearly see the pass-through hole for the old rivet in both layers of the strap. After loosening the rivets with your hands, pull out the downspouts and store or discard it, depending on your preferences. Because most rain gutters feature decorative curves, installing rivets is often challenging. Make sure you have safe places to lean a ladder–and keep it well grounded–to reach the areas. A gutter and downspout system works to move water away from your home, but if a downspout is installed in the wrong location, it can do more harm than good. Carefully place the tip of the drill bit into the hole at the center of the rivet. Step 4 - Insert the Rivets. Holding the tool perpendicular to the fastener, you can begin to drill. A damaged or missing rain gutter end cap can be annoying. First, approach the rivet’s head while keeping your grinding wheel parallel to the surrounding surface, and carefully grind off as much as possible. You can drill out the rivets with the same bit if you go that route. Luckily, there are techniques to getting rivets out of your way cleanly, whether you’ve got a specialty implement for this purpose at your disposal or simply need to go about it with common hand tools. Cut downspout holes Use a downspout outlet to mark the location of the downspout on the low end of the gutter. Next access the seam, is there a screw loose or is a rivet needed to properly secure the gutter pieces together? Begin Screw Installation. Step 4 Disconnect the downspout from the remaining elbows. Remove the screws with the nut driver. Chuck the bit into your electric drill and make sure it is secure. Since you are going to get on the roof, take the opportunity to do all the necessary work to improve the operation of your sewers. Cut gutter to length for each fascia run using tin snips or a hacksaw. Gutter seams are usually held in place with pop rivets. Arrow Fastener RSAW1/8IP Short White Aluminum 1/8-Inch Rivets, 100-Pack. Inspect the front edge of the gutter for clips, rivets or screws. $19.95 $ 19. Drill into the rivet until the rivet top comes off. Boring through metal is more about pressure than speed. The tool comes in a set with various guides and drill bits in different sizes. Expert advice from Bob Vila, the most trusted name in home improvement, home remodeling, home repair, and DIY. FREE Shipping. Before installing the new chains, locate the downspout's rivets, which should be located near the bottom and along the sides. Blind Rivet Removal Tool Kitplane Magazine Www Aircraft Tool Com Most I see are still in useable condition on 20 year old gutters I take apart. Using a drill bit the same size as the old rivets – in this case 1/8” – drill straight through the center of the old rivet until it pops out of place. Disconnect and remove the downspout from the rain gutter. This article and video will show you how to remove rivets and replace them with a simpler fastener gutter screws. Just be sure that nothing suddenly falls when it is no longer being held together! Next, use the hammer and punch to pierce a tiny divot into the top of the rivet to act as a groove to keep the drill in place. Use the tarp to keep nails, screws, rivets, gutter sections and other debris from littering your yard. That’s why I like to reattach pieces with gutter screws. Rivets are permanent fasteners often used to pin together gutters, straps, and other pieces of thin-gauge metal around your house. Only 16 left in stock - order soon. 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