Curved gutters and bespoke grating: it’s not one-size-fits-all!

The general view of a cast iron gutter or grating is a standard design: simple, straight gutters or standard manhole covers and gulley grates.

With the rise in popularity of Cast Iron during the Industrial Revolution, the ‘giant’ foundries of the time were able to offer a vast range of decorative patterns. Many of these products are reaching the end of their life now but thankfully we are still able to replicate those designs in our own foundry today. Indeed, our own, already large pattern range continues to grow.

The rise in curved gutters

The curved roof offers not only visual appeal but a space-saving, sustainable alternative. As such, we’ve seen an increase in requests for curved or ‘radiused’ gutters.

Manufacturing and installing these gutters are not for the faint-hearted. When not installed by professionals, they have the propensity to leak.

Thankfully, our robust processes ensure we have the best products available. At J & JW Longbottom, we use a versatile sand-casting process to perfect these unusual shapes.

How it works

Curved gutters can be found all over the UK, but they are common in Scotland, where many buildings have round towers or turrets. Of course, these gutters may also appear on bay windows, rather than the traditional square or octagonal shape.

The majority of radius gutters follow an external curve, though we also produce internally curved ones. This follows a completely custom-made process: no two radii are the same, so we start with a template.

This is usually a piece of wood, at least 900mm long, cut to the curve of the building. We can also use additional templates to join curved gutters to straight angles. These templates help us make a metal pattern before going through the same manufacturing process as straight gutters.

While standard cast iron gutter lengths are 1.8m (6ft), curved gutters are made in 900mm (3ft) lengths.

Adding personality to cast iron gratings

While curved gutters offer aesthetic value, gratings can be just as easy on the eye. We manufacture gratings in cast iron to various thicknesses, ideal for transporting from pedestrians to heavy vehicles.

The aesthetic doesn’t limit their use either – they can function indoors and outdoors, making attractive additions to homes and gardens.

When it comes to patterning, customers have three choices:

• To have an existing pattern replicated
• To choose a pattern from our catalogue
• To have a bespoke design drawn up.

The result is a stunning plain or ornamental grating to suit your tastes. Just as curved gutters require a little more technical knowledge, our gratings can be perfected through technical drawings.

If you’d like to know more about our cast iron rainwater goods, get in touch.