Guttering for an ex-shipping container?

VoucherMan

I've recently started helping out on a community allotment, and they've got an old shipping container for a tool shed. I've been challenged to 'fix' the guttering which hasn't collected much water.

I don't know if the person who fit it originally was a bigger cowboy than me, or if the job just got cancelled part way through.

A simple 'solution' would be to add some corrugated, or similar roofing, that drains straight into the troughing, but funds aren't available for that. (it is MSE, after all!) Ideally, I'd like to drain the water straight from the roof, into the troughing, but that's not going to happen when there's a 30-40mm gap between the two.

The simplest 'cheap' solution that I've thought of so far would be to lay some plastic sheeting across the roof, ending in the troughing. I've no idea how long it would last, probably depends on the quality of the sheeting, but I'll probably give it a try if I can find a piece big enough.

The corner of the container in the foreground is the lowest part of the roof.

I'm sure most here would frown on such a bodge job, but I'm hoping there may be some more creative and knowledgable than me who could offer some ideas on getting the water to it.

I'll add more detail if it helps, but didn't want to bog down the OP with half a page of TL;DR material. For now I'll just add that the purpose of the exercise is rainwater harvesting.

Doozergirl

I'd like to see that dry and without the sun in front.  The guttering is a joke.  What is the roof construction? It doesn't look like rubber, which might be a relatively easy bonding join if you did add some kind of overhang to feed the guttering.   

What else is going on?  The two raised areas of timber(?), blackening and lifting of some kind of veneer? 

I don't really have a solution other than redoing it properly.  As you say, sticking plastic and guiding it to the gutter might work for a while, but not forever.  You do need to cut down the cladding and battening because it's ridiculous to have even considered attaching the gutter to cladding when there's no overhang to speak of.  

I think you should find out the story behind the cowboy and hold then accountable if it was a commercial job.  

FreeBear

Doozergirl said: The guttering is a joke.  What is the roof construction? It doesn't look like rubber, which might be a relatively easy bonding join if you did add some kind of overhang to feed the guttering.

The roof looks like standard pressed steel that these containers are made out of. It might be possible to bond some torch-on felt to the steel and have it hanging over the edge enough that the decorative guttering actually does something. But you will get water pooling on the roof.

The long term solution would be to fix some firrings (tapered strips) so that you have some "fall". Cover it with a few sheets of OSB, then apply a layer of EPDM or felt. You could use corrugated sheet in place of the OSB & felt, but people will climb around on it and cause damage.

Tucosalamanca

Not ideal but a roll of 18" flashband might bridge the gap between shipping container and guttering. Perhaps also introduce a 30-40mm strip of 6mm ply to provide a better surface to bond to.
As long as a fall can be maintained you have some chance of success.

markin

Filling wood and flashing tape, But is it running into the gutter?

My guess is that the was a roof that's long ago been blown off.

getmore4less

Start with where the water runs on that roof.

Get up there with a hose.

A new bodge,

 if the corner is the low point run an upright strip full length to direct to the corner and then cross over to the gutter

Where is the downpipe?
Where does the water go next if it made it to the gutter and downpipe?

Lorian

+1 for the wide flashband but you need to check the fall is towards the gutter. I wouldn't dam up the other side those things do leak.

Eldi_Dos

If the run of the roof is not enough towards gutter easy to lever or jack up a bit and put some shims under support legs to improve water run off towards gutter.

Tucosalamanca

Another possible solution?
Have you considered installing a green roof.
Visqueen membrane laid over the container (and into the gutter), geotextile fleece membrane on top, with sedum matt or similar to finish.
As it's a community allotment, I'm sure you could all be creative and come up with something interesting!

GDB2222

What’s  the reason for fixing the gutter? Is it to protect the container? Or, to collect the water? 

VoucherMan

Thanks for all the replies & suggestions. A lot more than I was expecting.

A little more information, which hopefully also answers any questions. The container is about 6m x 1.8m, although I gather they're normally sized in feet, so it must be 20ft x 6ft (D x W). It has an electricity supply installed, and besides the internal lighting, there's a few double sockets along the wall, and a small electric heater on the back wall. I'm wondering if it once had some sort of office type use, as this could explain the cladding & heater. Then again, I'd expect to see a regular door fitted if it had been used as some sort of workplace.

Another view showing the side & gutter.

The gutter continues behind the container, emptying into a 1000 litre water container on the opposite corner. There is no downpipe, in fact the water barely runs into water tank with the existing drop. There are 2 patches of sitting water on the long run, and I had to drop the gutter a little at the back as it wasn't flowing into the tank. (I'm sure there could be a good maths question in there somewhere, as the first section of gutter appears to run level to the roof, but the water can be seen pooling inside it. With a few figures relating to the water, it should be enough to calculate the angle the container leans at. Then again, I may just get the spirit level out)

Among the contents of the container are some tins of paint dated 2013. This to me suggests a minimum age of the community garden, and why no one I've spoken to has much idea of it's full history. I think the current incumbents only took over about a year ago. Until then I think it was run as some sort of private venture, but now it's open for anyone who wants to come along & help.

As for repairs/upgrades; I'll check the how the water drains sometime, either with hosepipe, or during one of the regular downpours. I'm hoping it works okay, despite the undulating gutter. The main reason being that access is awkward because of the adjacent poly-tunnel. It's not even wide enough to stand a pair of stepladders, at least not the ones they have on site. I'll measure my small ones and see if they'll fit.

On the roof, your suggestions of flashband made me think of Gorilla tape, mainly as I have a roll, so it won't cost anything to try it. I thought I could stick it along the edge of the container roof, and also stick it to a strip of plastic damp-proof membrane, or some other plastic lining. I've seen a variety of possible materials on the site.

It remains to be seen whether or not I get any suitable weather this side of next summer, to clean up the top edge & wait for it to dry, in order to apply the tape,