Portable apparatus and method for making a gutter cover

Abstract

A gutter and cover system includes a cover that may be mounted to the preexisting gutter at the edge of a roof. The cover system includes a cover member having an upper pooling portion and an edge flange and lip that provide for dripping of water over the flange and off the lip into the gutter through surface tension. The cover is supported on a series of spaced apart brackets that include a cover mounting portion that aligns with the flange and keeps the cover at a proper orientation to cause pooling. The cover is a seamless cover that is cut to length and includes a cover forming system forming the cover from a coil of blank material. As the cover mounts directly to the mounting bracket, a mounting flange is not needed and only one edge of the blank material is deformed. The material is aligned against one edge and fed through a series of forming bearings and rollers to gradually bend the edge of the material into the shape of a flange and a lower lip drip. The system is lightweight and more mobile than prior systems as fewer stations are needed to deform the cover as only the first edge is deformed.

1 . A gutter and cover system, comprising:
 a gutter having a front wall, a bottom and a rear wall;   a cover configured to extend over the gutter, the cover having a front lip and a pooling portion;   an attachment element for attaching the gutter and cover system to a structure;   a support element comprising:
 a gutter mounting portion having a vertically extending rear portion configured for engaging the rear wall of the gutter and an attachment member receiving portion configured for receiving and aligning the attachment element to extend through the rear wall of the gutter; 
 a cover mounting portion extending from an upper end of the gutter mounting portion; the cover mounting portion having a profile configured for receiving the lip and pooling portion of the cover and for orienting the cover to pool water at the pooling portion. 
   
     
     
         2 . A gutter cover support element configured for mounting to a gutter and supporting a gutter cover having a lip and a pooling portion, the support element comprising:
 a gutter mounting portion having a vertically extending rear portion configured for engaging a rear wall of the gutter and an attachment member receiving portion configured for receiving and aligning an attachment element to extend through the rear wall of the gutter;   a cover mounting portion extending from an upper end of the gutter mounting portion, the cover mounting portion having a profile configured for receiving the lip and pooling portion of the cover and for orienting the cover to pool water at the pooling portion.   
     
     
         3 . An apparatus for forming a seamless gutter cover on site, the apparatus comprising:
 a spool for holding the blank material;   a feeder for feeding the blank material from the spool;   an alignment member along a first edge of the blank material;   a series of aligned rollers engaging and bending the blank material to form a lip along a second edge of the blank material;   a rigid frame holding the spool, feeder, alignment member and aligned rollers; and   a cutting station for cutting the cover to a desired length.