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.Introduction:
Welcome to our business web site for custom rust-free sheet metal design and fabrication. Let me introduce myself: my name is David Rich. We have a small sheet metal shop located in Portland, Oregon. I am a licensed Gutter Contractor specializing in No-clog aluminum and copper residential gutters & downspouts since 1993.

This other work started with a gutter client of mine who had a rusty steel chimney cap that was falling apart, so I offered to rebuild it in copper, so that would not happen again. I added those photos to my other web site: dmr-gutters.com and started getting requests from Homeowners across the Nation for chimney caps, turret and gazebo caps, and a variety of other unique projects. Eventually I felt the need to author this web site to cater to those clients specifically and it has grown from there, but replacing gutters is still a strong business of mine, but it is nice to have the chance to be more creative.

I've had dmrgutters.com since 1996, before it was common place for small businesses to have a web presence, and I've personally spent thousands of hours authoring these web sites, so please excuse all the typos you'll find. English was never my strong suit. I was more the art class and math geek.

1/2 scale Lighthouse style Chimney Cap (5/10)
w/96 embedded LED lights for our client in Seneca Falls, New York

Attachment base ISD 59"W, OSD 78' W, 13' tall w/finial.
(click on this image for more details)

"Quality and service is not expensive. It's priceless!"

Designed to Last:
These projects will be very noticeable as the crowning jewel on top of the highest peak of your house, so I keep in mind that looks are very important, but they also need to be designed to be practical and functional.  With our artistic flair you will see we go out of our way to design some of the most stunning functional art for houses around (insert your opinion here). Like with an investment in gold; these are rock solid investments in metal that is a valuable commodity with a strong recycle value.

I know that most of you may read these statements as nothing more than fancy lip-service. Simply 'Too good to be true' sort of thing. Although, if you take the time to read over our web site carefully and see the thousands of photos on display you will see we back up these statements with undeniable proof, along with many of our client's reviews.  My suppliers say I am the only contractor in this area that consistently buy the better parts. Also, there are not many businesses that can claim to have received a Business Integrity Award from the Better Business Bureau, let alone 2 years in a row.

Anything is only as good as it's weakest link. Coatings on metal like zinc or paint are not made to last more than a decade or so. I feel that is not accetable. As a highly ethical person my greatest challenge is to design each products with the best blend between: Aesthetics, Function, Strength, Longevity, and of course made at a reasonable Cost for the best benefit to our clients.  These 5 elements do not naturally blend together cohesively, but are more apt to oppose each other, so my challenge is to reach the best possible balance between each of these important elements. Not to push what I want to sell. 

Why use a life-time metal like copper and stainless steel if it is thin, weak, and dents easily, prone to wind or snow damage? I will never build in planned obsolescence!  I passionately feel that planned obsolescence should be made a crime; for the simple fact that it is intentional fraud. Yet it is standard operating procedure in most industry through out the world.

Note: We do not intend to be misleading in our pricing shown on these web pages, but as you may have noticed;
metal and fuel prices have doubled in the last few years (since early 2006) far beyond normal inflation.  Some of the older prices listed on these web pages may not accurately reflect current costs.  You can read more on this subject: Latest News/FAQ

Steel is by far the most common sheet-metal used on roofs for flashing or to cover whole roofs. Although I would like to see it become illegal to use steel on any roof, since it will not last as long as even low life roofing shingles and causes around 150% more landfill of that hazardous waste than should be necessary. Steel flashing is the primary cause of roof failure, with billions wasted each year on premature roofing replacement. Again supporting the oil industry. Steel is a cheap and sturdy metal, but needs painted or galvanized to delay it from rusting holes through it. Although, even with the best coatings steel is commonly known to still develop unsightly rust within a decade of exposure to the elements. These rust stains show long before it begins to fall apart, but will cause permanent stains to everything in close proximity.  Copper resolves any stripping and repainting issues that steel has. No matter how cheap steel is; in the long run steel is actually the most expensive choice when you consider cost of labor to rebuild and replace every 15 to 20 years at best.

Stainless Steel is the same cost of copper, but for the same durability you get less, so it is not a better value.  The modern development of stainless steel as a good strong lasting metal, but the bright shiny appearance does not look good on most structures (unless you want the look of a retro diner car).  Unlike copper, stainless steel will mildew, so there is regular maintenance required. I hear acid rain back East will compromise stainless steel in less time that copper. In the long run stainless steel is a poor investment and does not add as much to the resale value.

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David Rich with a large circular turret roof cap
for Andrea Steele in Meridan, Kansas 4/08
(just after I had 13" of hair cut off for cancer patients)

Long Term Value (if built well):
For over a Millennia copper has been well known for it's advantages over all the other types of metal exposed to the elements.  I know it has to be attractive enough that you will want to see it up there on your home for that long and stay looking nice decade after decade, or why bother to use a life-time metal like copper?  Above aesthetics my primary focus is on the strength and longevity to be a cherished heirloom quality product for the next 100 years or so.  A lot of thought is also put into designing an easy installation as well, so I even supply the stainless steel fasteners needed, along with personalized detailed installation instructions.  I may be a bit eccentric with all this, but it has been found that using copper sheet metal is the best long term and short term value.  Please, let me explain:

We all know the cost of 3 or 4 replacements are far more expensive than 1 quality product, but we often do not have the resources to do projects right the first time, but there has been a long standing dilemma in the roofing industry with the use of copper: it seems illogical to have a product made with a long life metals like copper if it is just made so thin and fragile to save on cost.  It will just end up looking dented or even fall apart within a few decades anyway, so why bother.  In that case steel would last nearly as long and be a fraction of the cost for the material.  If built well copper would last well over a century, but this is very rare to find because of the added cost of materials and the ignorance of most people to these issues. That is why steel has long been the standard in roofing Nation wide, since it is strong and a far more economical initial investment.

Just like with the auto industry, where the use of steel remain the standard for over half a century still after the advent of aluminum.  Although, I would imagine you plan to keep these rain management products in service a lot longer than your car, and hopefully with little to no maintenance.  It would be very costly to hire a detailer to scale your roof to clean and wax these painted steel covers and flashing a couple times each year, but if left unattended they will cause ugly rust stains long before they begin to form holes and fall apart like the roof caps I replaced (shown above).

Again, if built well copper products will not need maintenance or even cleaning.  The custom labor, shipping, and installation cost that go into any of these projects account for well over 75% of the cost, so it is unwise to use a cheaper metal that will not hold up.  Some reports will suggest that copper is only good for 50 to 60 years, but I also know that is based on standard 16oz copper. This thinner copper is only used to help minimize cost, so most sheet metal shops will use a very thin 12oz or 16oz copper, which will actually wear holes through it in that time-line (as seen in these photos below) and the soldered seams will crack apart.  Water may not seem abrasive to the touch, but it has been known to wear down mountain given enough time.  If it is not made well with sturdy materials then using copper is a moot point if it is just going to look all dented and fall apart. I have saved this copper scupper as an example to remind me what I work to avoid.

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Short Term Value:
Even if you plan to sell your house soon; using high quality parts like this will most always increase the resale value of your house far more than the cost difference of using a cheaper metal, so you could actually make a profit from paying a little more for better materials. Most prospective buyers know the added value of copper. It also has them thinking you must have attended to this sort of detail with most other aspects of the restoration of this house with that sense of care and quality. Just check with your local Realtor to verify this detail.

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Warning Note:
Other shops prefer stainless-steel over copper to save money on fabrication time because:
1. Stainless-steel is easier to assemble by just spot-welding it together for better mass-production time.
2. Stainless-steel can be easily handled without worry of finger prints, that could cause spotty tarnishing.
3. Stainless-steel is harder, so a thinner sheet metal is used, there fore being lighter for lower shipping costs.
4. Often cheap galvanized steel is substituted for stainless-steel, since the client will be none the wiser until a decade latter (I have seen this deception happen many times). Where copper would be harder to simulate. They do sell a copper look painted steel sheet metal: tarnished or untarnished. A simple magnet test will expose this deception; an indicator of iron in the metal that will cause unsightly rust stains.

We will work in stainless steel, but since copper cost about the same and is a thicker heavier sheet-metal our clients have preferred the solid 20oz copper we use in most of the projects we build.

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Who is Copper-By-Design?
We have just a small hands-on custom sheet-metal fabrication shop located in the Great Northwest. I cannot seem to bring myself to sacrifice quality for a higher production volume, so I may not have the fastest turn around, but I trust you will appreciate how this makes CBD well worth the wait. I only works with rust-free materials and even provide the stainless steel, bronze, or copper fasteners for installation. I started out as a local gutter contractor willing to take on odd projects for my clients, and I'm still very active with that; climbing up on ladders and thousands of roofs to see the evidence of what works, and what doesn't.

We are located in Portland, Oregon on the West side. We are just 10 minutes South of Down Town Portland. Besides being self proclaimed (drug free) hippies with a profound compassion for those we do not even know (see: mind-temple.com), I also seem to have a unique aptitude for mechanical comprehension and spatial arrangement, which help immensely to visualize, design, and create these unique 3-D projects out of flat sheet of copper sheet metal. I've recognized the need for these custom products for clients across the Nation like: decorative turrets and gazebo roof caps, roof ridge caps for moss control, chimney caps & flue covers, scuppers or leader heads, water features, along with an assortment of other original designed and personally fabricated products.

This growing work had inspired us to develop this alternate web site to my local gutter work in order to reach clients through the Internet. These days over half our gutter clients contact us on-line, and around 80% of the custom copper work is for out of State clients.

I had first published my web site for the gutter business back in 1996 under http://dmrgutters.com, but at that time the web address on the side of my work vehicle got more attention than the actual web site.  Over the last decade this has gradually changed to the point that our web site is now more beneficial to our gutter replacement sales than even referrals.  We've now published over 4,000 photos and put thousands of hours into it's development over the last decade. Homeowners have become a lot more web savvy. More and more people are carefully researching the web to find something better than just the normal contractors who talk a fancy jargon, but only deliver a fraction of what they promised. Looking in the local phone directories just isn't cutting it, so Homeowners are beginning to network on-line through web sites like A's List and The Old House Web .

I struggle to find the best quality parts available at a reasonable cost, yet sadly our suppliers report that we seem to be the only contractor in our area who consistently buys the better materials, so it is not profitable to stock them for just one client.  It seems to be true; as I have not personally met a decent roofing or gutter contractors in our local area.

We stand behind our quality with our extensive warranty (see: our Warranty & Service web page for details).  There's a 20 year manufacturing warranty on the copper products we sell.  The only reason I do not offer a longer warranty is that it would be unrealistic and would insult your intelligence to offer more. Where will I be more than 15 years from now at the ripe age of 60+?

What are Our Qualifications?

Besides my high standards and ethics, I (David) had been tested in High School to have an unusually high aptitude for spatial arrangement, art, math, and a 99% mechanical aptitude, which I was told was the highest score possible. It takes these sort of abilities to visualize and diagram new original designs for fabrication, and make sure it will be strong to last over the next century, easy to install, as well as attractive. I strive to place a lot of focus on strength and function. If built well; it should be able to last well over 100 years and be reused each time re-roofing is needed. That is why we supply the stainless steel screws along with a new #3 Phillips tip to do the installation with, so it can be a cherished heirloom.

I honestly seek to raise the bar, after seeing what commonly fails in construction over the last few decades. I would not want anyone to work on my house who's only hope is the parts to last a year trouble free: just enough to avoid their liability.  About 30 years ago, this was the motivation that inspired me to go into construction, after needing to figure out how to do everything on my own.  Schooling was useless, since their primary focus was how to get jobs that can be done fast and cheap, so they would maximize profitability for contractors to financially succeed.

I am personally diligent to respond to client e-mail within 24 hours, but it can take as much as a dozen hours of my time to get all the details ironed out over the course of several weeks of correspondence with a new client on just a small one time project. That is depending on how fast the client responds back with the info I need.  Then several more hours to design, fabricate, box up, and ship a simple $200 roof cap.

I was highly interested in art since third grade. At 17 I got my first professional contract to make a life-size Darth Vader for the promotions of Empire Strikes Back (first release) with working LEDs in the belt units and a lit light saber. All built on a shoe-string budget of only $300. One of my artistic passions is authoring these hundreds of web pages, but most notably is how I am the primary designer and fabricator of the copper work you see here.

One reason that I have these talents is my Grandfather (John William Rich) who was a brilliant inventor of several well known products, but most known for his Rich's Frozen Food Program back East, and his TV chairs seen at large airports and bus terminals. But his greatest invention was the development of the Rich's Safety Bumper for cars and City busses made of a large hollow rubber cell filled with water for the low-tech hydraulic absorption of the impact.  It made driving like playing bumper cars; with his 15 mph no damage bumpers, affording drivers a 20% discount off their auto insurance. He stepped on the toes of the major auto makers here in the USA and his company was crushed like an annoying bug. You can read more about it on our Ethics web page.

Tia has demonstrated a talent in artistic design and has assisted in designing these web pages since early 2000 and helps proof read them. She also consult in design ideas for copper work and helps in the shop. Tia's Father worked on the robotics of the Disney rides in California, and her Mother was very involved with crafts and paintings.

This attention to detail and reliable service has earned us a spot as finalist 2 years in a row for the BBB Business Integrity Award (shown below).

On 6/09 I finally had taken on an apprentice who also seems to have a passion for quality and ethics. He's the Step-Son of a High School chum of mine I had met in art class back in 1978, so I've known Chris since he was 2 years old. I hope for great things to come from this young man, as long as he's willing to stick with it, as I may not be the easiest going person to work with.

What about contacting you and good swift communication?

We have been told by numerous clients that in searching the web for this sort of information; we clearly have the most comprehensive web site on custom copper sheet metal design and fabrication in the world, with our 300+ web pages and over 4,000 photos, that link to full screen digital images for a better look at our work with prices listed of what they had paid at that time. You are likely to agree. Some people feel we have over done it here with so many step-by-step photo sets, but these are from the pictures I take to send to the client each night while working on their project. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I do what I can to best communicate with our clients through this medium.

We feel there are already hoards of simple web sites that you could navigate and read over within a few minutes, but that is not the grouping we want to compete with. We virtually stand alone here on the web for an on-line store front for a small business like ours.

If nothing else this web site shows our commitment to good clear communication, which is very important to us. I am personally careful to check e-mail at least twice a day, and respond within 24 hours. If you had not heard back from me with a personalized reply within that time, call  me  to check if I received your e-mail. I answer calls personally, but I do not quote projects over the phone for a couple reasons:
(a) it often takes an hour or two to do the careful calculations and write up a detailed quote.
(b) it is foolish to rely on memory as to what the terms were, so through e-mail we will both have a written record.

We specialize in custom copper designs.  We rarely get a chance to reuse a pattern or template a second time, since each clients needs have been uniquely different. We actually encourage unique designs, as opposed to pushing clients over to generic designs by offering discounts.  The only discounts we offer are for clients who have carefully read through our web site and have provided us with all the info we need to provide a quote in the first e-mail exchange. There is also a volume discount, but that rarely happens.

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We have worked hard to maintain the highest reputation for quality and honest work.  First off with using a thicker 20oz to 48oz copper for our custom work, instead of the standard 12oz and 16oz copper most other shops use when working with copper.  I feel it's pointless to use copper if it's built so flimsy that it will not last longer than a cheap painted steel. We also provide the stainless steel screws for a better installation with detailed instruction.  For shipping projects even as small as the ones shown here to the right (made for a playhouse turret roofs in Arizona) we make a wood frame crate that is screwed together, with the screw holes pre-drilled so they will not crack the boards.  Then it has cardboard or a thin plywood attached to the wood frame.  For larger projects like chimney caps the crate has a 1/2" plywood base and top shell, since they may be stacking other boxes over my crates in shipping.  Details you are not likely to find elsewhere.  Even with shipping insurance; the time delays alone would to repair a damaged item is not worth the savings of building a cheaper shipping crate.

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Why is quality and craftsmanship so hard to find these days?
I would say it's mainly our fast pace world of chasing the almighty dollar, and not giving a crap about the consequences. Most building contractors seem to look at building code as a thorn in their side and seek to quickly do their work as cheaply as they can get away with. Just enough to get past a 1 year minimum warranty most State's Construction Contractors Board require.  Each house I have worked on tells a story: why the old parts had failed, which is the only reason I'm called in to fix it. It is my duty to evaluate the evidence and solve the short comings of the previous work and the materials used. Sadly that's not the focus of most contractors, contrary to the slick double talk of their salesperson. I see these codes as a minimal recommendation, and strive to better it in every aspect of what I do in an effort to build products to last a century or more. I know I could not possibly be perfect, so I feel it makes good sense to over compensate on parts and installation quality, so the project has a better chance to even out what short comings I may have.

Ethics and integrity are words with a powerful meaning, but seems to have lost much of it's relevance these days, like the words: super turbo charged, titanium, or platinum cards. We have been told by many clients how our prices are quite reasonable and even lower than many other shops.  Being a small hands-on business I have a low overhead compared to most shops. I'm still just a humble low-life 'renter' myself. That makes our swift production capability much more limited though. If some of the prices listed on this web site seem a little high, try to keep in mind that many of these items are shown with the priced including the cost of  a strong wood custom made crate with shipping charges, unlike you'll see elsewhere.  We do not play the game of showing you a lower price, and then tack on a huge shipping and handling charge.  If you happen to be local enough to drive here to pick up the fabrication we will gladly discount those costs of course, which could save you over $1k. I am often using more copper than estimated, yet will stick to my quoted price.

Copper is gauged as weight per square foot for sheet-metal.  When it is shown gauged any other way there is a good chance it is only painted or copper plated steel, so beware of this sort of scam.  To minimize the costs and be easier to work with most fabrication shops use 12oz or 16oz copper. We use 20oz copper or thicker for our custom fabrications, so they are heavier and more dent resistant, and less prone to wind and debris damage.  Thicker copper like 24oz, 32oz, and 48oz is of course more costly and harder to work with, so that greatly raises the cost, but I price it at the same cost per pound as the 20oz copper, so it is usually $20 #..

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I made this white aluminum fascia metal
over birch plywood shipped to Arizona, along
with the copper scuppers and downspout parts

If you are not able to do the installation yourself; I wish you good fortune finding a reliable contractor in your area.  I have several links to A's List here to help our clients find relatively competent and honest contractors in their local area to do the installations of our products.  If you are able to find a contractor that you feel comfortable with, have them look over our web site here to see just how we do our installations and have them contact me with any questions.  If they claim they completely understand just what to do already, that is probably not a good sign.

I will be able to provide all the high quality parts and stainless steel fasteners with detailed installation instructions for them to use. You will not want to trust them to get any of the parts needed. Even the lumber.  I hope you do not think I say this to pad my pocket with more sales $.  All the contractors I have met see the building codes as a thorn in their side, where I see it as a minimal guide line: just as they were intended.

What all do we have to offer?

Custom Chimney Caps and flue extensions from $200 to $12k

Custom 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, & 16 sided Roof Caps
for turret and gazebo roof peaks ranging from $100 up to $2.4k

Custom decorative Scuppers
(as shown here to the left)

Custom Range Hoods and Mantles

Other custom Sheet Metal Fabrications

Retail seller of inexpensive Cupolas, Weathervanes,
& Finials through Good Directions, Inc.

Non-local Supplies of special custom aluminum and copper sheet metal gutter parts

Rust-free Gutter Replacement

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Our Personal Thought on Ethics
We are a small hands-on company that does the design and fabrication personally here in the USA. We've always focuses on quality over profit. Our reputation is far too important to let it fall to a greater production volume.

The next statement is a simple concept that is un-debatable (we dare anyone to try), which doesn't require a subscription to any particular dogma. It is simply logic.  These are words we strive to live by.  Why is this not being taught in our Schools, let alone a strong philosophy in the business world? Planned obsolescence should be a crime, yet it's a standard in most industry through out the world. What a sad state of affairs.

Quote: If we are not honorable with those of our association; be it business and or personal, we have no right to even hope for any better from others, let alone expect it. We each need to strive to create the world we hope to live in, regardless of what we may get in return as an absolute rule.

I imagine you or anyone you'll ever meet cannot honestly say "I don't mind living in a world of lies and deceit", so the least we can do is not add to that muck from our words and actions.

We also need to accept how others have just as much right to live and prosper as we do; unconditionally! They should not be robbed through our selfishness. Beside unjustified WAR, this is manifested in many more ways than you could possibly imagine; in how we conduct our daily life and purchases. Please take some time to research 'Fair Trade'.

I wish Ethical Responsibility were not such a rare quality in our modern business world, but wishing and waiting on the side lines is not going to change it. The best I can do is set a good example in every aspect of what I do to show it is possible to still make a modest living while running an ethical business. My ideals are not because I was raised a Mormon in Utah. I have not found the LDS share my passion for ethics, let alone implement it in their actions beyond their pretences, or else it would have impacted the business world a great deal more than it has through competition.

I can only hope to inspire others to seek out opportunities for good karma to enhance their lives and character through helping to enhance other people's lives in their chosen field of work with compassion and care. Every aspect of all we do should be approached as an art-form with intension.

We can try to teach others how to live and love, but until they own it and it becomes a part of them, it will just be a pretty string of words with little real meaning. The best we can hope to do is set a good example, and maybe those around you will eventually gleam some wisdom from that. You can not force it on others. We need to be very patient, as they still need to grok it in their own time-line.

author: David Rich

"Quality and service is not expensive,
it's priceless!"