The surface tension type on my house work well except in very heavy rain. The corner where the valleys empty into the gutter dump too much water for the gutters to work. I have always had a dry basement and I'm a little paranoid about getting any leaks. I dug a foot deep trench under the eves and lined it with heavy plastic. I laid some 4" perforated pipe down, then filled the trench with 57s. The pipes exit in the yard about 30 feet from the house. There is a "french drain" down near the footer too that drains into sumps in the basement. The remodel of the south side of the house is still underway in this August 7th photo.
