Seamless Gutter Guards

There are many types of gutter guards being manufactured these days. I have at one time, or another installed most of them. There is a definite difference between their performance and longevity. They are made from foam, stainless steel, aluminum, and vinyl plastics. There are advantages to using aluminum as opposed to other materials. Aluminum will stand up to the elements for years to come. Aluminum will be the same material your seamless gutters are made of ultimately making a complete box protecting your fascia from damage. Foam, vinyl, and steel will all disintegrate with time. I will cover all these one at a time.

The type of Gutter Guards we use are brand named Shur Flo. I have a video on my homepage if you want to see how they work. Basically, they are a solid flat piece of aluminum the same gauge as your seamless gutters. They are perforated with hundreds of 1/8 or smaller holes that will keep out almost all of debris that will fall on your gutters. They have special ribs running horizontally to slow down the water flow so that all of the water enters the gutter. The ribs also allow for a place for wind to get under any leaf that rest on the gutter guard. When installing this type of gutter guard we will attach the front and the rear of this gutter guard to the front and rear of gutter every 3 feet. By far your best bang for your buck in a saturated market of gutter guards.

Foam Gutter Guards are hands down the worst choice you could make to keep leaves and debris out of your gutters. These types of gutter guards are extremely low priced. The foam gutter guards are extremely easy to install especially for a diy project. They will quite possibly work good the first season you install them but the next year they will be clogged by vegetation and fail. There is no way to clean them after they inevitably get clogged then you will either need to pull them out and try to clean them on the ground or pull them out and throw them away. If you have had these types of foam wedges in your gutters for more than 2-3 seasons, then you will know exactly what I’m talking about.

Mesh Gutter Guards are not a bad option for a diy homeowner. They do not require any hardware to install. The mesh gutter guards come in various sizes to correlate to the type of trees you have around your home. Mesh gutter guards typically just ‘snap’ into your existing K-style gutter systems. The main problem you will find with this type of mesh gutter guards is that they will pop out. You will come out after a storm where small limbs and leaves have blown around and for some reason find your gutter guard has ‘popped’ out. Seemingly for no reason. After a few trips up and down a ladder you will be asking yourself why your ever put these types of gutter guards in the first place.

Micro Mesh Gutter Guards are a popular type of gutter guards that have been marketed extensively. These are usually made from a stainless-steel micro mesh material. Think of a strainer you find in your kitchen, the metal type. That is the material they are made from. Again, I must say, at first these type of gutter guard work great. Over time although these gutter guard mesh will start to have moss or algae start to grow on the mesh. There is no easy way to stop this from happening after a couple of years, especially on the north side of your home. The cost of these types of gutter guards usually keeps people from even considering them in the first place.

Helmet Type Gutter Guards are also marketed in a lot of places. These gutter guards will completely cover the gutter with a solid piece of aluminum but at the end they will curve over into a small trough that is supposed to catch all of the water coming off your roof. Helmet type gutter guards are mostly installed under the first course of shingles. This may have adverse effect on your roofs warranty. You can normally see this type of gutter guard from the ground or the street. If you do see a house with these types of gutter guards, you will not forget how bulky and out of place these style of gutter guards look. If you happen to have pine trees close to your home the needles will make the curve at the end of the type of gutter guards and clog up the trough that is supposed to catch water and it’s difficult to get those small troughs clean again.

With all these choices I can understand how it can get a little overwhelming to choose between the product that will be best for your application. I make it easy on my customers by only providing one choice, Shur Flo Gutter Guards. Not because I don’t want to install other types of gutter guards but because I believe these are the best type of gutter guard on the market. Signing off for now.. Ken