Gutter Guards Could Potentially Keep Your Gutters Flowing Smoothly
Gutters work to help divert water from a home's roof to a safe area away from the home's foundation. When they're in working order, they help protect a home and its foundation from water damage and premature decay. However, when they're clogged full of debris, it's nearly impossible for all the rainwater and snowmelt to clear the roof safely.
Gutter guards are a protective measure to keep unwanted debris from clogging up a home's gutter system. Debris like pine needles, leaves, and even shingle granules can all end up in the gutter. Without being properly cleared, these will stop the free-flow of water away from the home. Gutter guards are a simple mesh cover that lies over the exposed gutter system components to stop any loose debris from entering the gutter system.
Benefits of Using Gutter Guards
Once one understands exactly what gutter guards are, the benefits of their use become fairly obvious. First, they ensure that a home's gutter system works effectively to remove shedding water from the roof. This is essential to ensuring that the roof doesn't undergo water damage from excess backup and that the home's foundation isn't damaged due to too much moisture in the soil.
Apart from the advantages that gutter guards offer a home, they provide some for homeowners as well. The biggest advantage is replacing the need to constantly clean out gutters. Any homeowner knows that getting out a ladder and scooping out loose debris can be dangerous, messy, and time-consuming. With a single installation of gutter guards, any homeowner can rest assured that their gutters will stay free of debris, and they won't have to constantly crawl up and down a ladder.
Disadvantages of Gutter Guards
While gutter guards have many advantages, they still have some drawbacks that homeowners should be aware of. The specific drawbacks that one faces will depend on the particular type of gutter guard system they've chosen to install. Homeowners who opt for a fully enclosed gutter guard will find that bees and birds may make a home under the guard. This can lead to unwanted clogging and a nasty insect problem. In addition, solid gutter guards don't work well in the winter months. This usually results in excess icicles hanging from the roof.
When a homeowner opts for the screened or mesh gutter guards, they need to be prepared for regular maintenance. While these screen systems work great to keep debris out of the gutters, they can sometimes get backed up with debris. When the openings in the screen or mesh get clogged with loose debris, the water is unable to flow through to the gutter system. So, homeowners will need to regularly check the gutter guards for areas of excess debris accumulation and remove it before it clogs the system.
Potential Installation Costs
The installation costs and the availability of DIY systems depend highly on the type of gutter guard system a person chooses. There are three main types, which include:
- Screening / Filtering - Screening systems are made of PVC or aluminum and simply fit onto existing gutters. The concept of this system is that water passes through holes within the screening. But, these holes are small enough to protect against loose debris like leaves entering the gutter. Homeowners can easily install screening systems by sliding the guard into the lip of their existing gutters. Costs range around $5 for every 5-inch section.
- Blocking / Filling - Blocking systems use a foam filler that is inserted inside of the gutters. The concept behind this method is that water will still flow through the foam. However, loose debris will be stuck on top of the foam. The foam is situated so that it's level with the lip of the gutter. This allows the loose debris to be easily blown off or removed by the homeowner. Foam blocking systems are very DIY-friendly. Similar to screening systems, blocking systems run around $5 per 5-inch section.
- Reverse Curve - Reverse curve systems are also referred to as solid systems that direct the flow of water. A solid, curved topper is placed on the existing gutter with the curve facing away from the roof. As water drains from the shingles, it will follow the solid curve around to small holes at the front of the curve that allows the water to enter the gutter. Loose debris follows the solid curve and ends up falling off the roof. Reverse curve systems need to be professionally fitted. The materials will cost around $6 per foot. Labor can run anywhere between $6 to $10 per foot, depending on the contractor.
