Gutter guards. Yay or nay?

[JDishnell]

Any one here use the leafless gutter guards? Pros? Cons?

Have been thinking about having them installed on our gutters. Back gutters are 40+ feet high, so I have to pay someone to come clean them so I thought I'd eventually like to just get the gutter guards. One thing I've read is that even with the gutter guards, you still have have the gutters cleaned occasionally. Would seem to defeat the purpose.

 

[northGAcock]

Get rid of your gutters......thank me later.

 

[lawcalcock]

I bought gutter guards 8 years ago after an encounter with a snake while cleaning them. Fortunately I was not bitten. But it was an unpleasant experience to say the least.

 

[psmith5532]

We have a variation of gutter guards...to me it's worth the price

 

[lawcalcock]

Any one here use the leafless gutter guards? Pros? Cons?

Have been thinking about having them installed on our gutters. Back gutters are 40+ feet high, so I have to pay someone to come clean them so I thought I'd eventually like to just get the gutter guards. One thing I've read is that even with the gutter guards, you still have have the gutters cleaned occasionally. Would seem to defeat the purpose.

I have never needed mine cleaned since installation!

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

Get rid of your gutters......thank me later.

I have lived in homes both with and without gutters and I strongly disagree with this position. I detest walking right into a wall of water as soon as you leave your home when it is raining out.

Now- the home I bought this Fall has gutters and the “guards” are just simple pieces of heavy duty screen they kind of fit over the gutters in sections. I do not like them at all- a strong wind can blow them off... If you are going to get gutter guards, go with the higher quality options. JMHO

 

[Dizzy01]

If you have an issue with repeatedly having to clean them than absolutely. We did it on our old house and every once in a while I’d have to knock clumps of pine straw loose but Other than that no issues.

 

[heavycock]

I've found that the really tight mesh ones work best. I got these from Costco (ordered online) and put them on myself. So far so good. The ones more like a screen with bigger holes suck especially if you're dealing with pine needles; they go right through and then the gutters are harder to clean out because you have to take the guards off. And those Leaf Guard type systems (the kind the home improvement contractors send people around knocking on your doors trying to sell) are expensive as crap and I hear they don't work very well.

 

[Millertime6289]

I put some on my gutters, they work okay but pine straw still gets stuck.

 

[Crutcher1]

I put some on my gutters, they work okay but pine straw still gets stuck.

We replaced our old gutters with Leaf Guard gutters about 15 years ago. Never had a problem and never had to clean them. There may be cheaper versions on the market now, but 15 years ago they were fairly expensive, but well worth it for me.

 

[JDishnell]

Thanks for the feedback! One thing we don't have to deal with up here is pine straw.

 

[mauze1]

I have lived in homes both with and without gutters and I strongly disagree with this position. I detest walking right into a wall of water as soon as you leave your home when it is raining out.

Now- the home I bought this Fall has gutters and the “guards” are just simple pieces of heavy duty screen they kind of fit over the gutters in sections. I do not like them at all- a strong wind can blow them off... If you are going to get gutter guards, go with the higher quality options. JMHO

You have gutters over your exterior door ways? Out west they never heard of gutters. When you don’t have them you can put a water guard above your outside doors. One more item is your splash surfaces below. Many pour a concrete gutter below the roof eves. I have gutters on my house now but I could get by without them. They were needed when I moved in, to control erosion. Now, not so much.

 

[TheReelEss]

Any one here use the leafless gutter guards? Pros? Cons?

Have been thinking about having them installed on our gutters. Back gutters are 40+ feet high, so I have to pay someone to come clean them so I thought I'd eventually like to just get the gutter guards. One thing I've read is that even with the gutter guards, you still have have the gutters cleaned occasionally. Would seem to defeat the purpose.

We just got Leaf Filter gutters. I can't say how effective they are yet. But they have a no-clog lifetime guarantee. They'll come clean them out if they clog. We don't have the covers all the way around. The rep said he only recommended them on one side and rear of our house because of the trees there. The cover is the fine wire mesh type. They were kind of pricey.

 

[mavcock]

I bought gutter guards 8 years ago after an encounter with a snake while cleaning them. Fortunately I was not bitten. But it was an unpleasant experience to say the least.

Great. I was planning on cleaning them out tomorrow. Now I'm terrified of getting on that ladder.

 

[gcocks2011]

We just got Leaf Filter gutters. I can't say how effective they are yet. But they have a no-clog lifetime guarantee. They'll come clean them out if they clog. We don't have the covers all the way around. The rep said he only recommended them on one side and rear of our house because of the trees there. The cover is the fine wire mesh type. They were kind of pricey.

How pricey? Thinking about getting some.

 

[92Pony]

I have two concerns with gutter guards:

1> In heavy rains, water might rush right over the guards

2> Those little "worms" from Oak trees will clog the fine mesh

We've been in this house for 1.5yrs - first house ever with gutters. I'm already really beginning to despise keeping them clean.......

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

You have gutters over your exterior door ways? Out west they never heard of gutters. When you don’t have them you can put a water guard above your outside doors. One more item is your splash surfaces below. Many pour a concrete gutter below the roof eves. I have gutters on my house now but I could get by without them. They were needed when I moved in, to control erosion. Now, not so much.

Yes... Well my front doors have an open carport sheltering them but there is gutter along the entire roof line of that leading to my driveway and above my back door.

 

[Gamecock Lifer]

I have two concerns with gutter guards:

1> In heavy rains, water rushes right over the guards

2> Those little "worms" from Oak trees will clog the fine mesh

We've been in this house for 1.5yrs - first house ever with gutters. I'm already really beginning to despise keeping them clean.......

Good point! I think with any large tree that constantly sheds- like an Oak- close to your house gutters will Always be more trouble than they are worth... I have no large trees over hanging my roof at my place now so it has been virtually zero maintenance. As with anything like this- the case for or against is totally subjective.

 

[vidaliagamecock]

Any one here use the leafless gutter guards? Pros? Cons?

Have been thinking about having them installed on our gutters. Back gutters are 40+ feet high, so I have to pay someone to come clean them so I thought I'd eventually like to just get the gutter guards. One thing I've read is that even with the gutter guards, you still have have the gutters cleaned occasionally. Would seem to defeat the purpose.

I feel like I am being scammed because it sounds like such a good idea. I want to say yes, but I am just not sure.

 

[Freddie.B.Cocky]

Any one here use the leafless gutter guards? Pros? Cons?

Have been thinking about having them installed on our gutters. Back gutters are 40+ feet high, so I have to pay someone to come clean them so I thought I'd eventually like to just get the gutter guards. One thing I've read is that even with the gutter guards, you still have have the gutters cleaned occasionally. Would seem to defeat the purpose.

I have had gutter guards for about ten years and have no complaints.

 

[01fatboy]

if you are anywhere near the greenville, anderson area look up Jake the gutter guy. will beat any price around and does good work. if i knew i could get em that cheap woulda done it years ago. best money i have spent! you can thank me later

 

[Forever Fowl]

I have Leaf Guard and every year or so I call them to clean out the pine needles. If you live with lots of pines the needles will find a way into your gutters and they will clog.

At least Leaf Guard lives up to their guarantee of cleaning out blockages from their gutters.

 

[JDishnell]

I have Leaf Guard and every year or so I call them to clean out the pine needles. If you live with lots of pines the needles will find a way into your gutters and they will clog.

At least Leaf Guard lives up to their guarantee of cleaning out blockages from their gutters.

Would that include cleaning a downspout as well?

 

[TheReelEss]

I have two concerns with gutter guards:

1> In heavy rains, water might rush right over the guards

2> Those little "worms" from Oak trees will clog the fine mesh

We've been in this house for 1.5yrs - first house ever with gutters. I'm already really beginning to despise keeping them clean.......

The Leaf Filter rep gave us a demo of his product running water over it faster than rain could ever fall. Water goes through the screen. But we did get a couple heavy rains since it was installed. The gutters stopped the splashing down on the deck that we used to get. It works well. Now, they're brand new and I don't know if the mesh stays clear for years. They do come clean them out if they clog.

 

[92Pony]

The Leaf Filter rep gave us a demo of his product running water over it faster than rain could ever fall. Water goes through the screen. But we did get a couple heavy rains since it was installed. The gutters stopped the splashing down on the deck that we used to get. It works well. Now, they're brand new and I don't know if the mesh stays clear for years. They do come clean them out if they clog.

Interesting - good info!

 

[JDishnell]

The promise to come out an clean the guards if they clog is a red flag to me. Isn't the point that they shouldn't clog?

 

[TheReelEss]

Interesting - good info!

I would add we got the deeper and wider than standard gutters because our house is old with steep pitched roof. And it's been added onto a couple times. So there were some valleys that make the problem worse. That one area that we used to get the most concentrated flow off the roof does not splash at all. They pitched the gutters down from that point to split the flow. Their installation looks very good.

 

[coolcock2001]

Learn how to bowl like a real man IMO

 

[Forever Fowl]

Would that include cleaning a downspout as well?

Any clogging of a functional downspout is a fault of the gutter so the answer is yes.

 

[JDishnell]

Any clogging of a functional downspout is a fault of the gutter so the answer is yes.

Thanks. Can never be too sure. Bought a certified Honda a few years ago. A brake caliper malfunctioned and caused excessive wear to the brakes and rotors. Honda would only cover the malfunctioned caliper but not the brakes and rotors b/c those are wear and tear parts, even though they were only excessively worn due to the malfunctioned caliper. Thankfully the dealer where I purchased the vehicle took care of the repair but I'll never waste money on a certified vehicle again.

 

[MadelynnPerez]

Not yet.

 

[AlisonNorth80y]

Hey there! I just stumbled upon this old thread and wanted to throw in my two cents about gutter guards. Personally, I'm a big fan of them - they're a definite yay in my book! I haven't used the leafless gutter guards specifically, but I've had other types installed on my house and they've been a total game-changer. No more worrying about leaves and other junk clogging up the gutters and causing damage. The biggest pro of gutter guards is obviously not having to clean out your gutters as often (or pay someone else to do it). The only downside I can think of is that you may still need to clean them occasionally, but in my experience, it's way less frequent than without the guards. And if you're already paying someone to clean your gutters because they're too high, it seems like a no-brainer to invest in the guards. Plus, if you're getting them installed, it's a great opportunity to also have any necessary soffit and fascia repairs taken care of at the same time. Hope this helps!

 

[Forever Fowl]

Gutter guards work best for straight line gutters but the key is having enough down spouts. They will often overflow during a hard rain as they can't move as much water as open gutters. While leaves won't clog them pine needles can.