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What’s the best leaf guard for gutters. Ask 6 people and get 6 different answers. Have customers ask me what is the best leaf. I haven’t been impressed much by any of them. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
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Verl, are the leaves from desirable cabinet-quality hardwood trees? If so, liberal application of a chainsaw and portable bandsaw Mill is recommended. Screw the gutter guards... we're talkin' Little House on the Prairie here.
*I would say that the solid gutter hood type guards are the best. Water hugs and rolls under to the gutter and leafs and twigs fall off. Screens fall in and hold sticks and leaf stems.Pete Draganic
*I think it depends where you are, what the weather is like, and what sort of stuff falls on the house. The ones I put in have undoubtedly helped. Some of these gutters protectors may do so at the expense of more water going over the edge of the gutter. And I think most agree the screens are terrible (especially when one of their selling points is that they "flip up for easy cleaning!"). Gutter Helmet comes with a lifetime guarantee -- they'll come clean your gutters if it becomes necessary -- but is REALLY expensive.P.S. I'd tell you which brand I used but it might not work in your area -- and I don't want to just become person #7...
*I'm in northern Indiana, have a lot of maple and oak leaves. I've seen the gutter helmet and it may do the job, but I don't think it helps the appearance of a roof any. I know-you can't have your cake and eat it too!! Has anyone seen GutterGard? It's a new style of gutter, different style of the box gutter. It does have a nice appearance, although it too is costly. It uses the same technique as the hood type guards, but is all one piece.
*I had Leafguard gutters spec'ed for a new 2800 SF house, which bid only $1000 more than standard gutters, and well worth the price. I have them on my current house and they work great. They certainly do keep out everything that could clog up a gutter in a short time. However, they do allow small pine needles (such as Douglas Fir) and grains from asphalt shingles to get into the gutter, which may build up over several years. The needles and asphalt grains can be blasted out with a hose, and you would probably only need to do this every five years or so. Even knowing this, I spec'ed 30-year comp shingles for my new house. My ideal roof would have been fiber-cement "fake slate" shingles, but they cost $7000 more for my house. I guess I'll just have to live with the grains of asphalt in my gutters.