The Truth About Gutter Guards: The Hidden Costs
Gutter Guards! They sound great for protecting from gutter clogs and preventing costly damage, but what if its just a false sense of security? While costing roughly $400 to install, you’d hope not, but it just might be. We clean lots of gutters per year, which means we clean off TONS of gutter guards per year. So this article is not a hit-piece because they take money out of our pockets, in fact we profit from gutter guards. It is to inform homeowners of a common misconception with a product they might be considering.
We often see homeowners who didn’t even know they should have had their gutter guards cleaned at all. This comes with a lot of misleading from the installation companies. But yes, The guards should be cleaned and checked for any damage about 2 times a year unless you’re in a more wooded area, maybe even 3 times!
Common mistakes we see
Overestimating the effectiveness: When getting gutter guards put on homeowners typically neglect to have them cleaned. Even most installers will tell you they will still need cleaned. You should have your gutter guards cleaned and checked for damage about twice a year.
Gutter guards installed incorrectly.
Wrong type of gutter guards: Each type of shingles and gutter require different types of gutter guards. Some people claiming to be professionals may not understand what is needed and apply the wrong guards to your gutters.
How it can cause damage
While your gutters exist for a reason (to carry water and debris away from your home) there seems to be little reason to cover the tops of them, when they are engineered and shaped the way they are for a reason. And gutter guards do just that, leaving all of the debris on top and creating piles of the debris that could’ve been washed away by the gutter, just sitting on top of the guard.. and then when more rain comes that rain touches the top of the gutter, and behind it such as your fascia board, ect..
The picture on the right shows debris clogged up behind the “drip edge” of a customer’s home. Which directly behind is the home’s fascia board.. which shall I remind you is wood? These gutter guards we’re installed very recently and have already accumulated plenty of debris.
Gutter guards can actually even void your roof shingle warranty depending on the installation methods used. And insurance typically does not cover damage done by water from clogged gutters.
What are the selling points of gutter guards?
So for us to rightfully judge gutter guards for what they are, we must first break down their selling points.
Reduced Maintenance: As far as reduced maintenance, we see more maintenance issues arise out of having them than not. Your gutters exist for a reason, and most debris can/will be shot right down your downspout, yes this can cause clogs at times, but at least its not creating a layer of debris covering your gutter completely.
Preventing Clogs: As far as preventing clogs inside the gutters, it does a tremendous job, in fact the best. The debris just gets stuck on top instead and leaves the water to drip on your head! Just as intended right?… right? The problem is the leaves create a nice layer for the water to run right off of when heavy rain hits.
Extended Gutter Lifespan: It does in fact extend the lifespan of your gutters, as there isn’t debris dirtying up and wearing the inside, but gutters are there for a reason, and designed to be on a home for a reason. You may need to replace your gutters every 20-30 years, but that comes with regular maintenance of a home.
Show me the facts!
*The below text are hyperlinks to our sources on each claim*
Did we take it too far?
We went a little hard on gutter guards in this one, but I do not feel like it’s unjustified. We’ve heard from many homeowners lied to by gutter installation companies, that these will help solve their issues, and it doesn’t; because most of them are trying to sell a dream. While there can be benefits to getting gutter guards installed, I’d personally say there is more benefit to not having them.
So in the mean time, all we can do is keep those gutter guards flowing and homes pristine with clean. That’s what we’re all about here at Lansing Precision Power-Wash.