I’ll be in the market for new drain gutters and down-spouts come spring. Has anyone out there had these types of gutters (various brands) installed that have a metal hood that covers the open top of the gutters for the purpose of deflecting leaves away from the gutters?
Thanks for any input,
Roy
From building boxes and fitting face frames to installing doors and drawers, these techniques could be used for lots of cabinet projects.
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Replies
I've had reasonably good luck with the after-market screens. I'm a bit doubtful of the gutters with a built-in hood, though -- I suspect they shed a lot of water in a heavy rain, and if the gutter does clog they make it hard to clean.
If you are getting new aluminum gutters, have a look at the combination hanger / guard systems. These lock into the gutter, providing continuous support, as well as keep them clean.
I used the Alurex T-Rex system on mine 4 years ago, have not had to clean them since. Made me a happy customer.
Sold in the US by Ply-Gem as Leaf Relief Combo Hanger.
I'll note that those are essentially the same as after-market screens, except that they are (apparently) securely locked into the gutter before installation.
Lock into the outside lip, crimped to the back before installing. Screws go thought the guard and the back of the gutter, replacing hangers or nails. Fully supports the outside edge, so the installation is much stronger than with brackets.
Makes it easier to install as well, as crimped guard prevents the gutter from twisting and buckling when being placed on the roof.
Here in Southern California, in fire prone areas, gutter guards are manditory to prevent accumulation of leaves. These fire codes are pretty well thought out so they probably work.
Gutters are an invention of the Devil :)
I frown upon claims that gutter helmets will give you a life-time of bliss; that you will never, ever again have to clean your gutters. That is false. Airborne dirt alone will eventually build up in your gutter. And soon little plants will poke up their heads! My problem with the gutter helmet is that it impedes future work on roof shiingles. And the product is co$tly
So..um...one of the best solutions is the painted steel or aluminum gutter guard with a fairly fine grid. The cost will be around $5/3'; not "cheap", but at least the gutter is accessible when the need arises. Forget those black inserts; they attract borer bees. Forget those flimpsy plastic thingees.Do it once, do it right, and clean every 3 yrs or so.
I've been using the "flimpsy
I've been using the "flimpsy plastic thingees" for maybe 15 years now, and have not had any trouble with them. Because I don't have the entire length screened in some cases I do have to get at the downspout end at times to clean things out, but that's fairly easy to do with the plastic units.
Dan, them there plastic thingees are chewed up by our urban squirrel population, blown about, don't protect against pine needles, cedar seed "wings"...that kinda stuff. I'll try to post a pic of a gal. metal insert that is rigid, holds up against winds, rain and...and...urban squirrels. :)
The plastic covers I've installed over the past 10 years (I've been doing a little at a time, have it just about all done) have a fine fiberglass screen on top, so no problem with needles and seeds. (We have a majorly maple seed situation.) The squirrels here spend all their time in the bird feeder, so no problem there either.
Gutters
Over a decade ago I had LeafGuard gutters installed on my house in Virginia. LeafGuard gutters are a custom formed gutter and hood made from one piece of aluminum (the hood is not removable). I have never had to clean the gutters since they were installed. I got up on a ladder to look inside one of the gutters a few years ago and there was a little bit of dirt in the bottom of the gutter but not enough to have a negative effect on the functioning of the gutter. This is in a location shaded by two oak trees. They were expensive but I am glad I had the LeafGuard gutters installed.
A few years ago I put Gutter Brush in all my gutters to stop large oak leaves from plugging up the downspouts. They work fine and can easily be removed if needed.