Gutter Guards

December 02, 2009

The Purpose of Gutter Guards

The intention of rain gutters is to keep water away from your house’s foundations, and the intent of gutter guards is to keep your gutters working.

As your gutters capture the rain coming off of your roof, they also capture all the debris that lands on your roof; leaves, seeds, and pine needles, among other things. If this debris gets into your gutters, the gutters become clogged and stop working altogether.

How Gutter Guards Work

Gutter guards act like sieves. The water should flow through or around the guard into the gutter, but the roof debris should be filtered out by the guard. This is where the problem usually begins, though. Sieves are made to capture debris, but gutter guards should not. Effective gutter guards are engineered so that the leaves, pine needles, etc. are not only filtered from the water, but will also blow off of the gutter guard instead of collecting there.

What to Look for in a Gutter Guard

Keeping the sieve theory in mind, here are some questions that might help you find a gutter guard that is worth the investment:

  • Will the filter structure effectively block the debris, or just get clogged by it?
  • Is the filter material sturdy enough to survive the weather, tree limbs, and critters that your roof may encounter?
  • If for some reason you need to remove the gutter guard later, will that destroy your gutters in the process?

As with any other investment, you should comparison shop before buying any gutter guards. Talk to neighbors and friends, contact several companies for demonstrations and estimates, and visit some product review websites.

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