Gutter Protection Systems / Gutter Guards / Leaf Preventive Systems
- Amazon Roofing
- Mar 28
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 29
There is probably a countless amount of different gutter protection systems on today's market. These systems can vary by numerous different factors: Materials they're made from - Installation method - Cost, of course - Diversion of debris (foliage) away from gutters - And probably many more!
To avoid much confusion, plus not have to write a novel here, we're going to narrow it down to 2 types: ------ SCREENED GUTTER GUARDS & SOLID GUTTER GUARDS
While these 2 categories may not cover all of the choices, we believe it covers the vast majority.
Before we dive into our feedback on these 2 types, we may as well cover the type we recommend.
***** NONE OF THEM *****
We are truly sorry to report this. We are not a rebellious company, that looks to criticize rather than compliment. Simply put, they have still not built the perfect mousetrap. We believe that all of these systems come with some type of flaw / compromise, flaws that are often severe enough to defeat the purpose of having gutters at all! The whole purpose of gutters and downspouts is to divert the rain away from your home's foundation. These systems fail far too often (OUR OPINION) for our company to endorse any of them. We will now elaborate below:
***** SCREENED GUTTER GUARDS *****
Screened gutter guards have the potential for many issues. For starters, debris often still gets into the gutters. The guards often dislodge in severe weather, especially the lighter weight plastic ones.
Even if debris doesn't compromise the guards, it can still take root on top of the guards, through the perforation. This is worrisome as you can now have a barrier / dam that is flush with the bottom of your roof. This barrier can hold any type of moisture at the very bottom of your roof, and we find this, the most concerning aspect during the colder seasons. Late Fall, Winters, and early Spring in the Toledo Ohio area have been quite unpredictable over the past several years. So the potential exists of freezing temperatures with snowfall, the snow then sits behind the barrier until warmer temperatures arrive and thaw the snow. This is a process that could occur numerous times per year, and as the years go by, contribute to the erosion of the bottom of your roof. In this case, the issues that could arise vary. If you have overhangs of decent size, (12 inch plus), with no early indicators, your soffits, rafter tails, etc. could rot and eventually collapse. If you have no overhangs at all, and your gutter's fascia boards are flush with the top of your siding, precipitation could penetrate behind your siding. Precipitation could also wash back underneath the drip edge at the bottom of your roof. This can result in leaks along the walls inside of your home, when we see leaks / stains like this, it quite often turns out to be a gutter issue, not a roofing issue. It's important to note, all of the potential hazards we just listed, are just that, potential hazards. If any customer was to have this type of gutter guard installed, we are not stating that you will have these issues, and even if issues did occur, there is no automatic timeline they would occur within. We do not want to exaggerate our opinions, just share them.
***** SOLID GUTTER GUARDS *****
Solid gutter guards have the potential to be just as problematic as the screened guards. They are also known to allow debris into the gutters, they require precision installs, and when the weather conditions reach a certain level of severity, these products can fail entirely. The premise of these products is that the rain will curl around the curvature and collect just inside the gutter's outermost edge. The potential for product failure, every time it rains, is contingent on 2 factors: A) the pitch of the roof (which never changes) B) the severity of the rain / rainstorm. If the pitch of the roof is more steep, rather than shallow, and the rain comes down with a heavier force, the potential for the rain to shoot over the gutter completely, rises. This is basic physics, if the rainfall has a great force, and the roof pitch is steep, the rainwater will come at a velocity too substantial for the water to enter the gutter. Obviously, there are many variables in play, which means product failure can occur, and not occur differently during every rain. If a pattern of failure is consistent enough with this product, and continuous rain bypasses the gutter system, this can lead to the foundation of the structure taking major damage.
Sorry, we assure everyone, that we wish we had more confidence in these products. For the past 20 years, we've had to share our stance on these products with hundreds of customers, then deal with their disappointment as we continue on with our proposal. We assure you all, that we understand. The thought of never having to clean your gutters again is an amazing temptation, but installing a product that could have a negative impact seems the definition of self defeating.
In closing for this post, there actually is 1 product that we do recommend:
***** DOWNSPOUT GUTTER GUARDS - FILTERS / STRAINERS *****
Downspout guards aka Honeycomb strainers can be quite effective. Wedged into the outlet, where the gutter and downspout connect, this product can play a major role in keeping the transition point from getting clogged. This can help assist all of the rain water exit the gutter and enters the downspout. Simple to install and costs between $1 to $2 each.
As always, we hope the information we share helps as customers seek insights for their upcoming project needs.
Thank you, Amazon Roofing - Toledo Ohio
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