HOW TO CHOOSE GUTTERS AND GUTTER PROTECTION
UNASSUMING EDGE AROUND ROOF PROTECTS YOUR HOME AGAINST WATER
If you’re like most people, your home is your most valuable investment. But do you know that water is one of the greatest threats to the well being of your home? Water damage can quickly and silently cause thousands of dollars in repairs to your home. Often, these repairs can easily be avoided with a properly installed and maintained gutter system.
Gutters serve a great purpose. The Mid-South sees an average of 55” of rain a year. This means that 65,934 gallons of rainwater will fall on a 1800 sq. foot roof. Without gutters, rain will pour heavily off the roof onto the ground around your home. As the ground becomes saturated, a variety of problems may result. The wet soil becomes a breeding ground for termites, mold and mildew. It eats away at foundations and basement walls. Leaks and cracks develop and worsen quickly in the winter months when the ground freezes and expands. Driveways and walkways sink and rise, interior and exterior walls and floors warp or become wet, molded or stained. Expensive flowerbeds and landscaping is washed away with your topsoil. Gutters are you first and best line of defense from your home’s worst enemy – water.
Gutters are essential for routing roof runoff quickly and efficiently away from your home. Clogged gutters if ignored, lead to mosquito and insect infestation, mold and mildew problems, plus the probability of very expensive repair bills to roofs and roof decking, soffits and fascia.
Maintaining gutters is a lot of work. You can clean out your gutters and downspouts by climbing a shaky ladder and dealing with the muck and hassle yourself. However, according to the National Safety Council, falls are the number one cause if accidental death and disabling injuries at home ever year.
What is the solution? A quality, gutter protection system! The fundamental job of a gutter protection system is to protect and defend your home in all kinds of weather conditions and against an assault of leaves, pine needles, roof grit, twigs, dirt, birds and other animals. There are several types of gutter protection systems on the market today with fundamental differences. Or you can hire someone to clean gutter for you.
The first type of system is a closed gutter protection system that consists of a full cover with no vertical openings to clog. Rainwater is directed into the gutter through a continuous 3/8” horizontal opening, while leaves and debris fall harmlessly to the ground because of the physics of water surface tension. The cover of the system fits over your existing, full-size gutters. Choose a reputable company with professional installers with long history in the gutter protection industry. Before installation, the professional
installers should clean and inspect your gutters for proper pitch and overall condition to ensure that your gutters are functioning properly. If there are no gutters on your home, the company should install seamless, aluminum gutters along with the gutter protection system.
Will gutter covers still work in heavy rain? Yes! Gutter protection systems differ in the amounts of rain they can handle, but the best system can handle up to 22” of rain per hour, more than twice that ever recorded by the U.S. Weather Bureau.
The second type of system is an all-in-one system. Companies installing these types of systems tear down existing gutters and replace it with a one-piece gutter and cover. There are several downfalls to this type of system.
First, why replace perfectly good gutters? If there is nothing wrong with your existing gutter system, why pay to have it replaced?
Second, in most cases, the gutter portion of the all-in-one system is significantly smaller that the gutter that was on your home. Many cities have regulations citing minimum sizes for gutters installed on homes. A typical home has a 5” or 6” wide gutter. The replacement all-in-one gutter is sometimes as small as 3”, which is likely below minimum sizing standards (check your building code). To compensate for smaller gutter capacity, extra, unsightly downspouts are required. When you are talking about 65,934 gallons of water flowing off your roof, you need standard full-size gutters!
Third, the all-in-one gutter systems feature a vertical opening through which leaves and debris can enter the gutter system. These companies guarantee to clean your gutters when they clog. It’s just a matter of time before this happens.
The last type of gutter protection system are screens or louvers. They fit over the top of the gutter and create a horizontal surface on which leaves and other debris pile up. Screens and louvers are not permanent solutions to clogged gutters, but are a relatively inexpensive, temporary solution to a recurring, permanent problem. Shortly after installation, the screens or louvers themselves will often need to be cleaned.
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW TO SELECT GUTTERS
*Gutters are your first and best line of defense from your home’s worst enemy-water.
*Properly cleaned and maintained gutter systems direct rainwater from you roof and
Channel it away from your home.
*Gutter protection systems defend your gutters from becoming clogged by leaves,
Pine needles and debris.
*A closed gutter protection system with no vertical openings to clog is the best choice
In gutter protection.
