If you’re tired of your gutters constantly becoming clogged, you need to consider the pros and cons of gutter covers and gutter guard systems. Let’s break down these defensive installations and explore whether they might be the right choice for your property or if you should pursue alternative gutter maintenance solutions.
Pros And Cons Of Gutter Covers And Gutter Guard Systems: Your Home Affects What Gutter Covers and Guards Are Best
Before you compare the advantages and downsides of installing a gutter guard or gutter cover system, keep in mind that your home’s location and surrounding vegetation will determine whether a gutter guard is right for you.
Of particular importance is the tree coverage around your home. For example, some trees shed more leaves and organic material than others. If you have a tree over your home that frequently covers your gutters with leaves, and twigs, that will affect which gutter cover or guard is right for your property (if any).
Therefore, be prepared to do an intense home examination before ordering a guard cover system.
Pros and Cons of Gutter Covers and Gutter Guard Systems
Now let’s take a look at some of the advantages of gutter guards and cover systems.
Pros
Avoid Clogged Downspouts
For starters, gutter guard systems can help you avoid clogged downspouts. This will, in turn, minimize water damage and maintenance concerns in the future.
Clogged downspouts can make water overflow and pool in your gutters and (sometimes with low slope roofs) on top of your roof, which may lead to leaks or other water damage. By minimizing this potential, and ensuring that water is getting out of your gutters, down the downspouts, and away from your house, you will help ensure that water isn’t seeping into your foundation or basement.
Easier Maintenance
Gutter guards and gutter cover systems also make it much easier to maintain your gutters. Regular maintenance is still necessary, mind you. Gutter cover systems don’t mean you never have to clean out your gutters, especially during the winter!
Still, it’s oftentimes a lot easier to clean out a small amount of dirt and debris or leaf build-up with a gutter guard or cover system than it is to clean out tons of debris you’ll get from completely exposed gutters.
Improved Aesthetics
Lastly, many homeowners find that gutter guards and cover systems improve the aesthetics of their homes. By preventing organic matter from piling up over time, things won’t grow out of your gutters as consistently as they would otherwise.
Your gutters will look cleaner, and more streamlined, and your home will look much nicer as a result.
There are a couple of potential downsides to keep in mind when selecting a gutter guard or cover system.
Cons
No Perfect Systems
For instance, there’s no single perfect gutter cover or gutter guard system for your property. The effectiveness of any gutter cover or guard depends on how much water is coming off your roof and how much roof surface area is feeding into that particular gutter. Some homes have poorly designed roofs and too much roof surface is draining into a gutter that cannot handle it, or perhaps the slope of the roof, along with its surface area, is such that no gutter could handle it. If that is the case, adding a gutter guard system will not solve the problem and could make it worse.
More Covered Gutters Are Slower
Furthermore, the more covered and protected your gutters are, the slower water flow will be. That’s because organic debris will still get into the gutters no matter what. Although the amount of that debris will be less, if you select the wrong type of gutter guard you could find that it traps more debris. For example, certain gutter guards are better if you have a lot of pine needles that collect in your gutters. Other gutter guard options are better if you have maple trees around your home. Selecting the wrong type of guard could actually create a different type of problem.
Pros and Cons of Gutter Covers and Gutter Guard Systems
As you can see, there are lots of things to consider when choosing gutter guards for your home. Contact CoMo Premium Exteriors today and let us discuss the pros and cons of gutter covers and gutter guard systems with you in more detail.
