We see companies advertising Gutter Guard saying things like ‘You will never have to clean your gutters again!’ and we hate to say it, but that is simply NOT TRUE!
Every day of the week, Gutter-Vac franchisees come across gutters that have gutter guard installed, but are in desperate need of cleaning, in fact, some of them (more than you would ever imagine) have massive plants, bushes and sometimes small trees (!!) growing up and out through the gutter guard.
To understand this, you need to consider how the gutter guard works.
Basically a gutter guard will keep the ‘big stuff’ out of your gutters. Lots of leaves, big sticks, branches, debris. But, gutter guards are not sealed shut – because if they were, then the rain wouldn’t get into them either so the gutters are basically redundant – so they often have small holes or the like to allow the rain in.
This means that what can also get into your gutters is broken down pieces of leafy matter that have been sitting ON TOP of the gutter guard, decomposing to a small enough size to fall through the holes, dirt that is blown in or falls, and remember to the seeds that are blown in, fall in and also good old bird droppings.
Really, gutter guards form the perfect eco system for growth. They have all the nutrient rich sludge, seeds deposited, water system and just enough sunlight to grow the perfect plants.
The trouble is, that most gutter guards are screwed or even glued down to our roof line, so when they become blocked, we need to unscrew them, lift them up to be able to get under the gutter guard to clean out the gutters, removing the debris and clearing the blockages.
This will – at a minimum – double the price to have your gutters cleaned and depending on the type of gutter guard and how it is secured, sometimes triple or more the investment to get the blockages removed.
At Gutter-Vac, we use Gutter Flow, which is like a big bottle brush that we can simply place into your gutters. It works because it allows water to flow though, it keeps the big debris out of your gutters, but when it comes to cleaning time, we can simply pick it up out of the gutter, brush the Gutter Flow off , use our vacuum to clean the gutter and place the Gutter Flow back in place. So simple and effective.
We have see all types of gutter guard over the years and it actually makes us angry when our customers have been sold a lie of ‘never clean your gutters again’. In fact, the dollars they have spent on the gutter guard can be astronomical in comparison to just a regular gutter clean!
Yes, there are other types of removable gutter guard, but again are simply ineffective. Don’t get us started on the foam block gutter guard that when it gets wet, with dirt build up, because one great big block of solid mud that is impossible to remove as it breaks into a million pieces. Plus it also acts like that green foam florists use for flowers and plants… the perfect base for growing plant matter.
So, if you have gutter guard already installed, but have not had your gutters cleaned, then give us a call as you may have some severe blockages under the gutter guard that you can’t see. If you have plants growing up and out of your gutter guard, this is a sure sign you need your gutters cleaned. If you do live in a particularly leafy area, then give us a call on 1300 654 253 and we can come and access your property and give you an honest opinion on what gutter guard would work for you best and what the cost comparison would be between gutter guard with a regular clean (remember, it still needs to be cleaned) or simply more regular cleans to keep your gutters doing their intended job.