Best gutter leaf guard? Thanks!

[Fuddyduddy1952]

Today I'm cleaning gutters, and counting everything I'm guessing 600ft. At 70 yo I don't mind but it has to be done frequently, so many trees here. What's the best leaf guard? From what little I read Leafguard may be it but real experience beats salesmen!
I want the house new roof this time metal which I'm sure will last our lifetime. Probably within next year so I'm thinking all new gutters/guards same time.
The garage is two story and of the 5 gutters I did have a gutter guard installed on the highest back section a couple years ago. The other 4 I can get to from rooftop. Not that big of a deal (only 12 ft. down max.).

 

[KennyG]

Depends on your trees. The cheap snap in ones with a grid and screen work well for me with oak and maple trees. I understand they can be a problem if you have pines with fine needles. Stay away from the foam inserts. I put them on my pole barn because the way the gutters were installed prevented other styles from being installed. They clog with mud and grow weeds.

 

[2manyrocks]

Installed gutterglove leaf guards when I had a metal roof installed about 1.5 years ago. Gutter Guard by Gutterglove 4 ft. L x 5 in. W Stainless Steel Micro-Mesh Gutter Guard (80 ft. Kit) THD80 - The Home Depot

Installation wise, I made a jig out of a couple of pieces of wood with a hinge to create a uniform bend in each piece. They are supposed to be screwed to your gutter. Working fine so far, but I also cut down a bunch of trees near the house.

It would be difficult to install them once the roof is on because one side goes under your roof and the other side gets screwed to your gutter. It also makes a difference how your gutter is positioned relative to your roof.

Maybe more details than you want to read about, but whichever guard you buy you'll have to work through how all the pieces get installed together. Also makes a difference in whether you can remove the things to clean your gutters if it comes to it.

For your roof install, I suggest you consider installing dome head roof screws. They have a cup that covers part of the washer to help avoid UV damage to the washer. My roofing contractor bought them from his supplier, but here is an Amazon link to a similar product. The ones my contractor installed have a thicker diameter than the usual roofing screws I've seen. https://www.amazon.com/Roofing-Screws-Multiple-Colors-Quantities/dp/B08ZHP79PW

 

[ponytug]

@Fuddyduddy1952 if you are putting on a new roof, have you considered extending it out far enough not to need gutters?

I have a slotted gutter guard, and both narrow leaves and debris wash into them, and cleaning them out is a bit of a pain, but doable without removal. I also have an extension setup for my leaf blower that can blow debris out of gutters.

Finally, someone manufactures a hinged gutter that enables you to dump second story gutters from the ground.

I think a lot depends on your conditions. E.g. much as I like Leafguard's fine screen, IIRC, they use plastic supports that are a non-starter for me in a fire area like mine.

All the best,

Peter

 

[milkman636]

Today I'm cleaning gutters, and counting everything I'm guessing 600ft. At 70 yo I don't mind but it has to be done frequently, so many trees here. What's the best leaf guard? From what little I read Leafguard may be it but real experience beats salesmen!
I want the house new roof this time metal which I'm sure will last our lifetime. Probably within next year so I'm thinking all new gutters/guards same time.
The garage is two story and of the 5 gutters I did have a gutter guard installed on the highest back section a couple years ago. The other 4 I can get to from rooftop. Not that big of a deal (only 12 ft. down max.).

Leaf Relief® Gutter Guards for Existing Gutters - Existing Gutter Protection | Ply Gem

Ply Gem offers Leaf Relief for existing gutters. This leaf gutter guard system is designed to keep natural debris from blocking your gutter.

www.plygem.com

I went with these about 10 years ago. I have a little over 300’ of gutters and wanted something sturdy enough to put a ladder against and with a large enough mesh that it wouldn’t seal over like the fine screen ones do. These have performed well for me. I still need to brush the tops of them off in the fall. I get a little buildup on the east side of my house where my two valleys meet the main eaves, and along the north side on the barn, but it’s a quick easy brush off and not a muck out the trough type of cleaning. The ones that are south and west facing seem to stay pretty clean just from prevailing winds.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

I bought stainless steel ones from costco, have not put any up yet.

 

[reb]

Wilkerson makes a good-sounding one. Expensive, tho. We had them installed a couple of weeks ago.

No way they can allow leaves into the gutter. I put some standard ones from Costco on the shed. It will be interesting to compare the two types.

 

[2manyrocks]

I had another set of plastic gutterguards on a previous house. Couldn't tell you which brand they were. There were some evergreen trees near the house and the needles from those evergreens would clog up the holes in those gutterguards that let water into the gutters. I had to clean those gutterguards about every year or two. They pretty much kept the needles out of the gutters, but they did clog up themselves.

 

[Creamer]

Leaf Relief® Gutter Guards for Existing Gutters - Existing Gutter Protection | Ply Gem

Ply Gem offers Leaf Relief for existing gutters. This leaf gutter guard system is designed to keep natural debris from blocking your gutter.

www.plygem.com

I went with these about 10 years ago. I have a little over 300’ of gutters and wanted something sturdy enough to put a ladder against and with a large enough mesh that it wouldn’t seal over like the fine screen ones do. These have performed well for me. I still need to brush the tops of them off in the fall. I get a little buildup on the east side of my house where my two valleys meet the main eaves, and along the north side on the barn, but it’s a quick easy brush off and not a muck out the trough type of cleaning. The ones that are south and west facing seem to stay pretty clean just from prevailing winds.

Don't those hold debris on top of the guard. Maybe you are in a windy enough area to not have to worry about that?

 

[oosik]

I have about 90 feet of gutters. I have ONLY Ponderosa pines - long needles. Forty plus years and I've NEVER had to clean my gutters. Not even once.

I work at removing the needles from my lawns. Not out of my gutters.