Best gutter leaf guard? Thanks!

[2manyrocks]

The reason for having larger gutters is to handle greater volume of water shed by a larger roof. So maybe it works better depending on the amount of water and its velocity. But if you have a large oak tree right next to your roof that will dump a huge amount of leaves in your gutters, I doubt the larger size will work better in reality.

If you have underground drain lines for your gutters, I'd encourage you to really think about installing gutter guards of some sort while your house is new to keep leaves out of those drain lines unless you don't have any trees.

 

[Torvy]

Only pines near the house. The bigger aperture and higher velocity of water should move debris better, but may still clog. Gutter guards also clog.

For now we don't have any underground lines. I'm still trying to figure out some options. I'd like to capture some rainwater. Beyond that, anything from rock lined ditches or swales to underground pipes are all possible. We get enough rainfall that we could build a good sized pond and fill it from run off most of the year. Not sure I want the mosquitoes and snakes that will make a pond home down here.

 

[pmsmechanic]

If you are installing a tin roof the cheapest gutter guard I've seen is a slot cut into the tin about 5-6" from the bottom on the back side of the tin with a circular saw. You extend the tin past the gutter with the slot draining into the gutter. You only cut the slot deep enough to make a slot. You don't want to cut through the ridges as they hold the tin below the slot in place. I would also leave enough room between the tin and the gutter to be able to blow any debris out with an air hose.

 

[oosik]

My gutters are wide open. No "leaf guards" of any kind. The low end of my gutters are wide open also. Everything goes/cascades into a 55 gallon barrel on the ground. There is a hose attached to the barrel - about 6" down from the top. Excess water drains out thru the hose - if the water ever gets that high.

I use water from the barrel to water my few plants. I only have Ponderosa pines, so leaves are never a problem.

 

[Engineer42]

Stihl, Echo, and JCB.

 

[geteh]

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, as noted in LeafFilter reviews, 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.

I recently installed the plastic clip-in gutter guards from Amerimax. They perform well, but during heavy rainfall, water spills over the front of the gutters, and only about 50% of it actually makes it into the gutters.

 

[hslogger]

I have purchased the stainless mesh with aluminum edge gutter guard available at Costco and HD. They make them for different size gutters. Gutter Glove I think is the brand. I have used them about six years on my barn, house, shops and garage. I have Oregon white oaks, douglas fir, and ponderosa pine trees. With very minimal maintenance they are super.

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

Best thing I did with the new standing seam roof was having large industrial sized gutters & downspouts installed with leaf guard.
I can walk around with a blower and long curved extension from ground blowing leaves off in 10 minutes now.

 

[wilso]

I noticed a significant reduction in debris in my gutters since I installed LeafFilter guards. We were so tired of gutter clogs. It was really hard to clean them out. Now the problem is solved. I looked through the leaffilter reviews beforehand. Other people are also pleased with their gutter guards.