Gutters and Gutter Covers
Roof it Right with the Right Gutters and Gutter Covers
Gutter Protection
Gutters and gutter covers or screens are a simple thing that makes a huge difference.
We install micro-mesh gutter screens. In our opinion, they work the best and are the most economical, too!
Despite their highly marketed designs, many other products on the market still allow an undue amount of leaves and debris to enter the gutters. Cleaning them out requires labor to detach and reattach them, which may be cost prohibitive. Other brands inhibit proper water flow. On the other hand, some are great for water flow, but collect an excessive amount of debris.
Our experience has revealed that the only reliable gutter protection is the micro-mesh screens. Looks like Clark Kent, performs like Superman. These simple-looking screens provide total protection for gutters and drain systems with minimum overflow. We purchase them directly from the manufacturer and install them exclusively. In our personal experience, they have lasted over 7 years. Other brands that we have tried in the past are: Gutter Leaf, Leaf Relief, Sure Flow, GutterFlow– We are still experiencing problems with them.
GUTTERS AND GUTTER COVERS
You want your gutters and gutter covers to do their job and protect your home from water damage. But what makes them work? Here is what makes our 6-inch custom-made aluminum K-style gutters work properly. In order of importance.
1. Diameter
When it comes to gutters, size matters. Many homes are equipped with 5-inch gutters. Nine times out of ten, however, that’s too small. Roof It Right installs 6-inch aluminum K-style gutters. That one inch more of diameter makes a huge difference. For most homes, it improves the water flow by 30-40%.
2. Seam Installation
The weakest part of any gutter system is the seams. The fewer the seams, the better. That’s why Roof It Right will custom-make all gutters to match the dimensions of your home. The only seams should be at the corners, which, of course, is unavoidable.*
Gutter seams will always need to be maintained. Natural contraction and expansion will weaken the calking over time. Roof It Right knows the importance of proper seam installation and will secure them as much as possible. However regular yearly inspections of the seams are strongly recommended.
*Warning: Some cheap contractors might pick up “10-footers” from a home improvement store. Unless your home is only 10 feet wide, this creates unnecessary seams and is unacceptable.
3. Angle
Perfectly parallel gutter lines might look appealing, but not so much when it rains! Gutters must be installed with a slight angle, or else, they WILL overflow in the middle. If your gutters are so straight that if you put a marble on it, it wouldn’t roll one way or the other, it’s wrong.
4. Gutter Protection
Water cannot flow through a clogged gutter. That’s why gutter protection, aka covers, is so important. As noted above, we only install micro-mesh screens for the best functionality.
5. Thickness
Very last on the list of what matters with gutters is gutter thickness. The thickness of the gutter doesn’t usually affect its function. Our professional-grade aluminum gutters come in either 0.027 (27-thousandths of an inch thick) or 0.032 (32-thousandths of an inch thick). The thicker variant might look a little better after a hail or ice storm, but either one should still be able to handle water flow just fine.