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Category Archives: Gutter Guards

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Author Alloy Gutter Categories Clogged Gutters, Gutter Guards, Gutters Posted on

5 Ways Clogged Gutters Are Destroying Your Home

Regularly cleaned gutters protect many key components of the home, including the foundation. Clogged gutters put the foundation at risk, storms come and go, rainwater runs amok, pooling around the base of the home and seeping into the ground, where it exerts intense pressure against the foundation. After a while, due to the pressure, the foundation begins to crack, allowing water to enter the basement resulting in extensive and expensive to repair damage. Tthe foundation may ultimately fail if the situation does not get corrected, leaving the home vulnerable to a cave-in or collapse—a catastrophe. When gutters malfunction, water gets to parts of the home that were never designed to withstand exposure to that much moisture. Windowsills and door jambs are often the first to buckle. Mold poses a legitimate health hazard, particularly if anyone in your household suffers from allergies. KEY TAKEAWAYS:
  • In theory, gutters are simple, straightforward components that perform precisely as intended.
  • Gutters offer protection by preventing overwhelming volumes of water from cascading onto foundation plantings.
  • Many types of insects thrive in stagnant water.


    • "If you allow clogs to render your gutters ineffective, it could take only one heavy storm to compromise or even erode your landscaping." Original Source: http://www.bobvila.com/slideshow/5-ways-clogged-gutters-are-destroying-your-home-50590?slide_name=weak-foundations&bvsp=lg

    Author Alloy Gutter Categories Fall, Gutter Blog, Gutter Cartoon, Gutter Guards, Homeowner, Josh Claypool, Landscaping, Leaf Protection, Leaves, Seamless Gutters, Uncategorized Posted on

    Leaf Protection Confessions

    I’ll be honest.  I used to be one of the biggest critics of leaf protection systems.  I thought that they were over-priced, ineffective, ugly, and completely superfluous. Until I bought my own home and cleaning the gutters became my responsibility. I live in a small home; however it’s surrounded by trees.  As pine needles, helicopters, leaves, walnuts, birds’ nests, tennis balls and all sorts of other interesting accessories collected in my gutters, it didn’t take long before they were full of water and overflowing with rancid, brown-colored ooze. So my Saturday would look a little something like this:  Haul the ladder out, strategically and carefully wrestle it around trees, shrubs, electrical meters, decks, and walkways,  begin removing a copious amount of black smelly gutter muck from the gutters and downspouts, and running a garden hose up the ladder to spray out as much of the debris as possible.  (By this time an audience of half a dozen or so neighborhood kids would be standing beneath my ladder, watching with particular interest).  By the end of the process, I’ve been dive bombed by angry, overly protective mother birds, nearly fallen off the ladder, and covered myself from head to toe in gutter muck.  (I suppose it is entertaining for the kids).  Now every time I reach for the ladder, I hear a neighbor kid yell, “HEY EVERYBODY, HE’S GETTING THE LADDER OUT!” It gets worse.  This is a process that requires constant attention throughout the year. To ensure that your gutters are draining properly, they need to be cleaned out on a consistent basis.  It doesn’t take but a handful of leaves (or 1 rogue tennis ball) to clog your downspout outlet.  One clogged outlet could result in a basement full of water or washed out landscaping. Turns out that leaf protection is quite functional and cost effective.  We offer a wide range of leaf protection products, all of them effective, affordable, and zero maintenance products. 6935265