"I’ve read your excellent article on each type of rain gutter cover and their pros and cons. Good gutter covers, usually professionally installed, do work well but none are perfect in terms of keeping everything out and/or needing some sort of maintenance from time-to-time.
I have been in the rain gutter business for over 17 years and have come to the following conclusion: As long as the outlet in a rain gutter is clear, water will ALWAYS flow out of that gutter. Conversely, a gutter can be pristine clean but if the outlet is clogged water will NEVER flow out of that gutter. It’s all about the outlet.
I have also concluded that good gutter covers combined with the ability to check and/or clean an outlet quickly, easily and safely creates “the best of both worlds” for the homeowner. You see, if a homeowner has good covers, then the ONLY area in the gutter they need to be concerned with is the outlet.
To that end I have developed, manufactured and presently sell a product that enables users to check and clean their outlets – 1, 2 even 3 story – in less than 1 minute from the safety of the ground. The SpoutOff makes good covers better. Functionally the covers are better because the outlets can actually be checked (looked into) so the user knows FOR SURE that their covers are working.
From a sales point of view, The SpoutOff overcomes the objection (often not stated) of “How do I know FOR SURE the covers are working? An intelligent user understands that if their outlet becomes clogged, damage will occur but they will not know until the damage manifests itself, and then it is too late… all because they cannot “see into” their covered gutters. Bee hives are the best example here… bees get into covered gutters, build a hive, the bees leave, the hive stays and eventually works its way down and clogs the outlet – not good!
Although we approach making gutters work (meaning always moving water away from a building) differently from covers, The SpoutOff does not compete with covers but rather complements covers making the covers better and providing the user with the best “system” for moving water away and knowing their gutters are working.
I truly appreciate your clear and objective view on covers and welcome your thoughts on The SpoutOff… the good, the bad and the ugly – you can’t hurt my feelings as this is how I continue to learn."
*****
Go check out his product. It seems that no matter how much I write about Waterloov or how many videos I take of the product after even 15 years experience, people just don't believe that gutters and downspouts remain totally free and open with Waterloov Gutter Covers installed, but they do remain clean and free flowing.
*****
This was my answer:
"Thank you for your reply. I'm glad that someone is reading the articles. If you knew how truly effective the Waterloov leaf guards are, you'd never waste your time or money patenting anything else. Who in the hell living in a million dollar home wants to have to wonder about his downspouts? See it's all about removing any uncertainty about clogging inside and being truthful about what might happen to the gutter cover itself, i.e. they all clog preventing water from getting into the gutter.
I'm sorry to offend you but your invention is like inventing umbrellas for fleas as far as Waterloov gutter guards are concerned--I'm sure the Gutter Helmets and Gutter Toppers might need it. If you truly want to solve clogged rain gutter problems, you'll use the best gutter cover--Waterloov gutter guards--and never have to wonder about downspouts.
If I had to tell my customers that in addition to the Waterloov gutter covers in heavy debris needing occassional maintenance on the outside that they also should check the downspouts, then I might as well sell them any one of the useless hooded products that claim to never clog inside and never even mention to them that they will need to service the gutter cover itself.
Be energized, healthy, and well,
Richard Kuhns B.S.Ch.E."
