Landscaper Causes Gutter Overflow

My last entry ended with a customer who complained that all her gutters were clogged and she needed us to clean out the gutters. She also had a new bay window installed and it was leaking. She thought the gutters had something to do with it. When we arrived there, we found that she just had new landscaping and the landscaper closed off all her underground drainage outlets so the downspouts were backing up and overflowing the gutters. At the customers request we removed a gutter cover near a downspout and found the gutters to be completely open and very clean. The customers Waterloov gutter guards didn't fail her, the landscaper did because he left her with gutters that were not functional. Her problem was fixed by cutting the downspouts. and installing elbows at the bottom to drain the water away from the house. The source of the leak in the bay window was easily found to be caused by the roofing having separated from the rake board where two roofs join. Rain water was being blown in against the rake board where it entered through the roof and into the bay window below.

A section of flashing was installed to redirect any water being blown against the rake board back onto the roofing. Caulking was also used to facilitate a seal at the juncture where there was too little distance to install flashing.

Winter Leaf Guard Damaged by Ice

 We've had a unusually brutal winter in the Mid Atlantic states.

A customer called to tell us that her gutter had been pulled off her home along with the gutter guards from her slate roof. Another homeowner a few miles further north call with a similar problem.

If gutters aren't as secure as they should be, extreme snow or ice loads can pull gutters away from the facia even to a point where they fall off of the house.

Considering that many homeowners in the same area lost parts of their roofs and gutters to fallen trees, our service calls were pretty light.

One customer called to complain of icicles hanging from her gutters--easy solution--install heat tapes. They sell them in Home Depot and Lowe's. Ice and icicles can a problem for all homeowners--not just because they have gutter guards.

Because most gutter covers like Waterloov keep the ice from forming inside of your gutters, the ice that can form on the outside of the gutter and cover is a good indicator that your house has been loosing heat through the roof for years costing you money and wasting precious fuel.

It's well known that if the temperature is below freezing the snow that melts on the roof will refreeze when it reaches the eaves and can form ice dams or icicles. The solution is easy in theory but difficult in execution--keep the roof package cold by eliminating sources of heat and maintaining sufficient ventilation.

Sometimes gutter covers can be oversold with promises of miraculous results. Customer dissatisfaction tends to occur when customers weren't told upfront by the salesman how gutter covers work in the winter. Unrealistic expectations can cause bad feelings and unhappiness.

The Engineer discusses Self Cleaning Gutters?

In a recent post I wrote about self-leveling gutters. The fact that low spots in gutters that could otherwise be breeding grounds for mosquitoes get filled in to create a false bottom is amazing. No other gutter protection product does this.

This self-leveling feature helps to enable the gutters to clean themselves.

How can this be possible? A self cleaning Gutter?

There are two things that need to happen for gutters to clean themselves.

First, the size of any debris that can enter through the gutter guard must be limited to less than 3/4" in size. Debris this size or smaller is easier for the water to move along the flat bottom of the gutter unimpeded by larger leaves and sticks. Some gutter protection products like brush and foam inserts sit directly on the gutter bottom. The bottom needs to be unobstructed.

Second, all the water to enter the gutter needs to run down the gutters front wall. The water then sweeps across the flat bottom of the gutter causing a swirling that stirs any loose debris and carries it to the downspout. Water entering through screens and filter products tend to keep this fine debris on the bottom where it builds up.

Although some helmet type products allow the water to flow down the inside front wall of the gutter they do not restrict the size of the debris. The design of the nose of other helmet type products causes the water to bypass the front wall and fall directly on the flat gutter bottom. Both conditions make it impossible for the gutters to keep themselves clean over time.

If a gutter protection product stays clog free over as many as 20 years and when opened up is found to have only a small amount of fine grit on the bottom, only then can it be truely called self cleaning.

The gutter protection product that was designed with both of these features is the Waterloov gutter protector. It has a solid top as well as openings and louvers in the front face that restrict the debris to less than 3/4 of an inch and force the water down the inside of the front wall of the gutter.

Ask the Engineer About Self Leveling Gutters

Gutters often have one or more low spots that accumulate standing water. If water accumulates more than a half inch, that's more than can evaporate in the four days it takes mosquito larvae to mature thereby turning the gutters into be a breeding ground for mosquitoes.

One of the benefits of the Waterloov Gutter Cover System is that unlike other solid top gutter covers it passes only small debris that accumulates in the low spots of the gutter and fills them in and acts as a false bottom. No water accumulates any more. This is what is meant by self leveling gutters and Waterloov is the only product that does it.

Take a look at your gutters to make sure they are secure and not sagging in the middle. Extreme sagging can be an indication of facia problems or a substandard installation. It may be time to have your gutters rehung or replaced.

Eliminating standing water isn't just beneficial for you it's a public service.

The Engineer Meets Gutter Cover Owners

A happy Waterloov gutter cover customer recently invited me to a networking event where I had a heart warming gutter cover experience.



I was in a small group of four introducing ourselves to each other and one gentleman asked me what I did. I replied, "I protect gutters." No sooner than I got the word gutters out, he asked, "Are you from Waterloov?"

I was amazed how quickly he remembered the name, Waterloov. He went on to quickly share with me that over the years he's had two homes in the area and on each one he had Waterloov installed.

He said, "I had them come over to give me an estimate and after receiving the quote I paused a moment thinking that it was a lot of money but bought it anyway." He added that "It's the best investment I ever made. I had sixty trees on my last house before I moved into a condo and never once had to deal with my gutters after your product was installed. I had about twenty trees cut down to install an in ground pool and it was still a nightmare dealing with all the leaves from the other trees getting into my pool. But the good news was I never had to do anything with the gutters. "

I can't tell you how good it felt later on during our introductions to the group to have not one but two happy customers amongst all the new people I met to and to have them whole heartedly recommend Waterloov's gutter guards to the remainder of the group.

Other gutter guards that clog

I found a comment posted by a roofer about a particular brand of gutter guard that he found clogs.

This picture came from a page that shows an installation of this product.

Photos that shows other gutter guards in real environments are our best advertisement. You will never see leaves inside of Waterloov.

Can Pine Needles Get Into My Gutter Guards?

A customer called a few days ago to tell me that her Waterloov gutter covers were clogged. She had the product for ten years and was fearful that the gutters were clogged. I asked if anyone had ever brushed her gutter guards and she said no.

Sure enough, pine needles were crusted on the lower gutters (more so than the upper gutters). Fortunately it had just rained and it wasn't necessary to wet the louvers. Just a couple swipes with the brush on the end of a telescopic pole and the gutter guards looked like new.

Nothing had gotten inside the gutters and she was amazed how nicely they cleaned up. Once she saw how easy it was to clean them she purchased a telescopic pole and brush to do it herself.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if all gutter covers, gutter guards, gutter filters, and screens were this easy to maintain.

Filter Type Gutter Guards and Leaf Guards

If you've been following these posts, a few weeks ago I provided some video of one of the gutter filter systems installed on a gutter in heavy debris conditions after only three weeks.

I found some great photos taken by Portland Gutter Cleaning of what can happen with mesh filter and foam type gutter protectors.

How do you easily clean them from the ground?

Water is Leaking in My Crawl Space--Gutter Covers

A customer that we installed Waterloov gutter protection for twenty years ago called to request service. It seemed that water was leaking into a crawl space. We had been there ten years before at the customer's request to brush the gutter protectors.

Upon arrival at the house we noticed that the openings in the gutter covers along the portion of the house with the crawl space were matted over. Three minutes later, the openings were brushed from the ground and completely open once again. Brushing a little more frequently would have prevented the possibility of the gutter covers causing water in the crawl space.

We did however notice some damage to several gutter covers from fallen tree limbs. Sometimes when the panels become crushed from tree limbs the openings are shifted from being in the vertical plane to being in the horizontal plane which means debris can fall and wash into the openings. It's amazing that just this shift in orientation can sometimes pass enough debris to clog a gutter.

A half hour later we had removed all the damaged gutter guards, repaired and reinstalled them. Much to our liking, the gutters were clear and open inside in spite of the deformed gutter guards. We also checked the downspout to make double sure there was no problem and the downspout was completely clear after twenty years of service.

One thing we did find interesting is that there was moss growing on the gutter covers in the front of the home--first time in twenty years that I've ever seen it. Following is a video tape of the service call.



Can you imagine a gutter cover working that well for twenty years in heavy debris conditions?

All In One Gutter and Leaf Guards

Are you considering an "All-in-One" gutter guard which combines a gutter and a gutter cover in one unit. This seems to make a lot of sense--particularly if you need new gutters.

But read on, I've never run across this many people in one place complaining about a gutter protection company. click here

In addition to the comments on that site, you also want to know that there are some considerations you need to be aware of with this type of product. If the "all-in-one" leaf guards are dented the entire length of gutter needs to be replaced. So instead of getting a bill for a few dollars to replace or fix a dented Waterloov Gutter Cover, you'll need to pay roughly $20 per foot to replace the entire length which could total hundreds of dollars.

Again, our competition is

Save Now

our best advertisement.

The Ideal Gutter Guard

If I asked twenty people what the ideal gutter protector would be like, this list might be the top ten answers:

1. It would clean the gutter for me before installation.
2. It would install itself.
3. It would catch all the water from the roof.
4. It would never let the gutters clog.
5. It would never let icicles or ice dams form.
6. It would never blow out or need to be replaced.
7. It would never need any maintenance or need to be cleaned.
8. It would serve as a drip edge.
9. It would keep the water so clean that it could go into my cistern
10. It would drop dollar bills at night for you to pick up in the morning.

Which answers are unreasonable? Which are reasonable?

The Waterloov Gutter Protector may not drop dollar bills or install itself, but once it is installed, it will do the best job of collecting all of the rain water, keeping gutters free-flowing, and keeping your rain water clean for cistern and irrigation use. Yes, it is maintenance free for over 85% of its homeowners and for the other 15% it's the easiest leaf guard available to maintain.



Our competition is our best advertisement.

All Gutter Guards and Gutter Covers Require Cleaning

The fact is that in mild-to-heavy debris conditions all gutter covers, gutter guards, or gutter protectors are going to require cleaning. Rather than look at product videos showing new gutter covers--usually on models with flowing water or with graphics of leaves rolling down a roof and off the gutter guards--look for videos showing how gutter covers, gutter guards, and leaf guards are cleaned after they've been in service for a few years. Try to find videos of servicing after ten, twelve, fifteen or more years.

Go to YouTube and search for gutter guards and gutter covers. Ignore anything with less than five years of service. You'll find many videos showing gutter guards that have failed in as little as one year compared to others that don't. The real proof of effectiveness is how well the gutter guard will work after many years of service.

In this video I'm looking at how the premiere micro mesh gutter cover performs. Their website makes incredible claims and I wanted to see for myself. After just one month this is what I found.



The piece of metal between the Waterloov gutter cover and the micron mesh filter is a temporary bird shield to keep birds and squirrels from getting into the gutter.

I'll keep checking to see if the debris on the micron mesh blows away or builds up over time and affects the water flow.

My Leaf Guards are Dented

A customer called recently asking for help. "I have three Waterloov gutter covers that have been hit by fallen branches and they're dented, can you fix them?"

After fifteen years of service (installed 1994) there were three damaged leaf guards. Within a half hour all three gutter protector panels were removed, repaired, and reinstalled. Having extra time, I examined the rest of the gutter covers which showed a buildup of crust on the front surface. This buildup can prevent all the water from being collected. On the other side of the house the louvers of many of the covers were almost completely closed off.

The homeowner told us that he brushes the gutter covers--only problem was he did it after the gutter covers were dry. With a hose handy the gutter protectors were wetted, brushed, and re tested. They caught ever drop of water and the homeowner now knows to brush them just after a rain fall.

The amazing thing is that inside the gutters, it was clean and open--even after they were brushed.

He asked about how our system compares to the "all-in-one gutter guard his neighbor has. One important feature we pointed out was that dents in the "all-in-one" can't be repaired, they have to be replaced at a tremendous cost of about $1,800 verses less than a fifty dollars in labor that he paid to have us repair his gutter guards.

Can you imagine, removing, repairing, and replacing three damaged gutter covers, cleaning debris off a roof, and then brushing over 300 linear feet of gutter in less than a half hour and for less than $50 in labor? And this is the only service needed in fifteen years of service?

Again, Waterloov's competition is it's best advertisement.

I Have a Leak in My House

After 9 years, a customer with Waterloov gutter covers called to report that he thought his gutters were clogged with roofing debris from a new roof he had recently installed. Water was somehow getting into his first floor ceiling.

His house had a flat second floor roof with no eave meaning any water that overflowed the gutter will run down the siding and into any opening it could find.

Inspection of the inside of the gutters found it and the leader completely clear. However, there was a crusting on the louvers of the Waterloov gutter covers. When we ran water on the roof we found that there was considerable overshooting because of the crusting. He had noticed the crusting but paid no attention to it. And quite frankly, I've seen a lot worse. But the problem was that he had no eave line so any water that bypassed the louvers would run down his siding.

A few swipes from our brush atop the telescopic pole cleaned the louvers--it was the first time in nine years that they were brushed--after which they caught every drop of water.

Our customer was very happy with our findings and service. He subscribed to an inexpensive maintenance agreement to keep the overshooting from ever happening again.

No other system in the market place can be serviced this easy without using a ladder and only once in nine years? Wow!

The Ideal Gutter Protector

Found an article about finding the ideal gutter protector titled, Guide to Gutter Protection by Patrick (no last name). He says that finding an ideal design is a challenge--particularly one that will collect valley water. He notes that every product has limitations.

He also notes that pine needles are a challenge for most products. He suggests that it's best to look for a product that has been in service for many years.

The actual article doesn't recommend any particular gutter cover or gutter protection product. The Waterloov gutter protection system fits the bill for all the concerns--collecting valley water, having a 20 year reputation, superior design... As I read the article I was hoping that the writer would take the time to research our product. But then I checked one of the links in the article and it went to a single fin product.

Single Fin products are terrible at clogging gutters and crusting in such a way that they can't be easily cleaned as shown in the following video:

In fact the crust goes directly into the gutter along with debris as shown in this video

and contributes to clogging the downspout. So when you read the article go to Waterloov.com for the answers. Also go to youtube.com and search for Waterloov and you'll see how easily the system can be maintained and how the gutters actually look in heavy debris conditions after fifteen years.

Click here to read the article or if the link doesn't work go to:
http://www.guidetogutterprotection.com/05/08/2009/the-perfect-gutter-cover/

Again, our Competition is our Best Advertisement, for when Debris Meets its Waterloov, the War of Clogged Gutters is Over!TM

Tree Debris Can Be A Real Mess For Gutter Covers

Here's a gem.

The guy who did the video taping did this after just one year of service and I have no reason to doubt that period of time. What the video demonstrates is that tree debris can be a real mess.

I love all the videos you see of brand new gutter guards or leaf guards on a clean roof and new gutter with water being circulated over the gutter protector. The videos make so much sense until you realize the nature of leaf debris. Leaf debris is not like coffee grounds as the filter gutter guards would have you believe. It deteriorates and becomes a crust that adhere to anything whether it be made of aluminum, plastic, or stainless steel. And this crust is impenetrable by water. The video below shows how the crust accumulates on the fin type of gutter guard.

In fact a crust will accumulate on all types of gutter guards--even the Waterloov gutter system. The difference is in how they are cleaned or serviced. With the single fin example the fellow is cleaning it with a stick. But he might have--I say might have because a brush has to go deep into the fin and that might not be possible--been able to clean it from the ground with a pole and brush if he had the Waterloov System. The best time to do this is just after it has rained and the crust is moist. Look at the video and see for yourself.



The big difference is that by brushing the single fin type, all that gunk would go into the gutter causing it to clog whereas with the Waterloov system, the gunk is knocked away from the gutter guard by the stiff bristles of the brush being released by the louvers as the brush is moved across the louvers--nothing gets inside.

In the video below the gutters are located directly under a canopy of a dogwood tree and generally get brushed only once every two years or so.



Again, our competition is our best advertisement for when Debris meets its Waterloov, the war of clogged downspouts is over!

Do Gutter Screens Clog?

In my last post we looked at a guard (a fin with trough system) that failed and let a lot of debris into the gutter. In this post I'm sharing another screen video I found on youtube of how screens work.



Notice that the debris lays on top of the gutter guard. Now there's nothing wrong with that. You'd expect debris to accumulate in heavy debris conditions on the water collectors of any gutter cover. But the problem is how to clear that debris. It means someone has to go up a ladder and clean the debris from the gutter guards openings. Doesn't that defeat the purpose of having gutter protection? You want to stay off ladders, right?

Unfortunately the person who shot the video didn't take off the covers to see how much debris got inside to clog the gutters. But then I'm suspecting that this video was not shot during a rain storm but instead someone running a hose of water down the roof onto the gutter covers. But it does show what happens to debris that washes from the roof onto the screen type of gutter guard.

Again even though you'll find that debris in heavy debris conditions will accumulate on the water collectors (the louvers) of Waterloov, no one needs to climb a ladder to clean them, they can be easily cleaned from the ground with "suit & tie" maintenance (a telescopic pole and brush).

In the next post we'll look at how gutters after 13 years of service look inside in an ultra heavy debris environment (right under a tree that canopies the gutter) and how easy it is to clean them.

Have Fun Cleaning Gutters Covered With Gutter Guards

My last post was about whether you should be cleaning gutters or installing gutter covers. And of course the answer to this is to install gutter covers, right? Well only if you choose the right leaf protection.

I was surfing youtube for gutter covers and ran across this interesting video. It's shows a popular product--one of our competitors (fin with trough design)--that claims clog free gutters. For years I've been saying that they are ineffective but then I'd be biased, right?

Well here's video shot by someone else--looks pretty convincing to me.



You'll never find a shot like this with Waterloov with undamaged gutter covers.

Want a Laugh?

Ok, I've seen some funny inventions to keep gutters clean, but if you click here you'll get a laugh. Try out a few images with the following questions and let me know how many laughs you get.

I mean, who wants to drag a vacuum cleaner around the house? With the chord always getting caught on something? And how about dealing with your shrubbery and trees in the way of getting to your gutters? And how about second floor gutters? And how about cleaning clogged downspouts? Is it going to suck the elbows clean? And what about twigs? And how about tripping over your vacuum cleaner as you drag it around your house? And dealing with the extension chord popping loose from the vacuum cleaner plug? And will it suck putrid muck from the gutter? And how about the stiff neck you get from using the vacuum? Looks like good business for chiropractors with all the wrenched necks people get using it. And how about the other contraption they show in the video that looks like a post hole digger in your gutter where you grab the leaves? Maybe it would work for picking cats from trees.

I'd be embarrassed to say that I used either of those devices. Isn't the goal to minimize maintenance? The easiest to maintain system in the world is still the Waterloov Gutter Protection System. In twenty years I have yet to find anything that can come close to it. Nothing else keeps gutters free flowing in all types of heavy debris conditions. No other product is as easy to maintain. And it's comparably priced with filter systems, fin type hoods, and fin/troughs. And it's not new so we're not guessing how it will work. After twenty years we know that gutters covered by it don't clog and that it's easy to maintain.

After twenty years, our competition is still our best advertisement.

The Truth about Gutter Covers

There is a very good article about gutter covers and gutter guards at
http://petskidsnlife.com/house-and-home/what-is-the-truth-about-gutter-guards-and-gutter-covers/

I takes over one hundred different products and breaks them down into six classifications and analyzes the design issues/deficiencies/benefits of each type. Guess who wrote it. We'll be doing a youtube video on it as well.