Let’s talk about Gutter Guards – A good idea? Or not so much?

Here at Superior Siding, we value honesty and helping and serving our community. For this reason, we do not install, back or support gutter guard whatsoever. Gutter Guard is a great marketing tool that attracts people and is a product that people believe will work. We are here to tell you that the gutter guard does not work, and it makes you home much worse off. Here are our reasons:

1. Pine needles of the Black Hills. These pine needles will, no matter what, go through the holes in the gutter guard anyway and fill your gutters up.
2. Dirt and shingle grit. Dirt and shingle Grit are on your roof anyway, these things will also go through the holes that are in your gutter guard.
3. Deflection of water. There is no doubt that this eliminates flow and the ease of water getting into the gutter. The water will just deflect off the gutter guard and not end up in the gutter at all.
4. They still need to be cleaned; Gutter guards claim to be self-sufficient although they are not at all. They will still get plugged due to small debris such as leaves, dirt and shingle grit. This then requires the very time-consuming process of removing the gutter guard and re-installing them just to clean the gutters.
5. Leaves and debris sitting on top of the gutter guard. These gutter guards are designed for leaves to stay out and get the water in, right? Well, it is not designed for the leaves, which means they sit on top of the gutter guard. This stops the flow of water from going into the gutter completely.
6. Moss and Algae. When even a small number of debris gets into your gutters and past the gutter guard this will begin to decompose. This decomposition will result in the growth of Algae and Moss. The moss can easily spread across all the gutters and to the roof, this can result in mold and holes in your shingles.
7. Gutter Guard in the winter: During the harsh winters we get in South Dakota gutter guard could potentially destroy your home. This is because the platform for all the snow and ice to sit on makes it much easier for ice to build up, putting stress on your fascia and much higher risk of ICE DAMMING.
8. Price. The average cost of gutter guard is between $8-$10 a foot with installation included. Which means that you could pay $2,000 for a gutter guard system that does nothing but hurt your home! Not to mention when they still need maintenance, which means removing them, cleaning them, then re installing them, adding even more cost.

We suggest that you remove the gutter guards, hire bi-annual or as-needed gutter cleaning.

For the cost of gutter guards, Superior Siding could professionally clean your gutters for 20 years. But we won’t install the gutter guards if you want them, so you will have to call someone else for the install. If you need them cleaned, we will happily come and take them off and get them in the garbage!