Art of Gutter Blog

Best Gutter Guard Materials for Your Home

by Dijital Karma on Mar 01, 2022

Best Gutter Guards Materials

Every construction requires a sound foundation. The quality of the material used defines the building's durability, longevity, and safety. The same is no different for our homes' interior and exterior construction. The interior of buildings such as our homes, offices, and venues require regular maintenance; their problems tend to come up only once in a while as long as they are built with high-quality materials in the first place. However, exteriors can be a bit more challenging.

 

           The exterior section of our homes, for instance, has to endure a plethora of difficulties such as but not being limited to heavy weather conditions, animal nests, vegetation, pests, rusting, and so on. That is why the design of their layers, technology installed within them, and finally, the quality of their material is of paramount importance. The problem, however, is that many of us homeowners don't place equal emphasis on the exterior sections of our residences. Often, we are led to believe either by our constructors, friends, or even ourselves that the interior area must be preserved by all means while the exterior will be durable enough for anything mother nature and the urban city life is ready to throw them over. Our residences' exteriors need maintenance, period. The question is, what can we do about prolonging their lifetime, and how to best implement this?

 

           The answer is simple: utilizing and installing the highest quality materials that fit our budget for our exterior elements. Roof shingles, chimneys, sidewalls, and skylights are obvious exterior parts that come into mind when we want to improve our homes. But what about our rain gutters and downspouts? We often think about them as "install and forget" materials, only to realize that they either require maintenance or innovative material designs that render them requiring little to none of that. It is true that if we get our gutter guard installation done by a professional crew, their longevity will undoubtedly enhance. The truth can be said even more so for their materials. The rain gutter guards can come in a variety of select materials, all depending on your needs. However, every home requires specific needs. So you may ask, what is the best gutter guard material to use for my home? To answer that question, we compiled a list of various materials for your gutter guards right below!

 

What is the Best Gutter Guard Material to Use?

 

           When it comes to gutter guards, many ask which material is the best to use for our gutter guards? While the answer may seem obvious for many of us, various material types are required for different weather and location conditions. They all have their ups and downs. For instance, while aluminum may be a sturdy and durable enough material for the majority of homes in locations that receive heavy rain year-round, residences located in states that experience all four seasons may be looking for a material such as copper for its higher durability and better resistance to sudden temperature changes. There are niche and legacy materials such as nylon mesh and wood that may perform the required task at hand. The performance of your gutters and gutter guards can ensure that you are happy and carefree about heavy weather conditions or that you will be constantly forced to deal with them.

 

Gutter Guards Materials

Pros and Cons of Different Materials for Gutter Guards

 

           We will examine five varieties of the most popular gutter guard materials. These are wood, nylon mesh, plastic, aluminum, and copper gutter guards. Each and every one of them has its unique pros and cons. However, some of them may be impractical for certain conditions, and some, such as copper gutter guards, may be difficult to acquire due to their high quality and limited availability. This doesn't mean that you shouldn't consider them, though, as the benefit of having their paramount many other varieties!

           The availability of these types of gutters is dependent on the state you live in or the reach of your supplier. Depending on the season or store focus, gutter material suppliers may or may not have each material in their inventory. The gutter guard material cost is affected the same way. Don't fret, though! As we live in the 21st century, you will surely be able to acquire your desired type of gutter material for the best gutter protection system for your home! Without further ado, here is our gutter guard material guide below.

Gutter Guards Materials Guide

Wood Gutter Guards

           Wood is considered as a legacy model among the types of gutter materials. They are rare and hard to find within residences, except for restoration works. They are expensive, and their cost generally starts up from $25 per linear foot, and the price can go up as high as $50 depending on the quality and rarity of the wood. The first examples of wood gutters and wood gutter guards in the US were made from ancient cedar trees, and this variety is nearly extinct today. Thus, it explains their rarity. Wood gutter guards look beautiful in the right setting! This can be a good option if you want to go entirely natural with a cabin in the woods or prefer altruistic materials instead of industrial ones. However, as wood quality is important and it's hard to attain a sufficient amount of high-quality wood material for your gutter protection systems, we humbly recommend that you consider other alternatives for longevity and efficiency.

Nylon Mesh Gutter Guards

 

           Among the gutter materials for sale, a cheaper alternative is nylon mesh, gutter guards. They are inexpensive in comparison to other materials and easy to install. You can find them in pretty much any state or location in nearby gutter material suppliers. However, their benefits are far outweighed by their cons, in our opinion. This starts with the fact that they are prone to warping by adverse weather conditions. If you live in a location where your winters are icy, and summers are blazing, your nylon mesh gutter guards will surely be adversely affected. In addition, they become very easily clogged as they can get various debris stuck in them due to physical alterations. For these reasons alone, we suggest passing them for much better alternatives.

 

Gutter Guards Materials Types

 

Plastic Gutter Guards

 

            Plastic gutters guards are another cheap alternative popularly used throughout the 90s in the US. Plastic gutter guards have been referred to as a lifetime solution for your home, predominantly for easy manufacture and distribution. However, just like their nylon mesh counterparts, plastic is cheaper but not as durable as metal. They suffer from the same consequences that nylon mesh experiences by becoming bent, warped, and cracking, especially when exposed to heavy weather conditions such as hail, snowstorms, and heavy rain. They can also break by falling tree limbs quickly during these same weather conditions. Finally, UV light from the sun or your solar lights atop your roofs can also damage them. Thus, we highly recommend that you pass plastic gutter guards entirely to benefit maintenance and cost-efficiency.

Aluminum Gutter Guards

            When it comes to performance and efficiency, few gutter materials beat aluminum gutter guards. With their beauty, durability, and resistance to severe weather conditions, aluminum gutter guards are nearly unrivaled in their efficiency for our home exteriors. They are well suited to handle temperature changes and extreme weather conditions throughout the year without bending, cracking, warping, and, most importantly, clogging. The clogging part is especially through if you decide to install micromesh gutter guards that are virtually maintenance-free and debris-proof. Aluminum gutter guards offer a lifetime solution for keeping your gutter systems free of pests, debris, and any problems related to maintenance. When it comes to gutter material costs, they aren't expensive either. Cheaper than wood gutter guards and roughly the same price as their plastic and nylon mesh counterparts, aluminum gutter guard prices start around $15 per linear foot. They can manage snowstorms, heavy rain, hail, and pretty much anything mother nature is ready to throw at them. If you are looking for a gutter protection system that will last for a lifetime, then aluminum gutter guards are one of your best bets!

Gutter Materials

Copper Gutter Guards

 

           Now, this is our favorite part when it comes to material selection for the best gutter guard systems for our homes. Enter copper gutter guards, the ultimate material for our gutter guard systems. They do everything that their aluminum counterparts do and much more! Due to copper's inherent perks as an excellent heat transmitter, they handle sudden weather changes like a true champion—extreme heat, no warping, no problem. Severe temperature drops; say goodbye to cracks. In addition to their superb qualities as being resistant to extreme weather conditions, possessing the longest life among all gutter guard materials, and looking gorgeously good with their golden glows, copper gutter guards do one more thing better than all the materials listed above. They add immense value to your property as a whole! You read it right; copper gutter guards increase the value of your residences, homes, and venues like no other material. You are almost guaranteed to demand a higher price tag for your place due to the added aesthetical benefit of copper gutter guards. All in all, we highly recommend you check these beautifully crafted pieces for your home or venue, and we guarantee that this will be one of the best decisions you have made for decoration and efficiency! You can check out a sample for copper gutter guards before you fully invest in it as well! 

 

           At Art of Gutter, we strive to provide you with the best quality gutter materials for your family home or venue. Our high-tech and innovative gutter guards are durable, efficient, and reliable. Whether you are looking for a debris-proof flat micromesh gutter guard or a luxurious and long-lasting flat copper gutter guard, we have you covered. You can check out our online store for 5 inch and 6 inch gutter guards that fit into existing and new roofs for any structure. We additionally produce custom size gutter guards according to your needs. Feel free to contact us anytime through our website for more information regarding the best gutter guards in the US!

 

           This is the end of our blog post for "Best Gutter Guard Materials for Your Home"! If you are interested in learning more information regarding gutters, gutter cleaning, and gutter protection products, you can check our other blogs such as "Why You Should Invest in Copper Gutter Guards for Your Home""The Pros and Cons of Aluminum vs Copper Gutters", & "Benefits of Different Gutter Guards".

  

           We're sure you'll find more information about gutters and home care with our future blog posts as well. Until next time, be safe and in good vibes!

 

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