Monthly Archives: January 2015

Preparing Your Gutters For Icy Winter Storms


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Preparing Your Gutters For Icy Winter Storms Gutter maintenance is never as important as it is in the winter. So preparing your gutters for icy winter storms is an important task to tackle before the first snow/winter storm of the year. For some of us it’s already too late but for the Lynchburg area we still have time. Make Sure To Clean All Debris From Your Gutters And Downspouts This is important for preventing ice dams on your home and keeping ice from forming on your gutters. It pretty much happens like this. If your gutters are full of debris and other large materials this will allow water to stand and collect in your gutters. When the weather gets cold the water will freeze causing build up and ice dams. So during the slow thaw the water will continue to melt and freeze allowing for other debris & water to roll right over your gutters and onto the ground and this is where it becomes dangerous to your foundation. Inspect All Seams And Anchors/Spikes When snow sets on your roof it can be a real strain on your gutters. If you live in an area where you received heavy amounts of snow.Look into a snow rake to rake snow off of your roof because this can be very strainful to your home. If not then just make sure your gutters anchors/spikes are in good shape. Will be able to handle a little extra this winter. Check Downspouts And Diverter Check your downspouts and diverters for any clogs or leaks.           For a free estimate on gutter installation, repairs or gutter leaf guards, call us today! Gutters & Guards experienced team will take the guess-work out of the process, and ensure that your home is protected. Connect with us for daily inspiration, updates and information: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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10 Signs It’s Time For New Gutter


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There are times when your gutters will just need to be repaired and times when you’ll need to replace your gutters. If you’re not sure if you need a gutter replacement or just a repair there are a few signs that will let you know, It’s Time For New Gutter. Bent or Broken Gutters When your gutters look like they’ve been through a lot, and are not functioning how they are suppose to, it’s a big sign that gutter replacement is in your near future. Missing Gutters Missing gutters is a problem that should not be left unnoticed. It can cause bigger problems with both the exterior of your home and your foundations. This leads to costly repairs if ignored. Too Many Rust Spots And Cracks To Count Rust spots and cracks can be repaired and hidden. Once you get some many it’s not worth the time spent fixing and caulking. They’ve Been Repaired For Leaks Way More Than Once After you repair the 4th or 5th leak, it’s a similar situation to the rust spots and cracks. You can only repair it so many times. More of a hassle than a way to save money. Sagging Gutters/Pulling Away From Roof Sagging gutters or gutters that are starting to pull away from your home are not only a hazard to your home but to you and your family as well. If sagging gutters are ignored eventually they will turn into gutters that are pulling away from your roof and that can lead to your gutters completely detaching from your home and falling off. When they fall of it’s hard to say what they will hit on the way down. It could end up costing your a lot more than if you’d repair or replace them when it starts to happen. Rotted Shingles Homes that have a lot of trees around and hanging over the roof, tend to have a lot more problems with gutters.  Branches and lots of leaves build up in your gutters and in roof valleys causing overflows, and clogging. Leaves retain moisture and cause your shingles to rot. This is letting you know something isn’t working right with your gutters. You might just need a repair or cleaning but if it’s gone on for too long it could be time for a new gutter system. Consult with a professional (such as Gutters & Guards) Broken Fastener Broken Fasteners can mean damage to your gutters. If gutters are left with broken fasteners for too long it can bend your metal gutters and cause irreversible damage. Peeling Exterior Paint Peeling exterior paint is your home telling you that you are having gutter problems. This means water is leaking behind your gutters and damaging the siding and fascia of your home. This can lead to costly repairs especially if water has seeped underneath siding. Pooling Water Pooling water on your walkways in your yard is a big sign that your gutters are not working properly. Whether it be a clog or worse this needs to be taken care of asap. It can lead to slick spots during the winter. Eroding Landscape This is a very dangerous and can lead to foundation damage. It also means you are having big gutter problems or drainage problems.   Gutters are a very important factor to keeping your home and your family safe. Take the right precautions to prevent leaks and clean your gutters at least twice a year. It will help your existing gutters last longer and prevent you from having to prematurely replace more expensive components to your home. If you’re still not sure whether you need replacement gutters or not, please consult with a professional such as Gutters & Guards, Inc. For a free estimate on gutter installation, repairs or gutter leaf guards, call us today! Our experienced team will take the guess-work out of the process, and ensure that your home is protected. Connect with us for daily inspiration, updates and information: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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Gutter Color Choices


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Gutter Color Choices Gutter Color Choices. Gutters are a necessity when it comes to homeowner-ship. They are important to keep your home functioning and running right. With gutters it’s not the same as it was 30 years ago, gutters can now be functional and stylish. We offer over 30+ colors in seamless aluminum gutters, as well as copper gutters. Using colors on your gutters can give your home some added curb appeal and really give it a custom home look. Below we have some examples of gutters colors paired with siding and stone that can be used for a home remodel.             To view more of our color listing please visit our Gutter Installation page where we have links to show you all of the available options of gutter colors to choose from.  Also check out our blog post that is All About Seamless Gutters. View photos to see some of the darker gutter colors. For a free estimate on gutter installation, repairs or gutter leaf guards, call us today! Gutters & GUards experienced team will take the guess-work out of the process, and ensure that your home is protected. Connect with us for daily inspiration, updates and information: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram  

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Winter Curb Appeal


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Winter Curb Appeal Winter-time is usually when you are not thinking about curb appeal and thinking more about how is my house handling this weather. We suggest that you think about both. You can do small little things to keep your home looking great when there is a foot of snow in your yard. Below is a few different suggestions to help you get your home looking great this winter.   Keep Your Pathways & Walkways Clear Slipping can be a dangerous thing to happen in the winter. Making sure that you always have plenty of de-icer and a snow shovel handy is important for making this happen and keeping your walkways pedestrian safe. You can also see if your gutters are leaking. If you see a slick spot (or happen to find one) this will let you know that your gutters may have a problem that needs to be addressed when it’s warmer. Take a photo so you want to remember the spot when it gets warmer. It not only gives your home some great winter curb appeal; it keeps your family safe. Exterior Lighting This can be an important part of keeping around your home safe. Since the days are shorter and it gets darker earlier, it’s a pretty smart investment when it comes to safety around the home. There are lots of different ideas to choose from when it comes to exterior lighting. We really like this idea (link). It gives this home almost a fairy-tale look. If whimsical isn’t your style there are also some really great lighting hardware that can bring light to your home while keeping a more conservative look.We suggest something more modern and sleek, such as this (link) Whatever you choose you can rest knowing that your home is a little more safer when you can see where you’re going. Winter Decor Add a festive wreath to your entry door, or decorating your empty flower boxes with a seasonal flowers.   Using evergreens and other fake plants would be easier to manage especially when the temperature drops down into those brisk/cold days. Though this is more of a holiday design it could last all year-long. (link) If that isn’t something you’d want to keep all winter long you can add a bird house or something else to keep your flower box full during the winter months (link). Don’t forget about a wreath. Wreaths are a fast and creative way to add curb appeal and charm to your home.  We found a fantastic guide with over 35+ different wreath ideas that range from holiday to just winter themed. (link) To learn more about winter curb appeal please visit our pinterest board Outdoor Decor. For a free estimate on heated gutter guards, adding regular gutter guards or gutter repairs, call us today! Our experienced team will take the guess-work out of the process, and ensure that your home is protected. Connect with us for daily inspiration, updates and information: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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5 Reasons Aluminum Gutter Guards Are A Better Product


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5 Reasons Aluminum Gutter Guards Are A Better Product Gutter leaf guards should be an investment on your home.  They not only help you save money & time by cutting down on the amount of time and money you spend on cleaning them out; They protect your home from gutter clogs and can expand the lifetime of your gutters if you take care of them properly. This is why we believe that aluminum gutter guards are better for your home. Just take a minute and think about it. Plastic does not fair well when it comes to extreme weather. It gets too cold your plastic gutter guards will crack, and if it gets too warm your gutter guards will expand. Both will distort your guards and affect how they perform.  If this isn’t enough to help you stray from plastic guards these 5 reasons should help. Durable Aluminum gutter guards are durable. Your gutters the shouldn’t crack or break, yes they can bend but only if there is enough force put upon them. Please DO NOT set your ladder against your gutters. A ladder should be set against your fascia, not your siding or gutters. Prevent damages from occurring and because fascia is flat. All of our gutter guards are made out of strong aluminum and stainless steel. This makes them a bit more indestructible than plastic or vinyl guards. Inexpensive Aluminum gutters guards are not as expensive as you may think. Yes they’ll cost more than plastic but we’re looking at the quality and longevity here. The warranties of the gutter guards we carry have 10 – lifetime warranties that come with them. They also range in price so no matter what your budget is you’ll be getting a quality product. Longer Lifetime As we stated above these gutter guards are meant to last a longer time than plastic gutter guards. All of the gutter guards we carry are made out of aluminum metal. The screen mesh gutter guards have stainless steel for the mesh and an aluminum frame to keep it strong and working great. Harder For Pests To Penetrate Our gutter guards cut down the problem of pests by being completely enclosed. Our screen mesh gutter guards have a filter to not only keep debris out but they keep pests out as well and our curved gutter guards are completely enclosed to ensure no birds or small pests can get in. Color Match This is the best part. Most of the plastic and vinyl gutter guards do not have more than a couple of options. Our gutter guards can be color matched to ensure that you won’t have an eye sore when it comes to owning a gutter guard system. Mastershield offers many colors ( view here ) where as Leafproof offers more than vinyl but less than mastershield. (view here) They both offer a copper color so whether you have aluminum or copper gutters you’ll have aluminum gutter guards to match in color. There are a lot of options when it comes to gutter and home protection. To learn more about our products or to see them in the flesh, give us a call today to learn more! For a free estimate on heated gutter guards, adding regular gutter guards or gutter repairs, call us today! Our experienced team will take the guess-work out of the process, and ensure that your home is protected. Connect with us for daily inspiration, updates and information: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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What Causes Ice Build Up In Gutters?


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What Causes Ice Build Up In Gutters? Gutters do not and will not cause ice.  The cause of ice in & on your gutters is either because of inadequate insulation, ventilation or both. Open, uncovered gutters are just at the wrong place at the wrong time and get the blame of homeowners’ frustration when ice forms. So what is the true cause of ice? Well, heat loss from your home to your attic area is the primary culprit of ice dams. The reason ice and ice dams form is because warm air leaks from the living space below. The warm air then melts the snow on the roof; this produces water. That water then trickles down to the colder edge of the roof. Once the water hits that colder edge, it freezes and produces ice. The snow that accumulates on the roof acts as an insulator. It traps more heat in the attic, which makes the roof warmer. This trapped heat melts more snow. The more snow that melts and the colder temperatures during the winter, means more ice at the eaves of your roof. Don’t let this happen to you.  A sheet of ice let loose from the roof, can get caught on the gutter and kept on going. Your gutter can pull away from the fascia board. This shows just how much power and weight ice can have on your gutter system. Ice and snow will build up inside of your gutter; it is inevitable. The snow and ice will build up and build up; eventually that build up will become higher than the gutter itself. Once a warmer day rolls around, that build up that you see above your gutter will start to melt. Because the snow and ice is now higher than your gutter, it will begin to drip on the face of your gutter and the ground below. The inside of the gutter is full of ice and snow, so there is no place for that dripping water to flow. It will drip over your gutter, creating icicles, until the snow and ice accumulation melts level to the gutter and the inside of the gutter itself has a chance to melt and flow. You can speed up the melting process with one of these solutions we’ve listed in a previous post. Many people will tell you to install heating cables but be aware that over time the heat from the cables will make your shingles very brittle. So be careful when choosing the right heated gutter guards. We offer Ice Shield Heated Gutter Guards by MasterShield. View how this system works, here. Protect your home and avoid pricey repairs with gutter guards. For a free estimate on heated gutter guards, adding regular gutter guards or gutter repairs, call us today! Our experienced team will take the guess-work out of the process, and ensure that your home is protected. Connect with us for daily inspiration, updates and information: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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Maintain Your Gutters During Winter Months


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Maintain Your Gutters During Winter Months to make sure that your gutters are working properly when it matters most. Clogs, leaks, and damage can make for a big headache when you gutter stop working  during a big storm.   Eliminate all clogs before bad weather hits. This will cut your ice dam likeliness in half and allow for all snow and ice to not stay on your roof as long. Ice dams can cause lots of problems to your home if they get big enough. It might be in your best interest to invest gutter guards to prevent leaves and other debris from entering your gutters and downspouts. Though it will not do anything to help you prevent ice dams (only clean gutters and sweeping snow off your roof will), they will help keep your gutters clean and you will not have to worry about your gutters as much. It does not mean that you never have to clean your gutters but it does save you time.   For a free estimate on gutter replacement, repairs or adding gutter guards, call us today! Our experienced team will take the guess-work out of the process, and ensure that your home is protected. Connect with us for daily inspiration, updates and information: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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Gutter Cleaning Prevention


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Gutter Cleaning Prevention Gutter cleaning may not sound like the most glamorous to-do job in the world but it’s a very important one to do.We suggest cleaning your gutters at least twice a year (once in the spring and once in the fall). This is a necessity to prevent bad things from setting in. Such as moss, ice dams, paint/siding damage, gutter pull away and foundation damages.  If you haven’t cleaned out your gutters yet, time is short. With the temperature dropping and the weather becoming more temperamental. It’s preparing for snow/winter storms to set in. We urge you to plan to clean out your gutters asap. Whether you DIY or hire a professional, the sooner the better. OSHA has a great ladder safety article that will ensure proper ladder safety. Keep yourself safe if you choose the DIY route. It’s not only important to prevent bad things from happening to your home during the winter months. It will allow for a longer life for your gutters. For a free estimate on gutter replacement, repairs or adding gutter guards, call us today! Gutters & Guards experienced team will take the guess-work out of the process, and ensure that your home is protected. Connect with us for daily inspiration, updates and information: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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Rain Gutter Issues


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Winter Rain Gutter Issues Winter is starting to get a bit messy. This means your gutters are getting a workout. With all the rain and snow coming down, it can create a real mess around your home and become a headache if your gutters for some reason stop properly working. If you clean your gutters the recommended twice a year (once in the spring and once in the fall) and it seems like every time it rains water is still overflowing and making a mess then there could be a bigger cause at hand. The first thing you should look at if you are facing this problem are the downspouts. Clogged downspouts can mean your gutters drain slower and it will back them up if there is a heavy rain. A way you can check to see if it’s your downspouts causing all of the trouble is by running water from your water hose directly into your downspout ( DO NOT USE A NOZZLE; let it run freely). If water drains slowly, its your downspouts. If you have underground downspouts that take the water away from your home. Check to see if the water flows freely all the way to the bottom of the gutters. If not, it’s a problem. The 2nd place you should look to if it seems like your downspouts are clean and properly working. Look at your gutter slope. Your gutter slope is what allows the rainwater to freely flow from your gutters to your downspouts. Gutters are stressed by heavy weights whether it be debris that has sat in your gutters for way to long or by heavy snow. It’s an easy fix for a professional who knows how to pitch gutters. It is important to look for damage done to gutters or fascia board by heavy gutters because the problem will keep happening if it went on for too long. To see if your gutter slope is off run water through your gutters with the hose and see if it pools up and slowly drain. If so then it’s your pitch. The last place your should look is at your gutters themselves. Does it seem that water is just completely overshooting your gutters? This could mean that you need over-sized gutters. Call a professional to see how much it would be to replace your residential gutters with larger commercial gutters instead. If it seems like one place is getting overrun by water. You could just need a diverter to split up the water flow. This is a common method used when roof valley’s are causing water to overflow. For a free estimate on gutter replacement, repairs or adding gutter guards, call us today! Gutters & Guards experienced team will take the guess-work out of the process, and ensure that your home is protected. Connect with us for daily inspiration, updates and information: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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Happy New Year 2015!


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Happy New Year 2015! Happy New Year 2015! We hope everyone has a fantastic, prosperous and amazing new year.  Remember to clean your gutters at least twice this year and if you need help make sure to give us a call. If you want to forget about it completely give us a call and join our Long-Term Maintenance Program today.  Add gutter guards this year, we’re happy to help you decide on a good fit for your home. For a free estimate on gutter replacement, repairs or adding gutter guards, call us today! Gutters & Guards experienced team will take the guess-work out of the process, and ensure that your home is protected. Connect with us for daily inspiration, updates and information: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

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