5 Tips For Fall Gutter Maintenance

By rempferconstruction
Oct-13-2017
Gutter Guards, Gutters, MasterShield
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Fall can be rough on your home’s gutter system. To help combat the fall foliage, it’s important to take certain gutter maintenance steps to make sure your gutters, downspouts, and gutter guards aren’t damaged during the fall season. In order to help you know the best way to maintain your gutters during the fall, we’ve got 5 tips for fall gutter maintenance! 1. Trim Trees A major step to fall gutter maintenance that many homeowners overlook is trimming the tree branches around your home. As the fall leaves and foliage begin to fall, they fall straight into your gutters and clog them. Trim the tree branches around your home and near your gutters to help prevent leaves from falling into your gutters. 2. Clean Your Gutters Although trimming tree branches will help lower the amount of leaves falling into your gutters, some leaves will still make it in. To prepare for the bulk of the fall leaves, make sure your gutters are clean ahead of time! Dealing with leaves and debris falling into already clogged and soggy gutters makes them harder to clean later and may even lead to permanent damage. Make sure your gutters are clean now before the worst of the fall debris begins. 3. Check for Damage The fall season can be rough on your gutters. After your gutters have been cleaned, go over them and thoroughly check for damage. Make sure you check for loose screws, gutters pulling away from your home, leaks, excessive wear and tear, or anything else that may make your gutters less effective. If you’re not sure what to look for, contact a professional to inspect your gutters and look for areas that may need repair. 4. Repair Any Damage Once you’ve identified the problem areas of your gutters and downspouts, it’s time to repair them. These problem areas can get worse during the fall and winter seasons and can sometimes even lead to permanent damage to your home, so it’s important to take care of the damage as you find it. You may be able to complete some easy repairs yourself, such as loose screws or brackets, but make sure you call a professional to repair any severe damage! 5. Install Gutter Guards The best way to protect your gutters in the fall and winter is to install gutter guards. There are a number of different types of gutter guards, including screen mesh, drop in, and the MasterShield Gutter Guard system. No matter which kind of gutter guards you install, their goal is to keep leaves and debris out while allowing water to run through. Gutter guards are invaluable in maintaining and preventing debris from damaging your gutters during the fall. For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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

Top Reasons To Add Gutter Guards This Spring

By rempferconstruction
Feb-21-2017
Damage Prevention, Gutter Guards, Gutters
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Gutters are the veins of your home. They direct all of mother natures rain water and snow melt away from your homes’ foundation, protecting your home. When they become clogged, they stop doing their job. Adding gutter guards to your home is very good idea when it comes to keeping your gutters clog-free. Here are a few more reasons to add gutter guards to your home this spring. Debris-free gutters Unwanted leaves in your gutters can lead to serious issues if neglected for too long. It can lead to water finding other ways out of your gutters, as well as the perfect place for pests to build a home. Low maintenance Gutter Guards do not mean maintenance free forever. It just means MUCH less maintenance. Unprotected gutters require more frequent cleaning, which can be time consuming, and potentially unsafe. Installing a quality gutter protection system prevents debris and leaves from accumulating in the first place. You should only have to check them out once or twice a year depending on the amount of trees around your home. Protect against pests Unprotected gutters can provide a convenient entry point to your warm and inviting roof space, which then becomes a nesting site and food source for a host of common household pests such as birds, possums, rats, mice and snakes. Avoid floods and water damage With a quality gutter guard installed, your gutters are able to transport rainwater the way they’re designed to, significantly reducing the risk of flooding in storms and heavy rain, as well as the likelihood of damage to your walls and ceilings if your home were to flood. If you are planning on add gutter guards to your home or are interested in add gutter guards, give us a call for a free estimate. We’ll be more than happy to help you choose the perfect gutter guard system to add to your home. Saving you time and money on cleaning gutters out. For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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

Tags: Construction and Maintenance, Debris, Gutter Guard, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Gutters and Guards, Lynchburg Virginia, Materials and Supplies, Virginia

Gutter Guards And Snow

By rempferconstruction
Jan-30-2017
Damage Prevention, Gutter Guards, Gutters
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Gutter Guards And Snow. In this area of Virginia, we seem to get just a couple good snow storms and that’s it. There are more icy snows that roll through our area. We’ve talked A LOT about ice dams and icicles. We haven’t really dived into what to expect when you have gutter guards on your gutters. So when snow that’s icier or slowly melting becomes a icy slush this is where it’s going to drip; causing icicles and ice dams. When you mix this wintery weather with solid aluminum metal, it can create a sheet of ice. This makes it harder for your gutter guards to work properly ( or if you do not have gutter guards you can still run into this with just gutters). The melted water is going to roll over the ice sheet and drip onto your porch or walkway creating slick spots. Gutter guards that are more open mesh allow more water to seep in but this can make your gutter HEAVY. Leading to your gutters possibly becoming unattached from your home. This is one of the biggest complaints about gutter guards but think about the rest of the year and how they keep your gutters clean and free of clogs. There are some preventative measure you can take to avoid these ice sheets over your screen mesh gutter guards and hopefully keeping the majority of heavy ice out of your gutters. Snow rakes to pull sections of snow away from the eaves of your roof or heated gutter guards. Gutters & Guards, Inc does offer a heated gutter guard. Depending on the climate that you live in should always impact the type of gutter guards you need to install on your home. That and the type of debris you want to keep out. For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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

Tags: Construction and Maintenance, Gutter Guard, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Gutters and Guards, Lynchburg Virginia, Materials and Supplies, Virginia, Water damage, winter

More About Removing Icicles From Your Gutters

By rempferconstruction
Jan-27-2017
Damage Prevention, Gutter Guards, Gutters
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Last week we discussed removing icicles from your gutters, learn more about removing icicles from your gutters. Check out last week’s article here. Insulation – Heat can escape into the attic from the interior of your home through a number of avenues. Lighting fixtures in your ceilings, poorly laid or insufficient insulation allow excess heat to enter your attic, but it’s the latter two that you need to inspect for and address, since you have to keep insulation away from the fixtures. R-Values have increased over the years so you might stop ice dams by simply rolling extra insulation over what you have installed now. Pay particular attention to the edges of your attic and any space between rafters that might have been missed or removed in the past. Circulation – Another cause of excess heat in the attic is poor circulation. Depending on the home, some attics may have a vent/fan installed in the wall of the attic to maintain a proper internal temperature in relation to the external temperature. If you home is lacking proper circulation, you can speak with a local builder about installing baffles. A baffle is a channel run from your attic through the insulation to the soffit on your roof eave. This allows the cold air from outside to enter the attic and maintain a proper temperature. This can also help to stop ice dams from building up. (source) If you notice that your gutters are pulling away from your home contact a professional ( Like Gutters & Guards) to tighten up your gutters to ensure that they won’t cause more damage to your home. For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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

Tags: Charlottesville Virginia, Construction and Maintenance, damage, gutter cleaning, Gutter Guard, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Gutters and Guards, ice, Lynchburg Virginia, winter

How To Prevent Slick Spots On Your Sidewalk

By rempferconstruction
Jan-24-2017
Damage Prevention, Gutter Guards, Gutters
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How To Prevent Slick Spots On Your Sidewalk. No matter how well the snow and ice are removed from sidewalks, parking lots and the surrounding streets, people will invariably encounter some slippery surfaces when walking outdoors in the winter. Many cold-weather injuries are the result of falls on ice-covered streets and sidewalks. Walking on snow or ice is especially treacherous. Getting around in icy conditions calls for planning, caution, and a little common sense: Dress warmly and wear boots with non-skid soles (avoid plastic and leather soles). When entering a building, remove as much snow and water from your boots as possible. Take notice that floors and stairs may be wet and slippery. Walk carefully. Be prepared to fall and try to avoid using your arms to break your fall. If you fall backward, make a conscious effort to tuck your chin so your head doesn’t strike the ground with full force. Streets and sidewalks that have been cleared of snow and ice should still be approached with caution. Look out for “black ice.” Dew, fog or water vapor can freeze on cold surfaces and form an extra-thin, nearly invisible layer of ice that can look like a wet spot on the pavement. It often shows up early in the morning or in areas that are shaded from the sun. Eliminating Snow and Ice Pay attention to weather predictions in your area. This will allow you to buy shovels or de-icers if you do not already have them. It will also help you predict whether you will be dealing with freezing rain or light, fluffy snow which require different techniques. Apply a de-icer early in an ice storm, or a storm with heavy wet snow. You can choose between sand, rock salt, potassium chloride and other products. Keep up with shoveling once the snow starts if possible. If it is only a powdery snow, you can just brush it away with a broom. If you cannot keep up with it, just shovel it all away at the end of the storm. For more information about protecting your gutters or for a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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

Tags: Gutter Guard, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Gutters and Guards, injury prevention, Lynchburg Virginia, Materials and Supplies, Virginia, winter

Removing Icicles From Gutters

By rempferconstruction
Jan-20-2017
Damage Prevention, Gutter Guards, Gutters
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Removing Icicles From Gutters. Icicles overhanging your roof may look like a scene from movie, but they can cause a lot of trouble. If left alone, the icicles may melt and refreeze into ice dams or may fall and cause injury to you, your family or guests. When a long-term warm-up is not in the forecast take steps to remove icicles yourself. We do not suggest you climb a ladder and bang them off your gutters with a hammer but rather take some preventative measures to ensure no heavy ice hang down. We have a few tips on preventing icicles and hopefully keeping your home from forming ice dams. Proper Exhaust – Many appliances and rooms in your home produce heat. The kitchen, laundry room, and bathrooms all produce excess heat, and if the exhaust from these areas aren’t properly insulated and caulked, heat can escape into the attic. Maintaining the ducts from these areas is crucial in the fight to stop ice dams and icicles. Roof Raking – One simple solution is to remove the snow from the roof yourself. Many hardware stores carry snow rakes, a telescoping tool to manually remove the snow from the roof before ice dams form. Keep in mind that these rakes should never be used while on a ladder, but are effective at freeing your roof of snow. Using a rake to remove snow right after a storm will stop ice dams before they every have a chance to form and keep you from trying to rake heavy, crusty snow which makes the job much harder to do. (Source) Check Out Part 2 of removing icicles from gutters on January 27th! For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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

Tags: Construction and Maintenance, damage, gutter cleaning, Gutter Guard, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Gutters and Guards, Home repair, ice, Lynchburg Virginia, winter

5 Projects To Complete Before Fall

By rempferconstruction
Sep-9-2016
Damage Prevention, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Roofing
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5 Projects To Complete Before Fall 5 Projects To Complete Before Fall. With Fall right around the corner, there are a few projects that will help you keep your home in tip-top shape. Roof Inspection After all the summer thunderstorms and weather, its best to inspect your roof for any potential damages, such as missing , curled or buckled shingles. If you cannot climb on the roof or do not feel safe doing so, please call a professional to do so. We suggest our sister company, Rempfer Construction, Inc. Weather Proofing Before the cool breezes settle in the winter, check your exterior doors and windows for any air leaks or light peaking through. Recaulk around your window and door seals. If you need replace weather stripping or the window itself, call a professional to help you find and install the right materials. Gutter Guards Fall is the time wear trees shred their leaves. A great way to prevent gutter clogs from happening is by installing gutter guards. There are several types of gutter guards that you can choose from. Screen mesh, hooded and drop in. To learn more about the different types of gutter guards check out our page. To get a free estimate, give us a call! Clean Grill Since the summer months and cookout days are past, it’s time to part with the most beloved item of the back yard. Yes we mean the grill. Give it a good scrub down place in a safe spot until next summer. Clean Siding The end of the summer is the best time to clean the siding on your home. This will prevent any mold or early damage from occurring to your vinyl siding. We suggest you take a look at this cleaning guide to vinyl siding post by our sister company Rempfer Construction,Inc.

Tags: Construction and Maintenance, Debris, fall, fall gutter cleaning, fall weather, gutter check up, gutter cleaning, Gutter Guard, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Gutters and Guards, Lynchburg Virginia, Rain gutter, Virginia

Gutters Pulling Away From Home

By rempferconstruction
Aug-24-2016
Damage Prevention, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Soffit & Fascia
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Why are my Gutters Pulling Away From Home? This is a very common question that we are often asked and issue we run into. Gutters pulling away from home can be caused by a couple things. Fascia board can be rotten or the gutters could be weighted down ( by debris or water) making them sag. If gutters start to sag in the winter, it could be because of snow especially if there was a lot of accumulation. The gutter system should make sure that the water moves off and away from your home but they do require maintenance. We suggest gutter cleanings at least twice a year, more if there are a lot of trees around your home. Gutters are secured to the fascia board with spikes or hangers. We, at Gutters & Guards, use hidden hangers. These hangers are not visible from the ground and in our opinion, they are much stronger than spikes. A couple ways you can prevent this is by installing gutter guards or by cleaning your gutters. If you notice that your gutter are not properly draining, check them and see if they are holding water. Clean gutters make it easier to tell if your gutters are holding water because of failing fascia board. Taking care of the gutter system on your home is one of the ways to preserve the life of your home. It also adds resale value to your home, as the curb appeal is increased. Gutters should never pull away from the home. Instead, they should remain flush with the edge of the roof and be clear of any debris and standing water. For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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

Tags: Construction and Maintenance, damage, Debris, gutter check up, gutter cleaning, Gutter Guard, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Gutters and Guards, Lynchburg Virginia, summer, Virginia

Solutions For Gutter Debris

By rempferconstruction
Aug-22-2016
Damage Prevention, Gutter Guards, Gutters
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What kind of gutter debris are you dealing with? This questions sounds still but solutions for gutter debris can be used for different types of debris. When you’re cleaning your gutters, these solutions may help you clean a little faster. Fine Debris such as pine needles and small leaves, can slip in your gutter unnoticed and build up over time. Pine needles can accumulate and become heavy fast. If they sit in your gutters for a long time it can cause your gutters to sag or for water to build up over time. Fine screen mesh gutter guards are the best solution to keep the needles at bay. Products like Mastershield and screen mesh are best for this. Your standard drop in gutter guard has openings that are too large and will not be able to keep out needles. Both Mastershield and screen mesh have fine smooth surfaces for debris to easily flow over the gutter and not clog your gutters. Dirt and shingle grit are another common debris that can be found in your gutters. Mastershield prevents shingle grit from getting in your gutters but screen mesh not so much. Hooded gutter systems could protect your gutters from the majority grit but not all. If an absurd amount of shingle grit is getting into your gutters, it may be time for a new roof. In the springtime, pollen and other blossoms can find their way into your gutters. They make the inside of your gutters slightly sticky because it’s almost a powder like substance and this can get debris to stick to your gutter. Running the water hose over your gutter and/or gutter cover can help dissolve the pollen. You should already be cleaning your gutters after the long winter season and doing any necessary repairs. For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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

Tags: Charlottesville Virginia, Construction and Maintenance, fall gutter cleaning, fall weather, gutter cleaning, Gutter Guard, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Gutters and Guards, Home repair, Materials and Supplies, Virginia

Bees And Gutters

By rempferconstruction
Aug-18-2016
Damage Prevention, Gutter Guards, Gutters
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Summertime brings the bees. That means being more careful when you are working outside and around the house. Bees and gutters are a common area where they can build a nest or on a roof eave. Common areas that you will find nests are behind the fascia, gable vents, peaks, eaves, awnings and other small areas. They can be pretty easy to spot depending on the location, if not consult a professional. If you happen to randomly come upon a nest, don’t panic. Quickly just walk away or slowly go down the ladder. Acting frantically or moving quickly can be dangerous, especially if you are high in the air. Removing the can be a bit more difficult. If you are allergic to bees, hire a professional. It’s not worth it. If not, you can dress in thick clothes, gloves, hat, googles, etc. to protect yourself. The best time to protect yourself is in the evening, they are most inactive. One application or pesticide or spray should do the trick. Monitor their activity and once the hive is inactive, remove it and if the hive was in an area where bees should not be, caulk or make that area inaccessible. In the event of a sting, the first thing to do is remain calm and balanced. Ask your pharmacist ahead of time for medication that will counteract the pain and swelling from a sting. And of course, if the situation feels serious, do not hesitate to call 911. For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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

Tags: clogged gutters, Construction and Maintenance, damage, Downspout, gutter check up, gutter cleaning, Gutter Guard, Gutter Guards, Gutters, Gutters and Guards, summer, Virginia

Category Archives: Gutter Guards