Category Archives: MasterShield

5 Tips For Fall Gutter Maintenance


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

Gutter Guard Maintenance


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Gutter guards are a great way to help keep debris out of your gutters, but a little gutter guard maintenance is needed. Depending on the type of gutter guards you have, debris can get stuck on them. Mesh guards can get sappy and debris and harden onto of the screen. Plants & Other Things Growing From Your Gutters If you really allow your gutter guards to take care of debris and do not check them at least once a year, you may find that seeds, or debris can make it into your gutter and even start to grow! We suggest that you check your gutter (even with guards/covers) at least once a year for any signs of failure. Problems such as gutters pulling away from your home, or damage to your covers, can cause larger issues in the future. Large branches that land on your roof can cause debris back up and damage your gutters too. Sticky Gutter Guards Tree sap and other natural gooey substances can make your gutter covers sticky.  Mastershield Gutter Guards guarantee a no clog and that they can clean off any sticky substance (Learn more). Other gutter guards and covers do not have that guarantee and sap can accumulate on your gutter guards. To clean off the sap or other sticky substances: Dampen a rag with mineral spirits and rub the affected area until the sap is removed. Wash the item with soap and water after the sap is removed to get rid of any remnants of the mineral spirits. Soak a cotton ball with nail polish remover and gently rub the hardened sap until it is removed. Wash the metal surface with soap and water. Soak a cotton ball in rubbing alcohol and gently rub the sap-splattered area until all of the sap is dissolved. Wash the metal object with soap and water. (source) Dried Debris In the summer, rain will move debris off the trees and on your roof. Lighter storms won’t move larger debris as fast such as leaves and twigs. Then with the fast drying from the heat and sun, it can bake leaves on your gutters. An easy clean for this is to take a soft bristle brush and water hose and rake the debris off. For a free estimate on gutter guard maintenance, 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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Heated Gutter Guards


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Heated Gutter Guards Winter is approaching and that means that snow and other nasty winter weather on its way as well. Live in an area where snow is a constant problem? Clogged gutters causing terrible damage or your gutters are prone to icicles and ice dams due to poor insulation or yo-yo weather. Heated gutter guards may be your answer. How does it work? Well our MasterShield gutter guards work by heating with a self-regulating heat cable ( constant wattage heat cable). This means you can heat an area as small as over an entrance way or entire gutter run and it will prevent ice in your gutters and ice dams from freezing solid, allowing water flow through gutters and preventing ice gutter clogs. MasterShield’s Ice Shield Heated Gutter Guards offer a stress-free way to heat your gutters in the winter that doesn’t require you to change your current set up, allows for all year use and still keeps all organic debris out! The heated area on Ice Shield Heated Gutter Guards does not interfere with the room allotted for rain water intake. It allows heat to radiate and keeps it efficient. Water will not damage it unless there is a rip or tear in the cable. All the benefits of traditional Mastershield gutter guard product included and the great warranty! Contact Gutters & Guards today to get a free estimate and get the process of clean gutters started! For more information about the heated gutter guard we offer, check out MasterShield’s website! For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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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Gutter Maintenance Tip #29 – Keep Pine Needles Out Of Your Gutters


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Keep Pine Needles Out Of Your Gutters Pine Needles can be a hassle to keep out of unwanted places such as your gutters. Keep pine needles out of your gutters by investing in gutter guards. Now unfortunately you cannot install any gutter guard on your home. Pine needles are a very pesky and can get through most gutter guards or clog them up. We have a solution. Mastershield gutter guards are the perfect product for this issue. Mastershield gutter guards made to keep the smallest debris out of your gutters. Mastershield can keep debris from gathering on top of your gutters as well. “Unlike other gutter guards that have larger openings that let debris in to clump on the gutter guard, MasterShield’s gutter guards are constructed with a non-stick, 316 surgical grade stainless steel microfilter that will not allow the tips of pesky pine needles or other debris in. In fact, nothing but water can get through a MasterShield protected gutter!” ( source )  Less maintenance needed than other guards. Keep this in mind. No gutter guard is maintenance free. So we still suggest the normal twice a year gutter cleaning. The best part is that it will take so much less time since the gutter guard keeps debris out of your gutters. Let your gutter cleaning worries be behind you! For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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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Last Chance To Add Gutter Guards Before Fall


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Last Chance To Add Gutter Guards Before Fall Add Gutter Guards Before Fall comes. This is important to do because once the trees start shedding their leaves, it’s a lot tougher to get a completely clean gutter, also it’s twice as much work! If you unsure if gutter guards are what you need take a few things into consideration such as: Amount of Trees Around Your Home If you have trees surrounding your home, it’s highly likely that you have to clean your gutters out more than twice a year. Adding a gutter guard system can cut back on the amount you will have to clean out your gutters down to twice a year ( the recommended amount) and depending on your gutter guard it should be a quicker clean as well. Most gutter guards will keep the larger debris out of your gutters and prevent clogging from occurring ( there are instances where larger debris can find it’s way in). Some gutter guards, such as MasterShield are designed to keep smaller debris out, by smaller debris we mean as small as “…constructed with a non-stick, 316 surgical grade stainless steel microfilter that will not allow the tips of pesky pine needles or other debris in. In fact, nothing but water can get through a MasterShield protected gutter!” (source). Other gutter guards such as Leafproof offers “…the flow (of water) will reverse direction as a result of surface tension, and the water will drain into the gutter. Most debris will not follow this reversal or is blown off the roof by the wind when dry.” (source)  So no matter is you’re looking for a screen mesh or a solid gutter guard, we have you covered. Type Of Tree Depending on the type of trees that surround your home can effect the type of gutter guard you should think about installing on your home. It should never be about pricing until you have a couple of similar gutter guards to choose from. For trees such as pine trees and other small debris shedding types, a screen mesh will do the job. Our highly suggested gutter guards is our screen mesh. It’s very similar to Mastershield but it’s pricing is less. This is not because the product is less, it’s due to the warranty. So depending on the warranty you want this will help you decision. Where as our drop in gutter guard is good if you have trees with larger leaves. Ask your estimator his opinion when getting your FREE estimate! How Often You Find Yourself Cleaning Your Gutters If you find yourself clean debris from your gutters more than twice a year, a gutter guard system would be a huge help. It’s a lot of work to clean your gutters. From positioning the ladder to removing all the debris. It’s a very important job to make gets done in the spring and in the fall to ensure a proper working gutter system. We do offer a gutter maintenance program where we will come out to your home (once/twice/three times a year, your choice) and clean your gutters while also maintaining them (small things such as tightening, making sure downspouts are clear, etc). We will also let you know when it’s time for a cleaning! Learn more today!  You Want To Harvest Rain Water Some people collect the rain water from the gutters to use for watering plants, etc. A way to filter rain water is by using a micro mesh gutter guard, such as matershield or screen mesh.   If you are interested in getting a FREE quote for installing gutter guards on your home, please give us a call and we’ll be happy to come out and take a look. If you want to see the samples, we have some in our showroom for your viewing. Let your gutter cleaning worries be behind you! 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

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Gutter Maintenance Tips #26 – Unclogging Downspouts


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Unclogging Downspouts A clogged downspout can be difficult to fix yourself. If your find yourself with a clogged downspout, we have some tips on how to remove to unclogging downspouts and prevent it from occurring again. What causes a downspout clog? When gutters are not cleaned as often as they should be, it can allow the debris to gather in the downspouts when they are moved by rainwater. Especially when they become moist and more like debris than leaves. Larger debris such as sticks and birds-nests can stop up the downspout and create a clog as well. How to get rid of a clogged downspout? If you know that your downspouts are clogged chances are that you saw water running over them during a rain or you were cleaning your gutters and noticed that the water was draining slowly or not at all. The first step is to take down your downspouts. Once you find what section ( they typically come in 10′ sections) the clog is in and remove the debris. We suggest you wear gloves! You don’t know if a critter is hiding in the debris ( like a rat, bird, squirrel). After all the debris is removed and disposed of, reinstall the downspouts and use a hose (without the nozzle) to give your downspouts a good cleaning. If water is still not draining properly if could be the underground downspouts and that is a LOT more difficult to fix and should only be taken care of by a professional. How can I prevent this from happening again? A good way to prevent downspout clogs from happening is by installing gutter guards. Gutter guards do NOT mean that you never have to clean your gutter again but it does mean you will have to do it less. Our MasterShield products offers a No Clog Guarantee. To learn more about our gutter guard products, please visit our gutter leaf guard page. 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

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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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Fall Gutter Debris


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Fall Gutter Debris Headaches Fall Gutter Debris can be a real headache when it comes to cleaning your gutters. There are a few different problems you can run into when it comes to fall gutter debris. Below is a list and some ways to help you prevent clogs. Leaves In Gutter This is what more gutters run into and it’s the easiest clean out of your gutter but if they’re wet they can be a pain. If there are a lot of leaves in your gutters you need to make sure you have a big enough bag to hold all of them. Shingle Granules When your shingle loose their granules and it gets stuck in your gutters. If you let it go for too long it can become a real mess. It’s also pretty difficult to get out of your gutters. In the photo above we had a customer whose gutter guards do not protect from shingle granules and his hired gutter cleaning service never cleaned under the gutter guards. We helped him out but it was a tough job. Make sure that the company you hire knows what their doing and is actually doing what they are telling you. Pine Needles Pine needles are a big pain like shingle granules. Most gutter guards do not protect your gutters from pine needles and it can cause clogged gutters as well. Pine Cones Pine cones not too hard to clean out of your gutters. If stuck in your downspouts it can be a nuisance to get unclogged. Other Other fall debris that can cause clogged gutters and damages. Things such as bird nests, bee hives and dirt from the spring and summer months. This can cause clogs but can be pretty easy to remove unless your bee hives are still inhabited by the bees. That could be a problem. To learn more about choosing us for our gutter cleaning services, long-term maintenance program, or MasterShield Gutter Guards please give us a call today for a FREE estimate. We’ll be happy to help you keep your gutters clean and clog free! For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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

Fast Fact #31 – MasterShield Gutter Guards Color


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MasterShield Gutter Guards Color MasterShield Gutter Guards Color range from a classic white to some of the more popular trim colors.   MasterShield can be matched to the color of your gutter. Colors can be matched to your roof. It will be easy to find with mastershield gutter guard color. For a free estimate on mastershield gutter guard, 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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Fast Fact #21 – MasterShield


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Mastershield Gutter Guards Mastershield installs by attaching to the front lip of the gutter with stainless steel screws.Front lip the only place with fasteners. Not including the endcaps. Gutter guards have a no clog guarantee that will prevent clog. Mastershield filters water through your gutter without the debris. This ensures that your downspout openings stay clear. Gutter will run like clockwork. Preventing any type of damage from occurring. We provide free estimates if you would like to see what it would be to install  gutter guards on your home. For a free estimate on gutter cleaning, 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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