I am also interested in the answer to this question. We are having a torrential storm as I write this. Water is coming in the back wall of the basement and into a living room window. Evidently the rain gutters are clogged --- AGAIN.

I have Leaf Relief gutter guards on my gutters. They are manufactured by Alcoa. They are made of aluminum, as you might guess. They are perforated to keep out debris and to allow the rain to pass through the gutter system. They lay flat on the gutter, but may require some maintenance if huge amounts of debris fall from the trees and the wind is unable to reach them. However, they are guaranteed not to overflow or to cause inside-the-gutter clogs. Check them out on the internet.

The type that covers the entire gutter but has holes is best. That way nothing big enough can get in to clog the cutters. If you go with the other gutter covers, you end up getting clogs and it's even harder to clean out your gutters than it is now because you have to disassemble the entire gutter cover to clean the gutter.

An example of the types to avoid and the type to get is in a google image search. The type to get with the holes is in the second row, second picture from the left.

http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=gutter%20covers&sa=N&tab=wi

Thanks so much for the responses.

I had done quite a bit of research but had been looking for opinions from somebody who actually had them.

I had heard to avoid the kind that fits over the gutters and looks like a mesh. Leaf Relief with it's holes certainly does look more efficient.

Hopefully I will find a local dealer/installer and have it done before the fall!

We bought ours at Lowes, plastic with holes (don't know the brand name). We bought a couple and installed them...after the first rain we knew they would work (BTW we live in the woods and the oaks leaves...) and they've been working great since. They are very easy to install. The ones we bought also had a screening under the plastic.

Was reading through the postings and came across this,perhaps too late for Naturenut.
Had the same problem,too high on a ladder,too many trees and acorns.
Got a Gutter Helmet,not a DIY thing.(I built the house and everything in it,so skills aren't the issue).They guarantee no clogs or they come and address the problems,including damage (probably why they do the install).
Anyway,six years now,no problems.My neighbors have some of the prior mentioned products-the mesh thing,and the bars,not hassle free though they do cut down on ladder time.

Supposed to be heavy rains tonight, but that's okay, 'cause I just got my gutter guards installed today! Woo-hoo!

I went with Leaf Relief. I looked at prices for some of the others. With the gutter footage, the price would have been comparable to buying a used pickup truck.

The guy came out to give me a price, and said he could do the install immediately if I wanted, since his schedule was free.

They also come with a 10 year warranty, including damage to your house if they fail.

I hope this is the end of my ladder days!

How did the gutters do?

And did you ever think you'd be this excited about new gutters??

I just found a site online, www.thegutterbrush.com. You buy these large brushes that you just sit in your gutters. Leaves may get caught, but they just eventually die or blow away - rain still flows into the gutter. I'm thinking of trying it. It's pretty cheap and sounds like an obvious solution. And they have a great warranty, plus you can do it yourself. Has anyone heard about this??

The gutters are doing terrific!
Oh, I knew I'd be this excited. Every time I climbed the ladder, it would knock against the gutter because I'd be shaking so bad (yes, I have terrible acrophobia). And I'd always think to myself how easy it would be with the guards in place.
Since we were messing with the dish and antenna yesterday, I had occasion to climb the short ladder from the upper deck just to take a peek. Sure enough, the leaves just blow right off of the guards.
I should have done this years ago!

Lindasue,
This is the first I've heard about Gutter Brush. To be honest, it does look pretty good! But I get a LOT of leaves, and I'd be afraid that smaller particles and leaves would build up around the brushes into a layer capable of holding larger leaves, eventually clogging.

I installed Leaf Relief after research, so this is my first autumn with them, and so far, so good. I will haul out the ladder and just sight-check the tops of the gutters in a couple of weeks.

I live near a lot of oaks and Virginia pines, and we have our share of spring pollen. I need to put some sort of gutter guard on my parents' house in the woods in North Carolina, and I mentioned I wanted Leaf Relief put on. The contractor said that in their area, the ones with small holes and/or mesh get complely clogged with pollen in the spring, and it becomes a hard surface. He recommended a product like Gutta Guard as the solid top runs the water over and the bullnose edge works on the surface tension principle to guide the water into the gutter. So, I am trying to verify whether this pollen statement is true, and what other solid surface leaf guards will work.

Hey Tightz7VA,

How are those leaf relief guards doing? Are they yet free of debris? Have you had to do any maintenance on them?

Heather and anyone else
I have the gutter brushes. Work fine I guess I installed them myself fine for leaves. But if you have dirty maple nearby watch out
BUT BUT I should post a pic of the DANG WHIRLbirds caught in them, millions.
I put down 5 tarps and pull out and shake and hit them into garbage cans. Still I have to get on a ladder. Im too old for this. then reinstall
Now I do admit that the cursed maple seedlings will die when the rainy season is gone But in meantime
Im seriously contemplating installing and buying Drain Sleeves over them But I bet the mesh fabric wont hold up to UV ???? Or sewing slleves from lanscape fabric myself
Any thought ????
Thanks all
Jean

My DH had some flat gutter guards with slots installed years ago. They were defeated by pine needles and maple seeds. Even worse, chipmunks or squirrels would go under them to get the maple seeds and started chewing on the guards and even, I suspect, the gutters themselves.

Luckily, there is a man in the area who does a gutter cleaning circuit, and we are on his route now.

Last December I had Gutter Helmet installed on my 2nd floor gutter, because they have that Lifetime Warranty of never needing again to remove leaves. After 6 months it started to overflow. So I climbed up yesterday and found no cleanout feature, but with a wire could remove a plug which had formed in the opening to the downspout from some leaves and needles, all after 6 months, not even during Fall.

Has anyone else with Gutter Helmet had such a problem, and how did you fix that? I was told by the installer that they will not install strainers ahead of the downspout, is that true? How will they then avoid that downspouts get plugged up?
Thanks!

I live in Northern Virginia and had GuttaGuard installed about 18 months ago. I wanted to wait a while to experience different weather conditions and seasons before putting anything on the web. I did a lot or research and met with several companies trying to sort through the competing claims, and in many cases, the very high estimates -- as high as $30/foot. This is an industry that is prone to extravagant claims, false promises, false information about competitors and wildly divergent pricing. Have you ever watched "Tin Men"?

I am very glad I chose GuttaGuard. It's relatively inexpensive (I think I ended up at $7/ft, installed) and has performed flawlessly, despite some very heavy rains in this region resulting from thunderstorms and dissipating hurricane weather systems. GuttaGuard is a solid (as opposed to mesh or screen) product, so I was confident it would keep debris out of the gutters. My remaining concerns were durability and the ability to handle heavy rains without overflow. I can now say with confidence that heavy rains are simply not an issue for GuttaGuard.

One last point: I have no relationship whatsoever with GuttaGuard. As you do your research, beware of shills and people who may have been paid for endorsements. It's really a creepy industry because it prays on fear (of flooding/rain damage/falling) and seems to be targeted at older homeowners who can no longer deal with their gutters.

Good luck, Alex