Leafy deciduous trees are a wonderful feature of any home. Not only do they look great, but the dense foliage does a brilliant job at shading a home from scorching summer heat. The big downside of these magnificent trees is the inevitable shedding of leaves throughout autumn and early winter.
The sheer volume of leaves often results in an overwhelming carpeted mass across the entire garden. But there is another part of your home where leaves are just as pervasive, almost invisible, and have a sinister impact on your home.
A few leaves on the roof may be all you see from the ground, but your gutters may be packed with twigs and leaf litter. Just a light autumn shower is enough to bind the leaves together, accelerating the already natural decomposition process. Before long, you have a bulky organic mass that severely restricts the capacity of your gutters to carry water during even moderate winter rain. The result – overflowing gutters that can flood ceilings, damage roof timbers, and run down internal walls causing serious structural damage.
Valley lines on your roof are also highly prone to trapping leaves and causing water to divert and overflow onto the ceiling below, damaging not only the ceiling, but flooding insulation, electrical wiring and light fittings.
Safety first – Don’t become a statistic
For generations, many homeowners have braved an annual climb up the ladder to clear leaves from gutters, but as research has shown, injuries and even death have been steadily rising due to falls from ladders.
Research published in the Australian Medical Journal has shown that the number one cause of hospital admissions due to falls at home from a height greater than one metre for men over 50, is falling off a ladder. Other studies have shown that trauma from ladder falls at home effect men and woman of any age.
A permanent solution that’s safe and saves you money
Of course, there is always the option of calling in a professional gutter cleaner, but this is a costly and very short term fix to an ongoing problem that quickly adds up after just a few visits.
The only real solution to protecting your home from water damage is to keep leaves out of gutters and valley lines altogether. At Utter Gutters, we install a product called Gutter Guard that acts as a permanent barrier to twigs and leaves, giving you year round protection from the risk of blocked gutters.
While there are D.I.Y. options available, most are designed to simply cram into the gutter, which often just adds to the congestion, rather than preventing it.
Gutter Guard will pay for itself over just a few years, and you never have to worry about leaves blocking your gutters again. And as for the ladder, well that can stay in the shed right where it belongs.
If you would like to know more, please feel free to call and chat to one of our experienced roof technicians on 1300 736 773.