home + garden

For the past several years, I have taken up the cause of gutter guards.

After trying and rejecting the aluminum mesh inserts, foam inserts and the Gutter Drainer plastic system available at the State Fair, I settled on the Sheerflow system available at Menards. The 4-foot sections in brown or white have a two-layer screen system with a fine mesh facing up that keeps out leaves and helicopter seeds from sticking in the holes. When on sale, the Sheerflow screens are only about $1.50 per linear foot. That's a huge savings compared with the $20 per linear foot that professionally installed surface-tension systems cost.

But the inexpensive Sheerflows are not without their detractors. A couple of readers who installed them say they worsened an ice dam problem. Several readers said water flows over the screens during a heavy rain. One reader said the screens, which were installed in a gutter section over a sidewalk, created an ice patch from melting ice in the winter. I haven't found any of the concerns to be an issue at my house, but if you install the Sheerflows, you might want to try a short test section first.

In its September issue, Consumer Reports tested professionally installed and do-it-yourself systems. LeafFilter, Gutter Topper and LeafGuard were rated the highest and given a "recommended" check mark. The Sheerflow screens were not tested, but two single-layer screens by Amerimax were check-rated for quality and price (30 cents per linear foot). The plastic mesh on the Amerimax guards is an improvement over aluminum, which easily becomes misshapen, but it's surprising that Consumer Reports didn't downgrade it for a buildup of leaves or helicopters. The screen holes are too large to prevent that.

The magazine's top-rated homeowner-installed product is Gutterglove Pro. At $9 per linear foot, it's considerably more expensive than the Sheerflows. Rather than the plastic-fiberglass construction of the Sheerflows, Gutterglove is made of aluminum with a surgical-grade stainless-steel mesh on top. Scott Helmbrecht, co-owner of Larson Builders in Hutchinson, Minn. (1-800-247-2041, www.larsonbuilders.com/gutter-leaf-protection), the nearest dealership, said the product is usually professionally installed for $16 per linear foot for labor and materials. In four years selling the product, the company has not had any complaints about the system, Helmbrecht said.

The company also sells Gutterglove uninstalled. (The warranty is still valid for do-it-yourselfers.) The product can be installed by someone with average to above-average carpentry skills. To install, a fin slips under the roof line edge and the front lip screws into the top face of the gutter. This is more labor-intensive than the Sheerflows, which clip on to the front of the gutter.

I've had the Sheerflows in my gutters for several years and they're holding up fine, but if you want a similar product made of longer-lasting materials, consider Gutterglove.

John Ewoldt • 612-673-7633 or jewoldt@startribune.com. If you spot a deal, share it at www.startribune.com/blogs/dealspotter.