Perforated Aluminum Gutter Guards Installation Near You in OH, MI, PA, IN, KY, TN

Perforated Aluminum Gutter Guards

These metal gutter covers come with smooth or wavy surfaces with punched holes to allow rainwater through. Ideal for blocking large flat leaves from deciduous trees, but generally unsuitable for smaller debris such as pine needles, locust flowers or oak tassels.

Perforated aluminum gutter guards are made from flat sheets of aluminum that are formed into shape by a roll forming machine. Most roll-formed aluminum gutter guards have a simple profile that is either has a smooth or wavy surface. A series of holes, slots or louvres are perforated into the panels so water can flow through the cover openings into the gutter. Depending on the product brand, holes, slots and louvres vary in diameter, size and frequency.

There are several brands of perforated aluminum gutter guards on the market:

Leaf Relief
ShurFlo
Gutter Rx

Leaf Relief Gutter Guard

Perhaps the most well known brand is Leaf Relief. Leaf Relief is a flat panel that has a vertical lip on the leading edge and a rubber gasket on the rear edge of the panel. It has hundreds of tiny holes on the panel. The holes are so small that there is considerably more solid surface area on the panels than holes. This is problematic because a decent water flow off the roof can cause the water to back-up on the panels and potentially overflow. Leaf Relief has to sit flat inside the gutter in order to work properly. Because it has a rubber gasket on the rear edge of the panel, there is no way to affix the gutter guard at a forward angle against the fascia board.

Leaf Relief Gutter Guard (for new gutters)

There is another version of Leaf Relief that is designed to install with new gutters. Instead of a rubber gasket at the rear of the panel, the metal extends upward and downward with a small space in the middle, creating a sleeve. When installing new gutters, the panel hooks to the inside front lip of the gutter and slips over the back edge of the gutter. The back edge of the gutter is screwed into the fascia board with a standard 1.5” screw.

Is Leaf Relief a Bad Choice?

The net effect of installing the Leaf Relief gutter guard over the new gutters is that it eliminates the need for internal hidden hangers to hold gutters into place. This is okay as long as the gutters never need to be serviced. However, if Leaf Relief doesn’t live up to its performance claims, and you decide to replace it with another gutter guard, then all the gutters must be uninstalled from the house. Once the gutters have been removed, the gutter covers will also have to be removed, new hidden hangers added, gutters reinstalled, and then new gutter guards installed after the gutters have been rehung. This is a time consuming and expensive proposition that could detrimentally affect the performance of your gutters if not fixed properly.

ShurFlo Gutter Guards

Another popular perforated aluminum gutter guard is ShurFlo. It has a tall vertical step at the leading edge of the panel that secures to the front lip of the gutter and a high upward flange on the rear edge of the panel. Like Leaf Relief, ShurFlo panels must sit flat inside the gutter. While the front and rear panels should be secured to the gutter lip and fascia board to prevent them from dislodging, the fact that it sits flat inside the gutter creates a shelf onto which leaves and debris can build-up and clog the gutters. The vertical “stair step” at the front edge of the panel makes it much more difficult for small debris to blow or wash off the gutter guard surface. The holes in the ShurFlo panel are larger than Leaf Relief, yet the aluminum panel is thin and flimsy.

Gutter Rx - Our Own Brand

We began carrying our own system, Gutter Rx, in 2010. Gutter Rx is a solid performer with few issues. There are several reasons why Gutter Rx is our go-to perforated gutter guard:

Gutter Rx is an all-aluminum panel that is durable, long-lasting, and can easily be angled within the gutters and screwed to the fascia board to maintain an optimum forward slope.
The hole sizes in Gutter Rx’s panels are ideal for most rain conditions. The holes are significantly larger than LeafRelief but small enough to keep out most leaves and debris from the gutters.
The rear flange of Gutter Rx can be flattened in certain circumstances to allow installation under the shingles. Installing the rear of the panel under the shingles helps create a consistent forward slope to coax more of the leaves and debris off the gutter cover surface.
Gutter Rx includes a 20-year no-clog manufacturer’s warranty. Because the warranty is between the manufacturer and the homeowner, the manufacturer will pay to have the gutter guards inspected and fixed at its expense.

Cost Effective & Widely Available

Perforated gutter guards have gained popularity because they are readily available at most gutter wholesalers and are among the most cost effective, professionally installed gutter guards.

Unsuitable for Overhanging Trees & Small Plant Debris

Perforated aluminum gutter guard panels are ideally suited for homes that have trees that are not overhanging the house and homes that don’t have an abundance of pine needles, oak tassels or locust flowers in nearby proximity to the gutter openings.