This article will examine different leaf protectors in detail in a head-to-head review of perforated vs micro mesh gutter guards: Which is better?
We have been testing gutter guards on my garage since March of 2020. In that time, we have looked at more than 20 different gutter protection systems ranging from simple perforated aluminum panels with holes and slots to expensive, extruded aluminum micro mesh gutter guards.
We have determined that the less expensive perforated aluminum gutter guards may be just as effective at keeping debris out of your gutters as the fancier micro mesh leaf guards that often sell for twice the price. But there are caveats that are worth exploring.
Gutter Guards Testing Environment
To put this into perspective, each leaf guard has been tested for about a year, side-by-side, in a pretty rigorous environment.
We’re not dropping leaves on the rooftop and blowing them off with a leaf blower. We’re not spraying the gutter guards with a water hose. We’re letting Mother Nature do her thing, over an extended period of time, and documenting it along the way.
Two Eco-systems on One Garage
During the 2nd year, we tested several perforated aluminum gutter guards on the north side of the garage. What I gleaned between the first and second year of the competition was that the north side of the garage was a more extreme environment than the south side of the garage. It seems kind of odd since the two sides are are only 24-feet apart from each other, but the performance difference was marked.
Perforated Gutter Guards that We’re Testing
I selected three perforated aluminum gutter guards to test in Year 2. This included Gutter Rx, Shur-Flo and Englert’s MicroGuard. We’ve also been keeping an eye on Leaf Relief, which was installed on another run of gutter elsewhere on the house, but it wasn’t part of our side-by-side test.
Gutter Rx and Shur Flo are very similar in design. Both are flat panels with rolling bends. Both have similar sized holes, and both are popular with installers because they’re readily available at gutter supply wholesalers.
Englert’s MicroGuard is a different version of the same concept. It also has holes notched out of a panel, but the panel is designed to rest on top of your gutter hangers, giving it a built-in slope. Instead of being punched with 1/8th inch holes, it has hundreds of much smaller holes that give it more of a screen appearance.
We have never seen MicroGuard available at a distributor, so it may be only available from Englert or directly through its LeafGuard dealer network.
Nonetheless, we set up each panel side-by-side on the north side of the garage and put them through their paces over the course of 1-year.
Shur Flo is a perforated aluminum gutter guard that installs within the gutter. It screws to the front lip and fascia board. It has a wavy surface and holes that are roughly 1/8th of an inch in diameter.
It looks similar to Gutter Rx and comes in a mill (silver) finish. It fits 5″ and 6-inch gutters, and is available from gutter wholesalers.
Gutter Rx is a perforated aluminum gutter guard panel that has a wavy surface and 1/8th inch holes across the panel. It is designed to sit flat in the gutter, but can be installed with a forward slope to help better shed leaves and debris off its surface.
Gutter Rx is available with professional installation and directly from us if you want to do-it-yourself.
Gutter Rx fits 5″, 6″ and 7-inch gutters and is available in white and bronze colors.
Englert MicroGuard is an aluminum gutter screen that has hundreds of closely spaced holes punched in the panel. It differs from Gutter Rx and Shur Flo in that is installs on top of the gutter hangers in the gutters. In other words, it screws to the front lip like the other leaf guards, but it rests loosely at the back side where a downward flange rests on top of the gutter hangers.
Englert is available from LeafGuard dealers and gutter who installers that focus on installing Micro Guard. Its availability is not as widespread as Gutter Rx, Shur Flo and Leaf Relief.
Micro Mesh Gutter Guards that We’ve Tested
During the same period, LeafFilter, which had been part of our 1st year test remained in place on the north side of the garage. While LeafFilter had done an admirable job absorbing water, it did poorly shedding debris from its surface. Since it is the most heavily advertised gutter guard on the market, we decided to make it part of our “long-term test,” pitting it against MasterShield, the 2021 winner, and all future contestants.
The north side gutters now included micro mesh and perforated aluminum gutter guards. It was a great opportunity to see how the systems compared to each other in a true side-by-side competition.
Because we had been reporting on LeafFilter for a year, and the new perforated gutter guards from Gutter Rx, Shur Flo and Englert were installed within the gutter — just like LeafFilter — we expected and got similar results.
Two Styles of Gutter Guards Produce Similar Results
What surprised us was even though the surfaces of the perforated guards eventually filled with leaves and debris, all three did an admirable job absorbing water. In fact, we saw a precipitous decline in LeafFilter’s ability to absorb water during its second year. While the tops of the gutter guards looked similar — covered with leaves, seed pods and pine needles — it was difficult to tell one from the next without a closeup view.
Perforated Leaf Guards Outperformed Micro Mesh during Water Tests
Each of the perforated aluminum gutter guards outperformed LeafFilter during the critical water tests. Now what’s interesting is that LeafFilter absorbed noticeably more water during the first year than the second.
The obvious difference is that LeafFilter had been installed since March 2020 whereas the three perforated aluminum gutter guards were installed about a year later.
Did the benefit of time help the perforated gutter covers perform better during the rain events than LeafFilter, which has been installed for a year longer?
It’s hard to say, but the point of this article is that if you are comparing micro mesh gutter guards and less expensive perforated aluminum gutter guards that install within the gutter, then you may not see much of a performance difference between the two styles of systems.
Since they’re all prone to collecting leaves, sticks and other debris on top of the gutters because they sit flat or relatively flat inside the gutter, and they all take in a similar amount of water, then you may be able to save hundreds or thousands of dollars by installing perforated panels instead of micro mesh gutter guards.
LeafFilter: the Advertising Heavyweight is the Performance Lightweight
LeafFilter was sued for claims that their gutter guards didn’t shed leaves and debris from the tops of the screens surface. Our tests validate homeowners’ findings. Watching the product in the “wild” clearly shows that LeafFilter’s claims about debris not sitting on the screen was untrue. LeafFilter recently settled the class-action lawsuit for $5.2 million and is offering current customers up to 3 gutter cleanings free of charge.
At least with the perforated panels, nobody is claiming that the gutter protectors will shed debris 100% of the time. And the more treed your environment, the more likely you are to experience debris collection issues with guards that install within your gutters. In other words, if your environment is tough and you don’t mind cleaning off the tops of your gutter covers once in a while, the cheaper perforated panels may be all you need.
If you want to retire from gutter cleaning altogether, then we recommend gutter guards that angle with your roof, which typically means the gutter guards will install under the first course of shingles. And don’t worry, installing gutter guards under your shingles will NOT void shingle warranties.
Based on our recent gutter guards tests, you can expect similar performance from Gutter Rx and Shur-Flo perforated aluminum panels. While there are differences, they’re more alike than different, with Gutter Rx eking out a win absorbing the most water of the three perforated aluminum gutter guards we tested in 2022.
Perforated Leaf Screens Performed on Par with Micro Mesh Gutter Guards
The big takeaway is that Gutter Rx performed as well as micro mesh gutter guards offered by LeafFilter, Valor and Armour Guard, which is sold by All American Gutter Protection in several states.
While we’ve heard of Gutter Rx being installed for as little as $8/ft by some contractors, it’s more common to see it sold for $10-15/ft. By contrast, we hear the going rate for LeafFilter is $42/ft or more. Valor and Armour Guard are regularly peddled in the $30/ft range.
While you can likely get a “deal” on any of these micro mesh gutter guard systems, simply by saying “no” to whatever price the sales rep offers at the time of the presentation, you can cut out a lot of haggling and headache by picking one of the perforated aluminum gutter guards and expect similar performance at a fraction of the price.
Case Study: LeafFilter vs Gutter Rx
A homeowner reached out to us looking for gutter guards on the rear of his home. He has a 43-foot run along the back of his house. He said that when the gutters clog with leaves, he gets water in his basement. If his gutters are clean, then he has no issues. He is getting ready to sell his house, and needs to fix the basement flooding issue.
LeafFilter quoted him $3,500 for 44-feet of its plastic and stainless micro mesh gutter guard. For this job, LeafFilter cost $79.55 per foot. We quoted $572 for Gutter Rx, a perforated aluminum panel, at $13/foot.
Both systems will work similarly. While LeafFilter will keep out more stuff from the gutter, the really small stuff and an occasional bit of slightly larger debris, such as shingle granules and flowers from nearby Maple trees, won't matter because that debris will wash through the gutters with no issue.
His issue is that when leaves clog his gutters, he gets water in his basement. He said that he stays up at night if he doesn't hear water draining through his downspouts when it's raining outside. And, having recently gone through knee surgery, he's in no position to deal with this issue any longer.
Both gutter guards will work. Gutter Rx just happens to cost $2,928 less than LeafFilter!
Different Designs + Same Installation Method = Similar Results
Our rationale is simple, Gutter Rx, LeafFilter, Valor and Armour Guard are all designed to install within the gutters. There’s a limit to each product’s forward slope because the rise between the gutter and roofline is finite. While you can achieve some forward slope, the angle is going to be the same whether you’re installing a perforated panel or micro mesh gutter guard. Because they all are sitting relatively flat inside the gutter, it means that they will be more “shelf-like,” allowing leaves and debris to collect on top of the gutter guards’ surface.
If you live in an area where trees are overhanging your house, this can be a real problem, and it’ll be something that you’ll be responsible for maintaining, as no gutter guard warranty covers material building up on top of a gutter guards surface.
If trees are at some distance from your home, where it’s more of a “blow-over” situation, then selecting a perforated gutter guard may be all you need. In this case, you’re simply lessening the odds of having to deal with random leaves clogging your downspouts, whereas the home with trees overhanging it has a bigger debris problem.
Installation Method Largely Determines Performance
But in either case, if a micro mesh gutter guard installs the same way as a perforated gutter guard panel, then they’re both susceptible to leaves, debris and twigs settling down on top of the surface. The shelf creates a perfect place for tree debris to accumulate. If it accumulates rather than blowing off the surface, then you’re going to have to maintain the gutter guards by occasionally blowing or sweeping off the gutter guards surface.
At least at that point, you won’t have to dig gunk out of your gutters, saving you time and ensuring that water can still get into and drain from your gutters and away from your home’s foundation.
Perforated vs Micro Mesh Gutter Guards: Who wins?
Micro mesh gutter guards have taken over the market as the most popular offering of the last decade, but if you’re looking for gutter covers that install within the gutters, it’s worth considering the less expensive perforated aluminum gutter guards from the likes of Gutter Rx that will offer similar performance for about one-half the cost of micro mesh gutter guards.
