Gutter guards help keep gutters clean and free from debris. They prevent blockages and reduce your maintenance work.
However, these guards also help keep pests away from your home. How do they do this?
1. Guards Reduce Standing Water
Water should flow constantly through a guttering system. When it rains, the water should run through your gutters and into your downspouts.
However, this process doesn't always work perfectly if you have open gutters. If dirt or leaves get stuck in a gutter, then water can build up around the blockage. You could have some standing water left in the area that doesn't drain away.
Pests are attracted to this water. For example, some animals and birds will use standing water as a convenient drinking source; some insects will breed around it. Your gutters could become home to a variety of pests.
If you install gutter guards, then you reduce the amount of standing water in your system. These guards help prevent dirt and debris from collecting in gutters so that water flows freely without getting stuck.
If you remove standing water, then you remove drinking water and breeding sites. Pests are less likely to settle in your guttering.
2. Guards Block Nests
Some pests, such as birds and squirrels, build nests in open gutters. They get easy access to water. They also build nests with leaves and sticks that gather in these spaces.
Any nest will block a gutter and stop it from working. You'll have to remove nests and the creatures that live in them.
Gutter guards block off these spaces. While they still allow water to run through your system, they don't leave room for nests. Pests won't try to nest in your guttering.
3. Guards Protect Roofs and Attics
Some pests won't settle in gutters; however, they might use them as a stepping-stone into other parts of your home. For example, birds and rodents stand in gutters and find weak spots, such as tiny holes and cracks on and under your roof tiles. They make these spots bigger to get under your roof or inside your home.
A determined animal can damage your roof tiles. If they set up home in your roof space or attic, then they can cause some internal damage.
Gutter guards make it harder for pests to see and access these weak spots. Your gutters will have no appeal to pests.
For more information about gutter guards, contact a local company.
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