The GutterBrush Blog

Cleaning out gutters every year is not on most homeowner’s top ten list of favorite things to do. So end the mess and the hard work and save money with GutterBrush.

GutterBrush is a simple solution to help prevent gutter clogs and reduce the time spent cleaning gutters. Essentially it is a cylinder shaped brush that fills your gutters keeping leaves, pine needles and other debris from clogging your gutters while allowing water to flow through. GutterBrush helps protect your home from damage and extends the life of your gutters.

Now most gutter guard systems such as gutter screens or covers are expensive. They often require modification to your gutters and roof and they tend to be difficult to install.

GutterBrush is affordable and easy to install; saving you time and money. GutterBrush costs significantly less than the competition and is one of the best rain gutter protection systems on the market today. No tools other than a ladder are required. Just clean out your gutters and then slide sections of GutterBrush into your existing gutters.

Proudly made in the USA, GutterBrush is available in 18 and 36 inch lengths in various diameters to fit from small to extra-large gutters. GutterBrush will work with any type of roof surface. To determine what size GutterBrush you will need measure the width of your gutter opening from the back of the gutter to the front of the lip. Then measure the total length of all your home’s gutters.

GutterBrush is backed by a 1 year satisfaction guarantee and a 25 year warranty against manufacturer defects or deterioration.

Put GutterBrush to work in your gutters and take gutter cleaning off your to do list. For more information about GutterBrush ask one of our employees or visit http://www.GutterBrush.com.

View More Videos that Answer Common Questions about GutterBrush.

So how does GutterBrush stack up against the competition? While you may assume that we’re a bit biased since this is the GutterBrush blog…that doesn’t mean we aren’t carefully examining and considering the strengths and weaknesses of our own product as well as our competitors’ products.

What did we find after examining our product as well as the other ones out on the market? Why read a lengthy review when you can watch a helpful video! (You can check out even more helpful videos here)

The word is out: GutterBrush is a no-brainer solution to keeping your gutters clear of leaves, debris, and basically everything except rain water. Our friends over at the radio station WGN in Chicago had us on to talk about why GutterBrush is the best solution for your gutters. Did you know all GutterBrush components are made in the USA? Not everyone can make that claim.

Click here to listen to the WGN interview (.mp3)

It’s officially mosquito season and you know what that means: doomsday news reports about West Nile virus.

West Nile virus is most commonly associated with the Culex mosquito. Hot, dry weather and stagnant water are the two main ingredients that prized by the Culex.  As temperatures rise, we usually begin to see our first human cases in July or August.

“Now is a good time to get out and inspect your yard for items such as old tires and clogged gutters, where stagnant water can accumulate. These are the types of areas that provide the ideal breeding spots for the Culex mosquito,” said Paul Kuehnert, executive director of the Kane County Health Department. “By identifying problem areas now, you will be able to protect yourself later in the summer.”

Last year, five cases were reported in people in Kane County. In 2009, an unusually mild summer with cool temperatures, there were no human cases of West Nile Virus reported in Kane County. There were three cases of the virus reported in 2008. In 2007 there were 13, four in 2006, 17 in 2005, two in 2004, zero in 2003 and nine in 2002.

West Nile virus is transmitted through the bite of a mosquito that has picked up the virus by feeding on an infected bird. Most people with the virus have no clinical symptoms of illness, but some may become ill three to 14 days after the bite of an infected mosquito.

Only about two persons out of 10 who are bitten by an infected mosquito will experience any illness. Illness from West Nile is usually mild and includes fever, headache and body aches, but serious illness, such as encephalitis and meningitis, and death are possible. Persons older than 50 have the highest risk of severe disease.

The best way to prevent West Nile disease or any other mosquito-borne illness is to reduce the number of mosquitoes around your home and to take personal precautions to avoid mosquito bites. Precautions include:

• Avoid being outdoors when mosquitoes are most active, especially between dusk and dawn. Use prevention methods whenever mosquitoes are present.
• When outdoors, wear shoes and socks, long pants and a long-sleeved shirt, and apply insect repellent that includes DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus according to label instructions. Consult a physician before using repellents on infants.
• Make sure doors and windows have tight-fitting screens. Repair or replace screens that have tears or other openings. Try to keep doors and windows shut, especially at night.
• Change water in birdbaths weekly. Properly maintain wading pools and stock ornamental ponds with fish. Cover rain barrels with 16-mesh wire screen. In communities where there are organized mosquito control programs, contact your municipal government to report areas of stagnant water in roadside ditches, flooded yards and similar locations that may produce mosquitoes.

Additional information about West Nile virus can be found on the Kane County Health Department’s website, the Illinois Department of Public Health’s website. People also can call the IDPH West Nile Virus Hotline at 866-369-9710 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Source: Patch

There’s a little-known feature of GutterBrush that might just save your roof from being damaged during next Winter. What is it, you ask?

GutterBrush has actually been reported as being able to absorb the heat of the sun and actually help melt ice dams before they turn into dangerous problems. So what is an ice dam?

Ice dams are typically the result of improper insulation resulting in a “warm roof.” Snow melts on the roof and water trickles down near the rain gutter/eave area where it freezes again and builds up as a block of ice.

GutterBrush Gutter Guard will have no effect on this process, but when the sun comes out, the black GutterBrush Gutter Guard bristles absorb heat and have been reported to promote quicker melting of any ice build up.

GutterBrush can also be used to protect your rain gutters safely with gutter and roof heating cables.

Plus by using Gutterbrush your gutters wont get clogged with debris that causes unprotected gutters to pool with rain water and freeze.

We understand that choosing a good contractor for your project may not be an easy decision to make. To help you in the process of choosing a professional landscaping contractor, or for that matter, any type of contractor, we thought that we could offer some helpful advice. Below are some factors to consider when choosing a contractor.

This is the advice given most often to consumers, “Make sure your contractor is licensed, bonded, and insured.” In short, if there are bonding or insurance requirements, these need to be fulfilled in order to get licensed. So, the real question should be, “Are you a licensed contractor?

In order to obtain a contractors license in most states, they must (1) meet the experience requirement for each classification; (2) have an owner or qualifying party pass two written exams, one for business and the other for the skill; (3) Provide proof of Workers’ Compensation Insurance and tax licenses from the Dept. of Revenue for state transaction privilege tax; (4) Provide proof of Tax liability bond, and Licenses bond; (5) pay a license fee and residential contractors must contribute to the Contractors’ Recovery Fund.

The other piece of advice given most often to consumers is: ”Get several bids so you can compare price.” Contractors all understand how important price is to your decision making. It is important you understand the pitfall of only considering price when there are so many other factors that affect you decision. In order for you to be able to compare price, all the bids have to be for the same project, the same products, the same specifications, and the same quality of work. Most contractors will try very hard to give you what you want at the price you want to pay. They will even find cheap products and inexpensive subcontractors to help you meet your budget. Be careful what you ask for and how you ask for it. Remember that the bid is only the starting point in your negotiations with the contractor and not necessarily the bottom line.

Keep in mind that the lowest bid may not necessarily be the best bid, and that an unusually low bid may be cause for alarm. In this case, the contractor may not fully understand the scope of work; may be inexperienced and is underestimating the amount of labor and materials required: or may be planning to cut corners by using inferior materials, low-paid, inexperienced workers, or not following local building codes. You could end up paying to repair or replace work much sooner than if your project was done right the first time with qualified workers and quality materials.

A good contractor will not put a dollar amount on the back of a business card and hand it to you. A contractor should prepare a complete Proposal that refers to the scope of work. It should be broken down in different areas with the price clearly spelled out and with specific brands and models spelled out. A contractor should help you establish a budget that you are comfortable with. The best contractor will listen to you and be respectful of your budget. They should share design ideas with you about your project and help you understand how your decisions and different materials affect the cost. Finally beware of contractors who refuse to give a written estimate or contract. Verbal statements never hold up in court.

A contractor’s reputation is one of his most valuable assets. A good contractor is very willing to share his reputation with his future clients. A reputation is something that sticks with a contractor for years. It takes years of reliable work, many satisfied customers, and enduring relationships with suppliers to build up a good reputation. The best contractor has many references, has testimonials from past customers who had projects like yours, and exhibits a history of pleasing his customers and completing jobs in a satisfactory manner.

The success of a project can hinge on the communication skills of all the people involved in the project. The good contractor understands the value and importance of clear communication. They should value your questions and practices clear communication. Furthermore, the good contractor makes sure there are no misunderstandings, asks for feedback on a regular basis.

We hope that we have helped you better understand all of the common advice given to consumers and then share all of the other elements that will help ensure a successful project.

This absurd video is both entertaining and educational. A rarity to be sure.

In the below video, Al discusses the 3 universal truths that apply to growing grass and not having it turn into brown icky mush. I don’t want to spoil these helpful truths for you so you’re just going to have to watch this rather ridiculous video and laugh / learn along with it!

Enjoy!

International World Water Day is held annually on 22 March as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources.

An international day to celebrate freshwater was recommended at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). The United Nations General Assembly responded by designating 22 March 1993 as the first World Water Day.

For more information about World Water Day visit http://www.worldwaterday2011.org/

We’ve heard back from quite a few GutterBrush customers that incorporate GutterBrush into their water re-use system. These customer use rain barrels to collect water their roof to be re-used in gardening and etc. It turns out that GutterBrush makes the process much easier by keeps leaves and debris out of the gutter and therefore out of their rain barrels.

We thank those customers for letting us know about their efforts to make a difference in our world and how our product assisted them in doing it.

Please enter your comments here on how you conserve or reuse water.

photo by Stephen Dunn, The Hartford Courant

We want your snow pictures! In exchange for your generous effort, we’ll enter you into our giveaway. No strings attached, none of that nonsense. Here’s how to take part:

What Kind of Picture?

We want to see how much snow you have in your area! Just send us a photo of your house, neighborhood, pet (see picture on right of my dog), kids, or anything.

If you don’t have any snow in your area, feel free to send us your favorite photo from your neck of the woods. For example, if you live in Florida (the one state that didn’t get snow this week so far), send us a picture of the beach or a thermometer showing the above-freezing temperature!

How To Send In The Picture

It’s easy! Just post the picture to our Facebook Wall here! We’ll reach out to you so we can find out where to send your prize if your name is drawn. Speaking of which…

The Prize

If you send us a snow pic, we’ll enter you to win 12 feet (yes, feet!) of Gutterbrush for free! No strings attached.

We’ll draw the winner at random at noon on Monday January 17th so send your picture into our Facebook page by then!

Hope everyone stays safe and warm out there!

We’re all about DIY projects at GutterBbrush. In fact, we are going to be featuring some of our favorite DIY projects on this blog in the coming days. First off, we’ll start with what we know: gutters. They’re crucial to your home but are often overlooked. Here’s a quick rundown of why DIY projects (and gutter cleaning) rock:

(1) Climbing a Ladder Can Be Dangerous

A significant number of people fall from ladders every year. Serious back, head, neck, bone, and soft tissue injuries are often the result of those falls. A significant number of people fall from ladders every year. The GutterBrush simple gutter guard minimizes your need for climbing a ladder in the first place and thusly greatly reduces the chances of suffering any ladder related injuries.

(2) Helps Keep Water Flowing Through Your Gutters

When your gutters become clogged with leaves, they can actually do more damage than not having gutters at all. With The GutterBrush simple gutter guard, normal weather patterns and the principles of gravity and surface tension cause leaves and debris to drift to the ground. Unlike gutter protection appliances like gutter helmets, gutter guards, and leaf guards rainwater filters through the GutterBrush and continues to flow freely into your gutter and downspouts.

(3) Helps Prevent Frozen Gutters

During cold weather standing water in gutters can freeze into heavy beams of ice. Gutters are sometimes damaged because most are not built to sustain that much weight. Also, during the day, the ice begins to melt, thus soaking the fascia. At night, the water refreezes and pushes the fascia outward. The GutterBrush simple gutter guard keeps water flowing away from the house and can prevent ice from forming in the first place.

(4) Helps Stop Wood from Rotting

Standing water is one of a home owner’s biggest challenges. If gutters do not function properly because they are frozen or full of debris, the soffit and fascia boards will absorb rainwater and start to rot causing the need for very expensive repairs. The GutterBrush simple gutter guard prevents this from happening by maintaining an unimpeded flow of water through the gutter channel and out the downspout.

(5) Avoid the Expense & Liability of Hired Help

Cleaning gutters on a ladder is expensive and dangerous for anyone. Hiring someone to do the job may make you liable for any injuries they receive. Also, other gutter protection systems such as gutter guards, gutter helmets, and leaf guards are much more costly than the GutterBrush simple gutter guard and require professional installation. That’s just one more thing using the GutterBrush simple gutter guard can help you avoid encountering.

(6) Helps Keep Your Landscaping Beautiful

Clogged and saturated gutters can threaten your expensive landscaping. Rain has nowhere to flow except off of the roof and onto plant life below. An uncontrolled flow of water will drown plants, erode soil, and create increased expenses for you over the life of owning your property. While leaf guards, gutter helmets, and gutter guards can become clogged with leaves and debris The GutterBrush simple gutter guard maintains an unimpeded flow of water through the gutter channel and out the downspout without damaging landscaping or eroding soil.

(7) Helps With Pest Control

Most clogged gutters are generally damp, dark places filled with leaves and debris. This is one type of environment insects and several types of mice seek out and often find entry points into a house through gaps in soffit and fascia boards. Just like gutter protection appliances such as leaf guards, gutter helmets, and gutter guards, the GutterBrush simple gutter guard prevents this situation from occurring.

(8) Helps Protect Your Foundations

One of the key contributing factors to the stability of a house depends on the ability of the soil to absorb rain. Builders construct homes to stand up to soil conditions assuming that drainage systems carry water away from the home. When gutters and gutter protection appliances like leaf guards, gutter helmets, and gutter guards fail, water moves toward the foundation. When soil becomes saturated, leaks can occur, and cause the foundation to shift or crack causing both a dangerous and costly situation. The GutterBrush simple gutter guard can prevent this from happening by maintaining an unimpeded flow of water through the gutter channel, out the downspout and away from the foundation.

(9) Helps to Prevent Mold and Mildew in Attics and Crawl Spaces

Attics and crawl spaces are very similar to gutters. They are awkward to clean or work on. If water is kept away from these places there is no worry about fixing what years of mold and mildew have damaged. The GutterBrush simple gutter guard can prevent costly mold and mildew from developing by maintaining an unimpeded flow of water through the gutter channel and out the downspout.

(10) One Less Thing to Worry About

Life is filled with many things to worry about but your gutter protection system need not be among them. Stop stressing about a potential failure of your gutter protection system and increase the enjoyment of your home. The GutterBrush simple gutter guard is a guaranteed way to stop stressing about this facet of your house so you can increase the enjoyment of your home.