The GutterBrush Blog

Have you already decided to move rather than remodel but you still find yourself thinking abut remodeling anyway to make your house more appealing to would-be buyers, cut the time it takes to sell it and maybe even get more cash in hand when you sell? Well while you’re expanding, why not tuck in a new master bedroom suite above the addition? You’ll get all of your money back when you eventually sell your house, right?

Not so fast. While many home-remodeling projects are a great way to add value to your home, not all of them are ironclad cash-back guarantees. Before you invest a significant amount of your precious home equity into remodeling projects, it’s wise to do a little homework on what kind of payback you can expect for various home projects in your area. A good place to start is the Cost vs. Value report published annually by the National Association of Realtors, or NAR, and Remodeling magazine. The report provides a synopsis of the top projects, the average costs of the projects and their average rate of investment return at resale. It also gives you a city-by-city guide on what various home projects will pay back at resale. Real estate experts caution that these numbers can differ significantly depending on your state, city or even neighborhood. So use these numbers as a starting point, but consider getting the advice of a Realtor and/or remodeling contractor before you commit to a big home project. These experts can familiarize you with remodeling payback figures tailored to your state, city, or town.

Our first suggestion in the list of the top five projects to boost your home’s value for resale is to do an upscale siding (new fiber cement) replacement. Here is what you can expect this project to cost and yield:

Estimated job cost: $10,393 for 1,250 square feet
Average payback: 103.6 percent of cost
National average resale value: $10,771

Siding makes a huge difference in a house’s resale value, because it’s one of the first things you see. It really defines the condition of the home.  If other houses around you have old aluminum or vinyl siding and your siding is nicer and newer, buyers will notice you. With this project, you make your house more attractive — you’re not just improving your insulation value.

Next up on out list is a mid-range bathroom remodel but that will have to wait until the next time we meet here.

GutterBrush Guys, Ltd. began offering their simple, affordable, and effective gutter protection system back in 2004 and continues to grow at a very strong yet responsible pace. GutterBrush Guys Ltd. continues to increase our customer base, retail network, and e-commerce presence. Gutterbrush Guys, Ltd. are now focusing on giving, roofers, contractors, painters, and any home service professional the most complete and comprehensive opportunity available for a very competitively priced and profitable professional grade gutter  protection system.

Visit www.gutterbrush.com for complete gutter protection information, installation instructions, and an informative installation video for the gutter, roofing, and general contractor or home services professional.  GutterBrush Giys, ltd. also encourages you to visit the web presence of the other gutter protection and leaf guard products available on the market today because they are certain that not a single one provides the same level of detail and information that they do. The GutterBrush Guys, Ltd. present the quality, simplicity, and affordable nature of their product in a transparent way so you can see the value of the opprotunity they are presenting to you. They also spell out their warranty, have detailed installation instructions, as well as an abundance of information covering important safety issues surrounding working with gutter protection.

The GutterBrush Guys, Ltd. also are very happy to offer qualified partners a unique and very effective demo unit that clearly shows the consumer the simplicity, effectiveness, and professional grade quality of GutterBrush simple gutter guard.  The GutterBrush Guys, Ltd. have a solid track record of offering a superior gutter protection product and completely believe that current economic challenges makes their product a welcome and profitable addition to any home service professional’s product/service offerings.

Gutter Brush Guys, Ltd. would like to extend an invitation to any home services professional currently offering roofing and/or gutter protection systems to visit the GutterBrush web site at www.gutterbrush.com and consider becoming an authorized GutterBrush partner and/or installer.

Learn more about GutterBrush simple gutter guard and all things gutter related at www.gutterbrush.com

We do not know anybody who likes cleaning rain gutters on their property. It’s time consuming and often, frankly, completely nasty, especially if you do not keep up with it on a somewhat regular basis. If you are like many homeowners and think “I’ll take care of that next weekend”, you could end up with massive clogs in your gutters and downspouts…clogs which will cost hundreds of dollars to repair because you have to call a gutter professional to come out, take down your downspouts, clean them out and put them all back together. Instead of spending all of that time and money, why not just install a gutterbrush gutter guard system?

The original gutterbrush simple gutter guard will save you time and you won’t have to worry about costly clogs in your downspouts. The product looks like a giant pipe cleaning brush and it sits in your rain gutter channel and acts as a barrier for leaves, twigs, seedpods and other debris while still letting water pass through freely and out the downspout.

Installation is simple and fast. The most difficult part is climbing the ladder up to your roof to set the original gutterbrush down inside of it. But that’s it…you’re done! More importantly they are easy to clean if you ever need to do so. All you have to do is climb back up that pesky ladder; pull the brushes out, remove the debris and put them right back into place.

Why spend a bunch of money if you don’t have to? Why spend a bunch of time cleaning something if you don’t have to? The original GutterBrush is very affordable and you can install it yourself in about an hour and a half and it lasts all year (studies have proven they can also keep your gutters from freezing in the winter). Sounds like a win-win situation to me.

Don’t be fooled by imitations that are manufactured outside of the USA using sub standard materials. Insist on the original GutterBrush Simple Gutter Guard!

We’ve had a few days of warm weather here on the East Coast lately and we have been running the ceiling fans in our offices to keep the rooms cool without having to turn on our central air conditioner quite yet. Even though its been relatively mild outside we have a few rooms that get a lot of sun and warm up rather quickly.

While sitting in the office yesterday I commented that even though the fan above me was on medium speed that it didn’t feel as though it was cooling the room very well. It was at that moment that I realized I had forgotten to switch the fan direction from “warming” to “cooling.”

You see, most ceiling fans will go in two directions: clockwise and counter-clockwise. Most ceiling fans sold these days have a small switch right “above” the blades (between the fan blades and the ceiling, on the “stem” of the fan) that control the fan blade blowing direction: right or left. Some fan manuals call these directions “forward” and “reverse” but I can never remember which direction is which. This fan direction switch is a pretty important feature because the ceiling fans will move air differently for each direction. You usually just need to flip the switch on the fan to change direction, but remember to use the same safety methods you used when you were cleaning your ceiling fan.

You can tell which way you fan is blowing by turning it on low and watching which way the blades spin. If the fan blades start moving to the right, then your ceiling fan is blowing clockwise. If the ceiling fan blades start moving to the left then your ceiling fan is blowing counter-clockwise. Simple so far… but which direction do you want for most fans?

Ceiling Fan Spinning Counter-Clockwise: Makes a room cooler by blowing the air downward. When the fan is spinning in a counter-clockwise direction you should feel a cool breeze coming down and around the room.

Ceiling Fan Spinning Clockwise: Makes a room warmer by creating subtle updraft which pushes the warm air near the ceiling down along the walls and into the room. When the fan in spinning in a clockwise direction you should not feel as much of a breeze.

Need to remember on the fly? Here’s a phrase that helps the memory: Counter-Clockwise Cooler (You just need to remember there are three C’s when it comes to ceiling fans!)

Stay cool this summer!

There are many materials available for asphalt driveway maintenance including emulsified liquids, plastic fillers and solid cold-patches. For a complete driveway rejuvenation, you may need all three. Before tackling any maintenance or repair, check your driveway for these conditions:

• Impressions left by car tires after the car has been parked on the drive overnight. This is an indication of poor construction.
• Heaving or tilting during cold weather, or buckling or cracking with the spring thaw. These are signs of poor drainage.

To repair these troubles, you’ll need a new driveway. Fortunately, such problems are not common. More likely problems are minor cracks, crumbling and chuckholes, which are relatively easy to repair. The procedure and materials used depends on whether you’re repairing cracks, filling low spots, patching or seal-coating your driveway. Your local retailer can help you select the products you need for making repairs.

REPAIRING CRACKS

• You should fill any cracks in a blacktop drive as soon as possible to keep water from getting under the slab and causing more serious problems. Cracks that are 1/2″ and wider are filled with asphalt cold-patch, sold in bags and cans. Narrow cracks are treated with crack-filler, which is available in cans, plastic pour bottles and handy caulking cartridges.
• Use a masonry chisel, wire brush or similar tool to dig away chunks of loose and broken material from the crack.
• Sweep out the crack with a stiff-bristled broom. Your shop vacuum will also work well.
• Use a garden hose with a pressure nozzle to clean off all dust. If the area is badly soiled or covered with oil or grease drippings, scrub it with a strong commercial driveway cleaning agent. For a patch to adhere, the crack must be free of all such things. After using a cleaner, rinse the area with water.
• For a deep crack, fill it to within 1/4″ of the top with closed-cell plastic backer rod or sand before applying a patching compound.
• Apply the crack-filler.

FILLING DEPRESSED AREAS

• Depressed areas, sometimes called “birdbaths,” cause water puddles on the driveway. If not too deep–less than an inch–these areas can be filled so they’re even with the surrounding surface. Sweep away all dirt, hose down the area and remove any oil or grease by washing with a detergent or cleaner.
• The surface may be slightly damp when applying the patching material, but make sure there is no standing water.
• To help the new material adhere to the old, prime the area with emulsified liquid asphalt, which is often simply called “driveway coating.”
• Then, use a trowel to spread asphalt cold-patching material into the depression, filling it level with the surrounding surface. Smooth the patch, then tamp it with a metal tamper or a 5′ to 6′ length of 2×8 or 4×4 lumber. Used vertically, the lumber has the surface area and weight for successful tamping.
• Allow your blacktop patch to dry for 24 hours before seal-coating the entire driveway.

PATCHING POTHOLES

• For potholes, first dig out any loose material and dirt down to a solid base. It’s best to undercut the edges slightly to provide a “key” for the patching material (Fig. 6). Make sure the edges of the asphalt around the hole are firm.
• Clean all dust and debris from the hole and surrounding areas.
• If the hole is very deep, fill it to within 4″ of the top with gravel. Tamp this down firmly.
• You don’t have to work with hot-mix patchers as professionals do–cold-mix patching products do an excellent job of repairing driveways. Fluid cold-patches that come in cans may need to be stirred before use. Use a strong stick or a stirring attachment chucked into your electric drill.
• You can prime the repair area by painting it with emulsified asphalt liquid. Priming helps the new material bond to the old. Then apply the cold-patch material, patting it down occasionally with a shovel or trowel to help compact it and prevent air pockets from forming (Fig. 7).
• Put in a 2″ depth of cold-patch and tamp it firmly or roll it with a garden roller. Add more material in 2″ lifts, tamping each lift. The next-to-last lift should fill the hole to within an inch of the top. Tamp it as shown in Fig. 8.
• Now add more patching material, filling the hole and mounding it slightly above the surrounding surface. Tamp it down as firmly as you can. You can tamp it by hand or by repeatedly running your car’s tire over it (Fig. 9).
• Fill in any low areas with more cold-patch mix. Compact it until it’s even with the driveway surface.
• Allow the repaired area to cure for 12 to 36 hours before driving on it, and give it two to five days to cure before seal-coating the entire driveway.

All of this rain gives you an opportunity to give your garden a nice hearty drink without chipping away at your efforts to conserve water and save money. Maybe it is time you consider a rain barrel and begin collecting the runoff from your gutters that would otherwise go to waste and even hurt your landscaping and cause leaking around foundations?

Although any old 55-gallon drum or keg will do, there’s no reason to litter your yard with these unsightly relics. Instead, give your local water department a call because many towns and municipalities now offer water barrels free of charge to local residents in an effort to increase sustainability and decrease public water supply usage. Those that don’t often hold workshops on other ways to conserve water, or offer incentives to citizens willing to secure barrels on their own.

If you are into DIY projects you can even make your own rain collection system  for very short money. Just be sure you correctly position them underneath your gutters’ downspouts to maximize the collection of runoff during the next rainfall. But remember, even if you filter it first, the water you collect is better suited for drenching thirsty garden than satisfying a thirsty throat.

If you’d rather just buy a rain barrel, there are some really neat ones available online at www.aquabarrel.com

Good luck!

Collecting water from the sky to be used on the ground.

We hope you find this spring cleaning checklist helpful.

So now passengers must pay upwards of $8  for a blanket and pillow on American Airlines? An interesting business strategy would be to lobby the TSA to prohibit passengers from bringing their own blankets and pillows to drive revenue from this new plan. While charging for what used to be included in the price is becoming the norm in many industries it is good to be able to hold our pricing here at GutterBrush Guys, LLC. to 2009 levels. Perhaps the airlines could learn a thing or two from us. Unlikely seeing that American Airlines announced, without any fanfare last week, that it would eliminate free blankets in coach and sell an $8 packet that includes a pillow and blanket starting on the first of May this year.

Why would a company that does business in an increasingly reviled industry make this type of move? It seems that American Airlines predicated its decision on consumer surveys. Wait. We are supposed to believe that customers said they were in favor of this added charge in an an increasingly less than enjoyable consumer experience on the airline with the worst-in-the-nation on-time performance, deplorable acumen in baggage-handling or the grotesque state of its fleet of aircraft? Forgive me but I remain skeptical.

While other airlines also charge for various items to make flights more comfortable it seems that no one is asking the consumer what they want. If they did they would likely find out what we have discovered. People want to be treated fairly and with honesty as well as getting the product they were promised. There is no room for deception or taking advantage of your customer base and their disposable income pool. Perhaps when more customers abandon those companies that deliver a less than stellar customer experience those that do will have a chance to shine brighter than ever before. Until then enjoy your $8 blanket and pillow.