Questions, answered straight
About guards
Do I still have to clean my gutters after guards go on?
Not on a ladder. Guards keep leaves and maple keys out of the trough, so the water keeps moving. What can still collect is fine debris on top of the guard, which mostly blows or rains off. Once in a while the rest needs a brush, and that's what the yearly Care visit is for. Anyone who promises you'll never touch your gutters again is selling, not measuring.
Will guards cause ice dams?
No, and they won't stop them either. Ice comes from heat leaving your attic. A guard keeps the ice on top of the trough instead of inside it. If you get icicles every year, insulation and ventilation is the fix, and I'll tell you who to call.
Does it void my roof warranty?
Gutter Clean Pro is fastened through the front of the gutter with screws every 24 inches, to the manufacturer's installation instructions. Nothing goes under a shingle and we never lift one. Lifting shingles is what most roofing warranties forbid, and we don't.
What about pine needles?
Needles are the hardest case for any guard made. The offset dual-layer holes are designed to block them; that's the manufacturer's claim, and we're testing it this fall. So ask me before you buy if your lot is heavy with pine or spruce. On a heavy evergreen lot the honest options are new gutters with DoublePro on them, or the retrofit guard plus Care so the brushing is our job.
My neighbour's guards still clog. Why would yours be different?
Which kind? Plastic screens clog in a season. Hoods clog at the slot. Even the best mesh grows a film. And any guard on a badly pitched gutter fails. We fix the gutter first, fit a guard built for winter, and come back once a year if you want us to.
Do I need new gutters?
Usually no. If a run is rotted or crushed, I'll show you the photo and price a replacement separately. New eavestrough is a Crestwell Exteriors job, with DoublePro guards on it.
Is it worth it with only two trees?
Maybe not this year. Two maples drop keys every spring, though. I'll give you the price; it's good for 30 days; no pressure from me.
About the price
How do you price a job?
By the foot, measured from your driveway. I count the feet of eavestrough, the inside corners and downspouts, the storeys, the roof pitch and the trees, and send you a written price within 24 hours. Every line shown. No in-home presentation, no discount that expires tonight.
Can I get a discount?
The price is the price: the same for you as for your neighbour, with no sales game built in. What I can do is put the exact scope in writing so you can compare fairly.
What about the deposit and cancelling?
30% when you sign, the balance when the work and the walkthrough are done, the same price by e-Transfer, card or cheque. Ontario law gives you 10 days after you receive your signed copy to cancel for any reason, and your deposit comes back in full.
What does a service visit cost if it turns out not to be covered?
$225 plus HST, or $125 plus HST if you're on ClearSpout Care. Same price anywhere in Niagara, and the same price if a call about a blockage turns out to be ice. Plenty of visits cost nothing at all: a blockage in your first 12 months, anything that's our workmanship inside 2 years, and a Care member's blockage visit any year. What you pay for is the other kind, like ice, a storm, damage that was there before we came, or someone else's work. Either way I tell you which it is before we book, you get a photo of what I find, and any repair is quoted before I touch it.
About the warranty
What if it fails?
You get Alu-Rex's written warranty on the guard itself, which transfers once with the house and is limited to the product's price. The exact terms come with your warranty certificate. Our workmanship is covered for 2 years. If a blockage overflows in year one we come back at no charge, and we show you a photo of the cause either way.
Why is your workmanship warranty 2 years when others promise longer?
Because a long promise from a company with no money behind it is worth what it costs to print. Ours is 2 years. We'd rather promise less and keep it.
What if you go out of business?
The product warranty is Alu-Rex's, and your invoice with our name on it is the claim document. The workmanship warranty is registered with Crestwell Exteriors, the company behind ClearSpout.
About the install
Who does the install?
Me, or a crew we introduce by text the day before. You'll know their names before they arrive.
How long does it take?
Half a day on a typical home; a full day on a large two-storey. The install is usually inside two weeks of the cooling-off period ending.
Do I need to be home for the measure?
No. I measure from the ground outside, in about 20 minutes. If you're home, I'll walk around with you and show you what I see. If you'd rather skip the visit, I can quote from aerial photos.
Do you come back and check the guards after the first fall?
If your install was in the spring and you're on Care, yes: your first Care visit is booked for after the leaves have come down, so the guards are checked when it matters. That is your yearly visit, timed, not an extra charge. Everyone else gets one text from me in late October asking you to look from the ground next time it rains hard and send me a photo if water spills over. In your first 12 months, a blockage or a problem with our work is free to fix.
Why not the cheap mesh from the hardware store?
You can buy decent mesh online. What you can't buy is the gutter fixed first, the corners done right, a warranty someone local answers, and a person who comes back every fall. Plastic snap-ins clog in a season.
The words on this site, in plain English
- Eavestrough.
- The Ontario word for a gutter; this site uses both words, because homeowners search for both.
- Gutter guard.
- A cover over the open top of the eavestrough, so water gets in and debris does not.
- Downspout.
- The pipe that carries water down out of the trough; we flush every one and fit a strainer at its outlet.
- Fascia.
- The board behind the trough at the roof edge; rot in it is photographed and quoted separately, never sprung on you.
- Soffit.
- Not gutter-guard work: soffit, fascia and eavestrough are replaced by Crestwell Exteriors, priced per job in a written quote.
- Pitch.
- The slope of the trough toward the downspout; we correct it on every job, because any guard on a badly pitched gutter fails.
- Hanger.
- What holds the trough up; we put hidden screw hangers in where the old spikes have pulled.
- Seam.
- A joint in the trough; we reseal every seam, end cap and outlet, so the first leak isn't at the joint we ignored.
- Flush test.
- Water run through the trough to prove it drains: one before the guard goes on and one after, so you see it drain.
- Ice dam.
- Ice built up at the roof edge; it comes from heat leaving the attic, not from the guard, and it is not a blockage.
- The Drain Guarantee.
- Our own promise: if a blockage makes your gutters overflow in the first 12 months, we come back and fix it at no charge.
- ClearSpout Care.
- One paid visit a year, $199 plus HST, which keeps the Drain Guarantee alive after your first 12 months.
- The walkthrough.
- The end of the install: we walk the house with you, hand you the warranty, and tell you the truth about ice.
- The photo report.
- Before-and-after photos of every run, both flush tests and your warranty certificate, sent the same day as your install.
Or text phone number to come