It’s late May. The ornamental pears and liquidambars in your street have dropped their leaves, and the big gum out the back has been shedding bark strips and gum nuts all year. The first heavy rain hits and water pours over the front of the gutter instead of running into the downpipe. You’re up the ladder again, scooping out wet leaves, and somebody mentions gutter guard. So is gutter guard worth it in Canberra, or is it just one more thing to buy?
Our honest answer: for a lot of Canberra homes, yes. For some, no. And for a few, not yet. Which group you’re in depends on the trees near your house, how your roof is built and the state your gutters are already in.
Gutter guard is a mesh cover, not a cure for gutter problems
Gutter guard is a mesh that sits over the top of your gutters, fixed along the roof edge and the outer lip of the gutter. Rain falls through it. Leaves, twigs and bark stay on top, where wind or the next storm usually blows them off.
What it doesn’t do is fix a gutter that’s already failing. If your gutters are rusted through, sagging, or sloped the wrong way so water sits in them, mesh over the top just hides the problem. We’d rather tell you that before the job than after it. If your gutters are near the end of their life, our guide to replacing gutters in Canberra is the better place to start, and the guard can go on with the new gutters.
The homes where it clearly pays off
Most of the homes where gutter guard earns its keep have one thing in common: trees. Canberra has plenty of them, and they behave differently through the year.
Eucalypts near the roof. Gums never really stop shedding. Leaves, bark and gum nuts drop all year round, so gutters under a big gum can fill up again only weeks after a clean. This is where mesh makes the biggest difference.
Established streets with deciduous trees. Older suburbs in the inner north and inner south, and much of Belconnen and Woden, have big street trees that drop everything in autumn. One season of leaves can block a downpipe outlet, and that’s how gutters end up overflowing in the first decent storm of spring.
Two storey homes and steep roofs. If cleaning your gutters means a tall ladder or a nervous walk on a steep pitch, every clean you skip is a fall you don’t risk. For many people that alone settles it.
Homes on the bushland edge. Suburbs that back onto nature reserves and hills, from Molonglo Valley to the edges of Tuggeranong and Weston Creek, face ember attack in a bad fire season. Dry leaves sitting in a gutter are fuel right at the edge of your roof. Metal mesh keeps that fuel out, which is why so many people in these areas fit it.
Where we’d tell you to save your money
If no trees overhang or sit close to your roof, your gutters probably collect a bit of dust, roof grit and the odd stray leaf. A regular clean handles that, and guard won’t save you much. Our post on how often Canberra gutters need cleaning helps you work out your own timing.
Then there’s the “not yet” group. If the gutters are rusty, leaking at the joints, or pulling away from the fascia (the board along the roof edge that the gutter is fixed to), fix those first. Fitting guard over a failing gutter just means paying to take the guard off again when the gutter gets replaced.
The downsides nobody puts on the brochure
Gutter guard reduces gutter maintenance. It doesn’t remove it. This is what we tell people before they commit.
- Fine debris still gets in. Dust, pollen, roof grit and broken bits of leaf wash through the mesh and settle in the gutter. It builds up much more slowly, but it still builds up.
- Leaves can sit on top. On low pitch roofs or sheltered sides of the house, wet leaves can mat down on the mesh instead of blowing off. An occasional brush or blow fixes it.
- Cheap plastic mesh doesn’t last. Canberra gets strong summer sun and hard winter frosts. Plastic goes brittle and cracks far sooner than metal, and it’s no help against embers.
- Poor fitting causes leaks. On tile roofs the mesh has to be fixed so it doesn’t lift the tiles or block water running off them. Done badly, heavy rain can be pushed back under the tiles.
None of these are reasons to avoid guard. They’re reasons to choose the right product and have it fitted by people who work on roofs every day.
Metal mesh is the only kind worth fitting here
You’ll see a few types on the market: plastic mesh, foam or brush inserts that sit inside the gutter, and metal mesh in aluminium or steel. For Canberra conditions we recommend metal mesh almost every time.
Aluminium mesh is light, won’t rust and comes in colours to match Colorbond roofs and gutters. Steel mesh is tougher and copes better with hail and falling branches. If you’re in a bushfire prone area, ask for mesh that is specifically rated for ember protection, and make sure it’s fitted to close the gaps at the roof edge rather than just laid over the gutter. Guard with gaps at the ends or along the tiles won’t stop embers.
Foam and brush inserts are cheap and easy to put in, but they hold leaves, stay damp and have to be pulled out to clean. In our experience they turn one job into two.
What decides the price of your job
We won’t put a number on gutter guard without seeing the house, because the honest answer really does vary from one home to the next. These are the things that move the price:
- total metres of gutter, including any upper storey runs
- roof type, since tile roofs take more fitting work than metal
- the mesh itself (plastic, aluminium, steel or ember rated)
- access, height and pitch
- whether the gutters need cleaning or repairs before the guard goes on
A lower price per metre can turn into a dearer job if the gutters aren’t cleaned out first or the mesh isn’t fixed properly at the valleys and ends. When you compare quotes, check that each one includes a full clean, the same type of mesh and the same fixing method.
If you’d like us to look at your gutters and tell you straight whether guard is worth it on your house, our gutter guard installation service starts with a free inspection. We check the gutters, the roof edge and the trees around you, then give you a written quote, or tell you plainly if you’re better off without it.
Common questions about gutter guard in Canberra
Is a gutter guard worth the money?
It is if you have trees near the roof, a hard to reach roofline, or you live near bushland. In those cases it cuts down how often your gutters block and overflow. If there are no trees near your house, regular cleaning is usually the cheaper option.
What is the downside of gutter guards?
The main downside is that they reduce cleaning rather than remove it, because fine debris still washes through the mesh. Plastic mesh also breaks down quickly in Canberra’s sun and frost. Poorly fitted guard on a tile roof can interfere with how water runs off the tiles.
How much does it cost to install gutter guards?
It depends on the metres of gutter, the roof type, the mesh you choose and how easy the roof is to get to. Tile roofs and two storey homes take more work than a single storey metal roof. The best way to get a real number is an on site quote that spells out the clean, the mesh and the fixing method.
Can I buy gutter guard from a hardware store and fit it myself?
You can, and on a low single storey metal roof some people do a reasonable job. The trouble usually starts on tile roofs, at valleys and at the ends of each run, where gaps let leaves and embers in. Working at height is also the biggest risk in the whole job, so weigh that up before you go up.
What is a good price for gutter guards?
A good price is one that includes cleaning the gutters out first, metal mesh suited to your roof, and proper fixing at the edges and valleys. Compare quotes on those details, not just the price per metre. A cheap quote that skips the clean or uses plastic mesh often costs more over time.