Leaf me alone

Trying

Hi people, well it's been a memorable year, without mentioning the elephant in the mask.

My She-Shed suffered a direct hit from a falling limb off the majestic rivergum which shades my home sweet home. The complete new roof is now finished and I'm in need of advice on the best product to prevent leaf litter, and plenty of it, from blocking guttering and downpipes. The plastic mesh is out as the crows and other birds pull it out and away. Not much of a fall on the roof either. Please advise.

MitchellMc

I'm so sorry to hear that your shed has been out of action @Trying. Of all the inopportune moments, of course, it would be when you're spending the most free time at home. I'm glad you've got it all sorted, though. That must be a relief.

You'd certainly want to avoid the really budget plastic gutter meshes as they are particularly flexible and easily removed by avian antagonists. The more robust plastic versions are better, but I've still seen cockatoos remove them with ease.

You've got a particularly small amount of gutter exposed there and it limits what type of protection can be used. For the lower corrugated roof, you could install GumLeaf 2mm Hole 1200mm Classic Cream Corrugated Roof Gutter Guard and we could enquire to see if a Klip-lok version is available for the upper roof. These can be semi or permanently installed and look fantastic, seamlessly blending into the existing roof. They are brilliant at excluding leaves, but cleaning out sediment buildup can be a bit of an issue since removing them can be difficult. The gutter would likely require a periodic blast out with a high-pressure sprayer.

Another alternative would be to use Whites 110mm Outdoor Fire Retardant Gutter Bristle. They do quite a reasonable job of keeping leaves and debris out and are easily removable to conduct a full clean once a year.

The last option that might give you complete screening of leaves and the ability to remove them every few years for cleaning would be Whites 300mm x 10m Fire Guard Gutter Mesh. You'll find it easiest to install if you remove the last row of fixing screws from the roof sheets. You can then slip the mesh up under the sheets and then bring it forward to sit within the front lip of the guttering. The roofing screws are then fixed back in. Every few years, you remove the screws and mesh to give the gutter a thorough cleaning.

Let me know what you think of those options and then we can discuss further.

Mitchell