Gutter Protection vs. Gutter Cleaning - Cost Analysis
Summary: Is gutter protection or gutter cleaning more cost effective? Spending
cash on a gutter cover may not be the best way to use your money.
Investing it might. Check out this cost calculation for a gutter screen
vs. cash investment.
Related Articles: Gutter Cleaning Tips, Gutter Protection Test Results, Gutter Guards - Do They Really Work?
Cost Analysis for Gutter Protection
Have you priced the cost of gutter covers on your house? They are very expensive, especially if you pay to have them installed. I have priced gutter screens in my area. They seem to run anywhere from $6 to $7.50 per lineal foot installed. An average house may have 200 feet of gutter. Some houses have even more. Let's do a series of calculations to see if gutter guards make economic sense for you.
Gutter Guards, CD's or Stock.......
Let's say it is going to cost $1,500 (200 feet at +/- $7 per foot) to have the gutter guards installed. Based upon my experimentation we already know that we will have to clean out the gutters at least once every 2 years. This is important for the sake of our calculations.
What do you think a roofer will charge to clean your gutters? I would think that - on average - a roofer could clean 200 feet in about an hour or so. My guess is that you could get this done for $75. Odds are you will have this done two times a year. This means that the annual cost to clean gutters without gutter guards is $150.
If you have gutter covers that can be easily removed, you will probably spend $100 to have your gutter rinsed every 2 years. This represents an annual cost of $50.
What happens if you don't get gutter screens and invest your $1,500 in a Certificate of Deposit or in the stock market? Right now you can easily get 5 percent on your money. At the end of the first year, you will have earned $75 in interest. If you invest in a decent stock mutual fund, you might easily get a 10 percent return. This means you would be ahead $150 at the end of a year. For sake of our discussion we will forget about taxes and inflation.
The Numbers Don't Lie
If you purchase gutter protection, you have to spend $1,500 plus another $500 over ten years ($50 x 10). This means at the end of ten years you are out of pocket $2,000.
If you don't buy gutter covers and have a roofer come to clean your gutters twice a year, the worst that will happen is that at the end of 10 years you will still have $750! This assumes that you just kept your original $1,500 in the 5% CD. Each year, you got $75. You had to then fund the other gutter cleaning with $75 each year. This means you spent $750 over ten years. Deduct this $750 from the $1,500 in the bank to get the balance I mentioned.
If you are lucky in the stock market, you will either break even or possibly be ahead! Our stock mutual fund was supposed to spin off $150 per year. This would pay for the gutter cleaning cost per year. If you make more than 10% on your investment you will actually make money.
This principle is what makes leasing a car a better investment as well. Why not leave your cash in an investment? The interest spinning from your investment will help to make the lease payments.
I think you should call and get gutter cleaning estimates before you buy gutter protection. Run the numbers and see if it doesn't make better sense to hold onto your money....
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Comments:
Samser 29 Jan 2008, 15:22
I agree that there are many other things which an individual could do to
make money. However, many people experience having to clean their gutters
much more than twice a year. My gutter problem was such that I could have
my gutters cleaned about 4 or 5 times a year at least. Sometimes the
gutters would be clogged only a few days later. It was always a hassle
having to get someone dependable and insured (most gutter cleaners are not,
in my experience) to clean the gutters. In my case it cost about $180 each
cleaning. I spent about twice per foot (around $14)what is quoted in your
artice for a national brand gutter protection about three years ago and
have been very happy I did so.
Diane 08 Apr 2008, 11:57
What gutter protection product did you use? I have found out that most of
them do not work
AsktheBuilder 12 Apr 2008, 09:56
Diane,
I am still testing, but read all of my Gutter Guard columns to see the ones that hold the greatest promise. You also need to watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RzRVvVYNJk
lou 16 Apr 2008, 15:18
Diane, I found one that does work. It is Gutter Glove and Tim Carter has
written about it favorably. You can see a great video clip about it at
www.gutterglove.com and if you are on the east coast (They are a west
coast HQ company) you can find a dealer at www.gg-nc-com. I have the
product on my home 3 years and it has been maintainence free for me. I got
an extended handle brush from them to sweep off any offending built up
debis but never needed to use it. We have a million pine needles here.
Fills a gutter in Fall, seed pods in Spring. Twice I went out to check on
the build up, but the wind blew it all away. Gutter Glove is the product
you want. It is less than what leaf guard tried to sell me on.
Ralph Young 26 May 2008, 13:44
I going to give GutterStuff a try. At $16 for 32 feet it is hard to go
wrong. it is a foam filter insert that is so easy to install you're done
with the 32 feet in under an hour and you mitre it with scissors.
Has anyone got a story on this inexpensive way to stop being ripped off by the helmet type products? I hope this works, but if not I won't be out much money.
mark cheng 01 Jul 2008, 12:35
do you have contractors in New Jersey?
DinD 15 Jul 2008, 20:31
lou,
what was the cost analysis? That company is asking $3600 to install my house. I'm in the process of getting estimates on gutter cleaning in my area.
Doug 18 Jul 2008, 18:26
I have been a union carpenter for over 30 years now and have built a few
houses and hung a few gutters over that time.
I have seen or read about or tested many different products and ideas over the years to keep rain gutters clean. The honest truth is that gutter screens are either far too expensive to have installed, or ineffective and prone to be troublesome themselves. Its far better to shop around a bit and get an independant roofer or small locally owned gutter cleaning company to simply clean your gutters every other year. I live in a two story home on a heavily wooded lot with 3 very tall maples within 45 feet of the house, so I have mine done every year in the fall after most of the leaves have fallen. Last year it cost me $100 plus the $10 tip I gave the fellow to have them done. Its just my opinion, but I cant see paying 2500 to 3000 to install gutter screens that may not even last the 20 to 25 years I'd need to break even on my investment. And please notice I said to call a "roofer", not an older carpenter...lol
Doug 18 Jul 2008, 18:38
One final word. If your gutters are actually clogged and have to be
cleaned 4 times every year, it might be far less expensive to cut down that
300 foot tall maple tree growing through the middle of your roof....
But all teasing aside, the average homeowner only needs their gutters cleaned every other year
Calvin English 16 Aug 2008, 11:18
I found a new product equal to Gutter Clove, Leaf Solution, Master Shield
and other screens on the market. It is a design your own concept micro mesh
screen and much less expensive than the above. You simply order on line you
can do it your self or have some one install them. It is a web site
oriented company. It's called www.supercleangutterscreen.com It is working
great on my gutters.I I am paying much less than the others.
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