Best Overall
- Professional installation
- Number one gutter guard company
- Quick installation
Best Design
- It has a lifetime transferable warranty
- Can be used with metal roofs
- Micro-mesh material for superior filtration
Best Customer Service
- Has impressive BBB ratings
- Strengthens the gutters on the home
How to choose the best gutter guards in Foster City
The benefits of gutter guards
When you have gutter guards installed on your Foster City home, you add to its value and secure many short- and long-term benefits. First and foremost, gutter guards reduce the amount of time spent on cleaning your gutters. Nothing will eliminate the need for cleaning, but adding gutter guards helps you spend less time on this task, or less money hiring a gutter services company.
Some other benefits of gutter guards include keeping pests away — including bees and birds that may nest in your gutters, as well as roaches and other insects that feed on gutter debris — and reducing the chance of water damage to your home and property. Unblocked, free-flowing gutters are also less likely to rust and corrode prematurely, saving you money on repair and replacement.
Different types of gutter guards
There are six common types of gutter guards. Foam and brush guards are easy to install on your own; mesh and screen guards can be installed on your own, but preferably should be installed by a professional; and surface tension and micro-mesh guards will always need professional installation.
- Brush Guards: These guards are made of large brush bristles that partially obstruct your gutters, blocking debris while allowing water to pass through. They must be completely removed to be cleaned.
- Foam Guards: This type of guard is lightweight and easy to install. With this type of guard, debris lands on the foam instead of in your gutter. Instead of being cleaned, this type of guard is simply replaced when necessary.
- Screen Guards: These types of gutter guards have large holes that let water through while stopping debris. About once a year, you will need to remove the guards for cleaning purposes.
- Mesh Guards: This type of gutter guard is durable and rarely needs to be taken down for cleaning. Similar to screen guards, they have holes that let water through while blocking debris. One feature of mesh gutter guards is that the shape allows debris to slide off onto your lawn as opposed to collecting on top of your gutters.
- Micro-Mesh Guards: These gutter guards are usually the most effective. They have even smaller holes than standard mesh gutter guards, and allow even less debris through.
- Surface Tension Guards: These types of gutter guards, which are sometimes called reverse curve guards, are always installed by a professional and normally come with a warranty. They use surface tension to let debris slide off while water flows through into your gutters. They require lifting your roof shingles to install, and they can be seen from the ground.
All types of gutter guards have their pros and cons, and the best type for your Foster City home will be decided by several factors. Speak with one of Foster City's local gutter guard installers to hear more about the types of guards they carry and what type is best for your home.
How expensive are gutter guards?
Gutter guard cost
There is a range of prices for gutter guard installation in California, and your specific price will be dependent on several factors. First is whether you are DIY-ing your installation, working with a local Foster City contractor, or hiring a full service gutter guard installation company that operates in California. A full-service company will cost more but can offer more assistance with steps in the process like measuring your gutters and picking a material. The material you choose and aspects of your home (such as the size of and accessibility of your gutter system) will also affect the final price.
Contacting one or more companies from our list of best gutter service professionals and asking for a free inspection and estimate is the fastest way to get an impression of how much your gutter guard installation is going to cost. You can also take a look at our table below to explore specific price ranges for various kinds of gutter guard materials. Note that these estimates are not a guarantee of prices in Foster City, and do not take into account the cost of labor.
Cost by material
| Gutter guard material | Cost per foot of material | Cost for typical home | Total cost including labor |
| Brush | $4.52 - $12.34 | $1130-$3085 | $2,818 - $4,772 |
| Foam | $1.92 - $3.52 | $480-$880 | $2,168 - $2,568 |
| Screen | $0.38 - $1.38 | $95-$345 | $1,782 - $2,032 |
| Mesh | $0.82 - $2.7 | $205 - $687 | $1,892 - $2,374 |
| Micro-mesh | $1.69 - $2.32 | $244 - $580 | $1,932 - $2,268 |
| Surface tension | $1.08 - $1.55 | $270 - $387 | $1,958 - $2,074 |
Should you install your Foster City gutter guards alone or hire a company?
You may feel comfortable taking on many household projects on your own — you may have even installed the gutter system on your Foster City home on your own — but gutter guard installation is a job that should be undertaken by the professionals. A local Foster City gutter services company can help guarantee that all measurements taken are one hundred percent accurate and that you do not over-purchase materials. They are the experts when it comes to installing gutter guards and know how to do so safely and efficiently, which will save you time and stress. They can recommend which type of guard you should purchase based on specific features of your property. For a handful of gutter guard types, such as screen, mesh, micro-mesh, and surface tension, getting professional installation is strongly recommended or required.
One specific gutter guard company that we highly recommend to help you with installation is LeafFilter. LeafFilter's patented three-piece 275-micron micromesh screen system benefits from a free estimate, a full installation, and a lifetime transferable warranty.
