Gutter Guards in Colonial Heights, Canton, OH

What is Colonial Heights like?

Colonial Heights is a compact neighborhood on the northeast side of Canton, east of Market Avenue North and near US Route 62. Colonial Boulevard NE gives it its name. The numbered streets from 25th Street NE to 29th Street NE cross it, along with Rowland, Gibbs and Beverly Avenues NE and Spangler Street NE. Some of the pavement is still red brick.

The houses are a mix of Craftsman bungalows, Colonial Revival homes and later ranches, built from the 1920s into the 1950s. Census-based estimates put the neighborhood at about 270 homes. The 1940s account for the largest share, around 80, followed by the 1950s and then the years before 1940. Front porches are a common feature of the older houses.

Why do bungalow gutters need a different eye?

A Craftsman bungalow is built around its eaves. They are deep, they often show the ends of the rafters, and the porch roof is a second, lower roof with a gutter of its own. Each of those details changes the job.

• Open rafter tails. Where there is no fascia board across the rafter ends, the gutter is hung from the rafters themselves or from straps. The owner checks what the gutter is fastened to before he says a fascia-mount guard will work on that run.
• Porch roofs. A porch gutter is short, low and usually drains through one small downspout. It also catches everything that slides off the main roof above. It is the run most likely to be overflowing.
• Dormers. A front dormer splits the main roof and sends water toward the valleys on either side.
• Half-story height. A story-and-a-half house has low eaves at the front and back and tall gable ends on the sides. Each run is priced at the rate for its own height.

Whose trees fill a Colonial Heights gutter?

In an established neighborhood, your gutters collect from trees you do not own. The street tree in front may stand in the strip by the curb. The big one in back may be two yards over. Side gutters catch what blows between the houses. That is why gutters on a street like this can be full again a few weeks after a cleaning. The source is not in their yard and cannot be trimmed back.

In a neighborhood like this one, the fall drop is only half of it. Spring brings seeds, and maple seeds are the worst for gutters because they wedge in open guards and take root in damp debris. The post on Canton leaf collection explains why bagging what lands on the lawn does nothing for what lands on the roof.

What about the 1940s houses?

The houses from the 1940s are simpler: modest two-story colonials and Cape Cods with plain gable roofs and shallow eaves. Most have had aluminum gutters added or replaced at some point, commonly on spikes. They are good candidates for guards as long as the fascia is solid. Typical findings on a house of this age are a few loose spikes, a seam that drips at a corner and a downspout elbow packed with grit. All three are small fixes and are handled as part of the guard install.

What will the inspection tell you?

Whether each run can take a guard as it stands, needs a small fix first, or needs more than that. You get it in photos the same day, with one written price that is good for a year. If a porch gutter or a run on open rafter tails is not right for a guard, the report says so and that footage is left out of the price. You pay for the runs that are guarded, by the foot, with corners included.

Where should a Colonial Heights owner read next?

Start with gutter guards for older homes in Canton, which covers fascia, spikes and when new gutters come first. The installation walk-through explains the cleaning, the hangers and the corner miters. And the warranty page sets out what is covered once the guards are on.