Gutter style for wooded lot? (roof, drains, cleaner, installed)

[Caterpillar]

Hi, everyone!

We're getting ready to have our roof and gutters replaced. Everyone I've asked about gutter replacement seems to have a vested interest... Please share your personal experiences to help me with this decision. The latest person I queried showed me a black plastic(???) substance that feels scratchy and looks like a sponge. This product fits inside the gutter. Supposedly, pine needles and leaves roll of the top. Many consumers like the Leafguard system... but I read one review that said it doesn't work well in heavily wooded areas. Your comments would really be appreciated!

[MotleyCrew]

We used the screen kind that worked very well in the pines. Pine needles will still manage to work their way into the gutter so you will still need to clean them once in awhile.

[Poltracker]

Make sure that which ever way you go, you get the large (5 inch) downspouts. I just had larger open gutters installed, the leaves just wash on down through the larger downspouts. Made a huge difference even though I generally have to clean up the ground after a heavy rainfall.

[Padgett2]

We have a VERY heavy tree cover. Mainly pines, with a couple of oaks. We don't have gutters. I suppose it may depend on where you live, but I just can't imagine that gutters would be a desirable feature, especially where there is a heavy leaf fall.

Really, I would love to know the reason behind the usage.

[gentlearts]

Do you need gutters in GA? I know in parts of NC they aren't necessary, since the ground is so porous the water drains quickly. If you do, the Leafguard type of covering (one piece that they make onsite) comes with a guarantee that if it gets clogged, they come out and clean them. However, we priced them and they are VERY expensive ($6000. for ours), so we decided to pay a kid to clean the gutters once a year and take a few vacations instead.

[Caterpillar]

Thanks, everyone, for your responses. Sorry I took so long to update! We ended up going with a combination of Leafguard gutters and screened gutters. Because of the roof configuration, there would have been too much "overshoot" in a heavy rain to use the Leafguard gutters exclusively (not that there's been a heavy rain - or much rain at all - in a very long time...). We did go with the larger downspouts. I like the idea of not having gutters at all, but we need them here. The ground is next to the house is heavy clay. Like iron, actually, since it hasn't been raining. When I replaced the roof on my former house in Florida, I left the gutters off. The look was much cleaner and the maintenance much easier. But that house was on a sandy ridge.

I'm thinking about adding one or more rain barrels soon. (Hopefully, we won't have to drink from them...)