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News & Articles – Wisconsin

Local businessman breaks the ice with new gutter technology

Tahoe Daily Tribune; December 19, 2009

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif — If pine needles don't clog your rain gutters in the fall, ice is likely doing the job this winter.

But after a successful trial at his own South Lake Tahoe home this week, one local businessman will offer a potential solution to both annoyances.

The product was invented by former Grass Valley resident Robert Lenney, the co-founder of Gutterglove Gutterguard, which has offices in Fremont and Rocklin.

John Murray, the owner of McGee Mechanical, said he will soon offer Gutterglove Icebreaker, a recently developed product that combines a gutter cover with heat cable to keep rain gutters free of icicles and icy build up in the winter and pine needles during the rest of the year.

In addition to decreasing the amount of time homeowners spend on maintaining rain gutters, the heated gutter cover also improves safety by preventing icicles from breaking off unexpectedly, Lenney said. The gutter is heated electrically.

Murray had his doubts about the product at first, but after seeing the results first hand, he decided to offer the product to customers at the South Shore.

“It's really a pretty neat thing he's come up with,” Murray said. “We put one in on my house and I was a little bit skeptical. I was afraid that ice would still accumulate inside the gutter.”

Traditional gutters aren't always effective at the South Shore because of the tendency for ice build up, bend the gutter, pull it away from the roof or break the gutter off completely, Murray said, echoing a comment from Gutterglove's other founder John Lewis.

“Many homes in colder climates generally don't have gutters because of the icing problems that exist,” Lewis said in a statement. “However, that's not a problem anymore.”

Murray said he requires people who purchase rain gutters from McGee Mechanical to install heat tape to prevent ice from building up. Heat tape is what heats the guard and radiates heat into the gutter.

“We won't warranty our gutters from snow and ice unless that heat tape is installed,” Murray said.

Murray installed the Icebreaker on his home prior to a series of recent winter storms that hit the South Shore.

After leaving the gutter cover on for about 48 hours, the miniature cornice that had formed at the edge of his roof had receded and the icicles had fallen off in under 48 hours, Murray said.

Because many Lake Tahoe homes lack rain gutters, strips of rock are sometimes placed underneath a roof's drip line as part of Best Management Practices — measures at Lake Tahoe to prevent stormwater runoff from reaching the lake and contributing to its historic clarity decline.

The heated gutter guard is another way to prevent stormwater from going unmanaged, according to the statement.

The Gutterlglove Icebreaker costs between $30 and $35 a foot and could be offered as soon as this winter depending on the amount if interest received, Murray said.

For more information, visit: www.gutterglove.com

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Eliminate Icicle Risk and Harvest Snow with Ground-Breaking Heated Gutter Guard Technology

Green Energy News; September 4, 2009

Inventors of 'Gutterglove Gutter Guard', highly advanced gutter protection systems, have developed a modern solution for regions with elevated icicle exposure – accurately dubbed 'Gutterglove IceBreaker'. The novel innovation thaws icicles, ice dams and snow loads on rain gutters; offering consumers the unique option to process captured snow into rainwater for later use.

The IceBreaker also works diligently to filter out all leaves, pine needles and minuscule roof particles so you are ensured clean water, as well as a clean rain gutter all year round. Patented technology behind the IceBreaker incorporates a self-regulating heat cable which is built-in to the gutter guard itself; efficiently warming it throughout, as well as completely eliminating concerns of hazardous icicle formations falling and striking an unfortunate victim. In fact, this is an ongoing problem in areas like Russia and even in colder areas throughout the United States such as Chicago, with serious harm and even death reported in many cases.

TASS news agency, based in Moscow, reported the death of six separate individuals attributed to icicle formations plummeting from buildings in a central Russian region around early 2008. Rachelle Bowden of the Chicagoist.com, “In 2000, Donald Booth, a Wisconsin man, was walking down the sidewalk past the Neiman Marcus building (in Chicago) when a microwave-size piece of ice fell from the sky, crushing his skull and vertebrae and instantly killing him.”

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IceBreaker system wards off pesky deadly icicles

CNET; August 26th, 2009

Gutterglove IceBreaker Apparently, those who live in climates where it regularly freezes in the winter are at risk of death via icicle. It appears that larger icicles can break off of gutters and plunge into people's bodies, killing them coldly on contact.

A company called Gutterglove, which ironically is California-based, has a new add-on called the IceBreaker for its already advanced guttering systems. Using a self-regulated heated cable, the IceBreaker keeps water on the outside of the gutter just above freezing, meaning icicles don't form, fall off, and kill you and your loved ones as you build your snowman.

The cable fits Gutterglove's DIY install gutters, which already do things like collect rainwater for personal use; filter pine needles and seeds; and keep gutters clean so you don't have to. I wish we had this when I was 15.

All kidding aside, people actually do die every year from ice falling from man-made structures. It's not how I'd want to go, and it's not something I'd wish on anyone else, either. Were I a homeowner in a place frigid enough to warrant fears of chilly death from above, I'd definitely consider something like the Icebreaker gutter cables. But, living in Seattle, I only have to deal with mammoth quakes that will destroy my apartment building in my sleep.

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Call us toll free at 888.654.4942 or contact us online for Gutterglove Icebreaker or Heat Panels.

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Ice Dam Solutions | Wisconsin

We distribute and install Gutterglove IceBreaker and Gutterglove Heat Panels throughout Wisconsin, including Green Bay, Milwaukee, Madison, Oshkosh, La Crosse, Eau Claire, Wausau, and all other towns of Wisconsin.