What are the pros and cons of louvered gutter alternatives?

Question

One part of our house has a gutter nearly 30' above grade (a dry-laid brick patio outside a walkout basement), which never gets cleaned out because I don't enjoy being on a ladder that high, and that part of the roof is not accessible from the other side (it's a non-traditional contemporary house). Luckily, because of the height, this takes several years to clog completely with leaves, but it's now time to do something agin.

I'm considering Rainhandler "gutters" to replace the traditional gutter on this section. It's about a 28' run, and drains approximately 12' of roof (it's a shed roof Lthat butts into a wall). The eave is about 16" deep.

What should I consider before making this decision?

Answer 1

The Rainhandler Plus might be OK if the ground around your home's foundation slopes at least 1 inch per foot for 6 feet or more and you haven't had water leaks in your basement or home. But you'll find gutter-guard systems that are better at capturing water for far less.

Consumer Reports 2010

My gutters are 3 stories above the ground level (it's a townhouse), so we had Gutterglove installed. It's been a year and we haven't had any problems. I previously had some cheaper screens on my gutters that lasted about 8 years before buckling from leaves (there's a steep hill behind my house so we do get leaves even on a roof that tall). I haven't had any problem with the gutterglove system, but it also hasn't been long.