Does anyone have hedgehogs in their gutters (not the rodent kind), and would you recommend them?

[AryaUnderfoot]

Whilst having a two-storey extension to our ugly 1970s box, we have taken the opportunity to replace all the gutters/fascias with upvc ones. The angle of the roof is quite shallow and we get a fair amount of moss on the roof - particularly on the north side.

The fascia installers and roofers have both (independently from each other) suggested we put hedgehogs in the gutters. The roofer said that although the roof has a fair amount of moss on it, it is by no means a problem. He also said that he wouldn't recommend any chemical coating to kill the moss/prevent growth - particularly has we have water butts.

The scaffolding is coming down in about a week, so if we are going to fit them then the ideal time would be while it is still here. We, therefore, don't have time to do loads of research.

So, are they any good? Will they REALLY stop the gutters blocking up as quickly? Do they REALLY only need to be cleaned out every 5 years?

We put them on the gutters above our conservatory about 5 years ago, hoping we wouldn't need to clear out. It doesn't work for our house at all, and I'm seriously thinking about taking the whole lot out.

Our house is about 100 years old and the tiles are covered in moss and bits of lichen. This goes straight through the hedgehog brush and forms a sludge in the gutters. The brush stops the sludge moving to the downpipe and means the gutters overflow at various points along their length. Then to clear them out I have to pull the brush up and scrape it out with my hand at each point where it overflows. Our brush is tied down quite tightly so this is quite a difficult thing to do.

I don't know it this is just an old house thing, maybe your tiles won't produce the same amount of sludge that ours do.

Just an aside.....is a hegdehog really a rodent?....off to google.

(it is a long strip of bristles which is supposed to prevent leaf blockages)

I have a low carport which is overhung by trees, and I recently cleaned out the gutter. I mentioned to the roofer that I was thinking of putting a hedgehog in, and he was very dismissive. I can clean it out myself so it would not have made any difference to him. He said he fits them if people ask, and said there is no need for the retaining clips.

Thanks for the advice. I think we may put them up without the retaining clips and then just take them out and give up on them if they don't work.

burnishedsilver I don't think a hedgehog is a rodent after all - I think it's a type of, errr, hedgehog.