What Size Gutter Guard Mesh Do You Need?

A 3 mm hole suits most homes. That's the size of our expanded aluminium mesh, which we call Leaf Shedder. It's small enough to stop leaves, twigs and nesting birds, and open enough to let rain drain freely into the gutter. The finer 2 mm woven mesh is for bush blocks and fine leaf drop.

We fit both sizes, and both are 1 mm thick aluminium with our proprietary coating. So the choice comes down to what lands on your roof. Big leaves and twigs? The 3 mm mesh handles them. Fine litter, small flowers or bush out the back point to the 2 mm weave.

If you'd like both meshes side by side with their specs, see our gutter guard comparison. This guide goes through what each hole size keeps out, and where each one earns its place.

Leaves, twigs and birds stay out with either size. The difference shows with the fine stuff. Leaf litter small enough to slip through a coarser mesh has a much harder time getting past the 2 mm weave. Rain gets through both. Neither one is a mosquito screen.

Some trees are harder than others. Jacaranda is the one we watch. Its small flowers and leaflets are the trickiest drop to keep out, so under a big jacaranda we consider the 2 mm mesh.

Long gum bark ribbons are another. They can lie across a mesh instead of blowing off. On a low-pitch roof under smooth-barked gums, we talk about the finer woven mesh, which gives the bark a smoother surface to slide off. Here's how each size handles the usual drop.

Neither is better for every home. The 3 mm mesh covers most homes. Our woven EmberGuard, with its 2 mm holes, earns its place near bush, or where fine debris keeps beating a coarser mesh. If you're nowhere near bushland and your trees drop big leaves, you probably don't need it, and we'll say so.

Smaller holes keep out more, but the goal is a mesh that suits your trees and your roof. Micro mesh has much smaller holes again. Our guide to micro mesh gutter guard puts it next to our 2 mm and 3 mm mesh.

It's the mesh we usually suggest if you back onto bush. The fine weave keeps more dry leaf litter out of the gutter, so there's less for a stray ember to catch on. The Queensland Government's bushfire advice (opens in a new tab) lists “Keep gutters clear of leaf litter” as a job for before bushfire season.

You may read online that the bushfire standard sets a hole size for gutter guard. Here's what we can tell you. Queensland has adopted AS 3959 (opens in a new tab), the Australian Standard for building in bushfire-prone areas. For gutter and valley guards it asks one thing: if they're fitted, they must be non-combustible. Aluminium is non-combustible, and both our meshes are aluminium.

Ember guards over roof vents, eave gaps and fascia gaps have a separate rule. If your project needs paperwork for council or a certifier, ask at the quote and we'll go through it. Our ember guard page sets out what our mesh does and doesn't cover.

Rain drains through both sizes into the gutter and down the downpipes. The 2 mm weave is made to let rain through while it screens out fine debris. What a mesh can't do is make the gutter bigger. No guard can make a gutter carry more than it was built for, so we check the fall and the downpipes first.

Our guide to gutter guard in heavy rain goes through what happens when a big storm hits.

No. Brisbane City Council (opens in a new tab) says mosquito-proof screens on a rainwater tank should “have openings less than one millimetre” and be made of stainless steel or aluminium. Our meshes have 2 mm and 3 mm holes. Gutter guard is sized for leaves and birds, so your tank inlet and overflow need screens of their own.

Council's list for stopping mosquitoes breeding in tanks also says to “Install guttering that stops water pooling.” Gutters that drain properly are part of the job, mesh or no mesh.

We look at your roof and the trees over it, then recommend one mesh and tell you why. We bring both to the free on-site quote, so you can see them against your own roof and gutters. You decide. Most people go with our pick once they've heard the reasons.

Where you live plays a part. Around Brisbane, we fit the 3 mm mesh on most homes and step up to the 2 mm weave on bushland-edge blocks in the western and northern suburbs. Here's how we fit gutter guard across Brisbane.

The mesh goes over the gutters you already have. Every install starts with a free gutter clean, and we check the fall and the downpipes before anything gets sealed over them. Either mesh comes with our written 10-year no blocked gutter guarantee. We're family-owned for over 25 years and fully insured.