Taylor Gardner grew up around gutters, learning his dad Ed’s business.
One thing he’s learned is that adding gutters is about the least expensive thing homeowners can do to protect the value of their homes, ensuring that Florida’s famous summer downpours don’t destroy their foundations or any aesthetic upgrades.
“Protecting the foundation of your home is the main purpose of gutters,” Taylor says, “but they also protect your paint and will help your grass and sod last longer. Gutters protect anything on the outside of your house to help it stay in great shape for as long as possible.”
Without gutters, Taylor says, water is much more likely to settle at the base of your home’s foundation. With that saturation, the water can cause erosion to the side of your home, leading to cracks in the stucco and window ledges, and form unsightly trenches. Water under the home also can cause wood floors in the home to pucker or pop.
That’s why Taylor Gardner Gutters on Land O’Lakes Blvd. installs and repairs gutters, soffits and fascias, and offers gutter cleaning, which keeps the gutters working properly and in good repair.
It’s now been about four years since Taylor took over Ed’s company, which was then known as Gardner Gutters.
Taylor came on board to help his dad after serving in the Marine Corps for nine years, including a tour of duty in Iraq. He had used his experience and his Business Administration (B.A.) degree from Liberty University (in Lynchburg, VA) to start a different career, but came home when his dad needed him.
The company quickly became Taylor’s responsibility when Ed passed away following a long battle against cancer in 2020. Taylor’s older brother, Brandon, who had decades of experience as an installer, came on board to help. Unfortunately, Brandon was then also diagnosed with cancer and passed away only eight months later.
So now, Taylor continues the legacies of both his dad and his older brother, and he does it surrounded by a team that would make them both proud.
“When I started, my dad had 35 years of experience and my brother had more than 20,” says Taylor. “I had some, but not what they did. It’s been hard to lose both of them, but things here have been amazing because I’ve got really great employees.”
That starts, he says, with Mike Caisco, the company’s field operations manager, who has 40 years of experience in the business and personally inspects every job Taylor Gardner Gutters does once it’s complete.
“Our installers are great, and we have several who have been with the company more than 15 years,” Taylor explains. “They know exactly what they’re doing.”
Then, Mike comes to inspect to be sure everything is done the way it’s supposed to be, which means the installers are held accountable to ensure that there’s never any corners cut on any job.
That’s important to Taylor because his company offers a lifetime warranty on its installations. He says this is something that sets Taylor Gardner Gutters apart from others.
The company’s policy is that any customer who experiences a warranty issue will have the problem inspected within 24 hours and fixed as soon as possible — no matter how many years it’s been since the gutters were originally installed.
“I’m confident you’re not going to have a problem,” Taylor says, “but in the event you do, we’re going to show up and take care of it.”
In addition to the installers and field team, he mentions the fantastic office staff — Allison and Kammie — and great salespeople — Mike and Kenny, who are involved in the community and incredibly knowledgeable.
Over the last few years, with Taylor running the business, it’s grown to five gutter trucks and four soffit trucks. In addition to helping homeowners, Taylor Gardner Gutters also installs, repairs and cleans gutters for business owners with commercial buildings. The company also works with several homebuilders to install gutters on newly built homes, including many new GL Homes neighborhoods in Wesley Chapel, such as The Ridge, Winding Ridge and Valencia Ridge, and David Weekley Homes throughout the local area.
Jim Akins just bought a brand new home in Lutz from a builder that did not include gutters. “We knew we needed them before the summer started,” says Jim, a long-time Florida homeowner who is familiar with the problems summer storms can wreak on a home’s foundation.
“Taylor personally came out and gave us an estimate,” Jim explains. “I asked him all of my questions and found him to be very knowledgeable, professional and courteous. The price was right, so we were very happy with that.”
Jim says he hired Taylor Gardner Gutters right away and couldn’t be more pleased with the outcome.
He says the installation crew was focused and meticulous, explaining that they re-measured the whole house before they started, even though Taylor already had measured it as part of the estimate.
“I highly recommend them,” says Jim. “It was an easy choice.”
Taylor says that he is proud to continue the legacies of his father and brother by offering top-quality work that makes customers like Jim happy.
“There are so many days I just wish I could pick up the phone and tell my dad and my brother about what’s happened (with the company),” Taylor says.
But, since he can’t do that, he’ll continue to run the family business in a way that would make them both proud, and to leave a legacy for his own son — five-year-old Jacob — just like his dad did for him.
Taylor Gardner Gutters is located at 6202 Land O’Lakes Blvd. (U.S. Hwy. 41) in Land O’Lakes. Its hours of operation are Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. For more information, visit TaylorGardnerGutters.com or call (813) 515-0844.
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