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Gutters · Palm River-Clair Mel

Gutters in Palm River-Clair Mel, FL

In Palm River-Clair Mel, a 5-minute burst in a 10-year storm falls at 9.59 inches an hour, and the 100-year rate reaches 12.7. Median homes here were built in 1993, so many gutter runs are likely sized for older, lighter design rain. Size new gutters from the short burst, not the yearly total.

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Updated October 2026

Drone view of a single-story home with a brown-gray shingle roof and box vents under large oak trees, a metal carport roof in the corner and a street behind.

Palm River-Clair Mel figures this page uses

Single-family detached share of housing units
61.4%
Median year homes were built
1993
Owner-occupied share of occupied homes
60.5%

Sizing for local rain

How much water your gutters need to carry here

Rain here comes in bursts. A 1-hour storm in a 10-year event falls at 2.92 inches an hour, and a full day of a 10-year storm drops 6.27 inches. By our arithmetic, the 5-minute rate is more than three times the 1-hour rate, so the short burst is the harder test for a gutter.

Heavy Florida afternoon downpour pouring off a roof edge with no gutter, splashing mud onto the wall and washing out the flower bed along the foundation (illustration)Illustration

Illustration: downpour no gutter

Sizing a horizontal gutter starts from the roof's flow rate. Under the plumbing code table, a 5-inch half-round at 1/8 inch per foot moves 74 gallons per minute, and stepping up to 6 inches moves 110. Ask your contractor which size the roof area on your lot actually calls for.

Downspouts follow the same logic. A 2 by 3 inch leader carries 30 gallons per minute under the code table, and a 3 by 4 1/4 inch or 4-inch round leader carries 192. Confirm the sizing with the Hillsborough County building office before you order parts.

Discharge rules

Where downspouts must send the water

Residential code requires gutters with downspouts on buildings whose eaves project less than 6 inches. About 61.4 percent of housing units here are single-family detached homes, so most lots have room to run a tail extension or buried pipe. Water that runs back against the foundation is the usual cause of settling and damp walls.

Gutter fasteners should be corrosion resistant and compatible with the gutter metal. A hidden hanger spaced at 16 inches on center adds uplift resistance over the standard 24-inch spacing. With U.S. 301 and the Tampa Bay side of the county close by, hurricane season wind is a real design input here.

Trees and cleaning

Leaves, pollen and how often to clean

Southern live oaks drop leaves and litter, and they can grow 60 to 80 feet tall. Oaks and pines are major pollen producers, and the Florida pollen season runs from January to June, peaking in March and April. A clogged gutter here can send water over the fascia.

A practical rhythm is to clean after the spring oak leaf drop, before the June to September storm season, and again after the autumn pine-needle peak. Hillsborough County gets about 61 percent of its 49.48 inches of yearly rain from June through September at Tampa International Airport. Heavy tree cover calls for more frequent cleaning.

Rain on your roof

Preset: 6.27 inches, the 10-year 24-hour rain (NOAA Atlas 14 at Palm River-Clair Mel).

7,812 gallons run off that roof, all of it toward the gutters and downspouts.

Math: square feet × inches × 0.623 gallons.

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Questions

Gutters in Palm River-Clair Mel: questions

How much rain should my gutters handle in Palm River-Clair Mel?

Plan for a 5-minute burst of 9.59 inches an hour in a 10-year storm, and 12.7 in a 100-year storm. Those are the local design numbers from NOAA Atlas 14. Short, intense rain is the hardest test, so a gutter that drains a steady rain well can still overflow in a sudden downpour. Ask your contractor to size gutters and downspouts from the roof flow rate, using the plumbing code table.

Source: NOAA Atlas 14 Volume 9 version 2, partial-duration intensity estimates at the Palm River-Clair Mel 2020 Census internal point (27.9245, -82.3794), read Oct 5, 2026

Related: Gutters

How far from my house must a downspout drain?

At least 1 foot from the sidewall. The residential code allows underground piping, tail extensions or splash blocks to meet that distance. In a community where 60.5 percent of occupied homes are owner-occupied, the owner usually handles this fix directly. Check where the downspouts discharge after heavy rain. For your specific lot, confirm with the Hillsborough County building office.

Source: 2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th ed., Chapter 8 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription), read Oct 5, 2026

Related: Gutters

How often should I clean gutters under oak trees here?

At least twice a year, in spring and fall, and more often under heavy canopy. In Hillsborough County, about 61 percent of the yearly rain falls June through September, so clear gutters before June. Pine needles peak from September through November. Clogged gutters can cause water damage, mold, roof damage and foundation problems, according to Tower Hill Insurance Group.

Source: thig.com, read Oct 5, 2026

Related: Gutters

Nearby

Gutters near Palm River-Clair Mel

Sources for this page(37)
  1. 1.Permit office: Hillsborough County - Building Permits & Records (unincorporated Hillsborough County). Hillsborough County - Building Permits & Records (unincorporated Hillsborough County). Read Oct 10, 2026.
  2. 2.Wikipedia, "Hillsborough County, Florida" (secondary). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  3. 3.Single-family detached share of housing units: 61.4%. U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year (2020-2024), table B25024, via Census Reporter API. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  4. 4.Wikipedia, "Palm River-Clair Mel, Florida" (secondary source). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  5. 5.Hurricane Hermine (2016). NOAA National Hurricane Center, Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Hermine. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  6. 6.Hurricane Irma (2017). NOAA National Hurricane Center, Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Irma. Read Oct 5, 2026.
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  9. 9.Median year homes were built: 1993. U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year (2020-2024), table B25035, via Census Reporter API. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  10. 10.Owner-occupied share of occupied homes: 60.5%. U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year (2020-2024), table B25003, via Census Reporter API. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  11. 11.2023 Florida Building Code, Plumbing, 8th ed., Chapter 11 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription). Read Oct 5, 2026. FBC text read from UpCodes (unofficial transcription): check floridabuilding.org or the ICC viewer before quoting (spec 8.7). Source URL inherited from COM-20 (the research cites it "as COM-20").
  12. 12.2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th ed., R318.5 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription); FBC-Building 1503.7. Read Oct 5, 2026. FBC text read from UpCodes (unofficial transcription): check floridabuilding.org or the ICC viewer before quoting (spec 8.7).
  13. 13.2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th ed., Chapter 8 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription). Read Oct 5, 2026. FBC text read from UpCodes (unofficial transcription): check floridabuilding.org or the ICC viewer before quoting (spec 8.7). Source URL inherited from NC-2 (the research cites it "as NC-2").
  14. 14.2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th ed., Chapter 3 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription). Read Oct 5, 2026. FBC text read from UpCodes (unofficial transcription): check floridabuilding.org or the ICC viewer before quoting (spec 8.7).
  15. 15.2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th ed., Chapter 9 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription). Read Oct 5, 2026. FBC text read from UpCodes (unofficial transcription): check floridabuilding.org or the ICC viewer before quoting (spec 8.7). Source URL inherited from COM-29 (the research cites it "as COM-29").
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  18. 18.blogs.ifas.ufl.edu. Read Oct 5, 2026.
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  21. 21.NOAA Atlas 14 Volume 9 version 2, partial-duration intensity estimates at the Palm River-Clair Mel 2020 Census internal point (27.9245, -82.3794), NOAA Hydrometeorological Design Studies Center. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  22. 22.NOAA Atlas 14 Volume 9 version 2, partial-duration 24-hour depth estimates at the Palm River-Clair Mel 2020 Census internal point (27.9245, -82.3794), NOAA Hydrometeorological Design Studies Center. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  23. 23.Hillsborough County - Building Permits & Records (unincorporated Hillsborough County), Hillsborough County. Read Oct 5, 2026.
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  28. 28.Wikipedia (Riverview, Brandon); U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 table B25034, Wikipedia. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  29. 29.Florida Statutes, section 627.7011 (2026), Florida Legislature. Read Oct 4, 2026.
  30. 30.2023 Florida Building Code, Building, 8th ed., Chapter 1 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription), UpCodes (Florida Building Code transcription). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  31. 31.City of Tampa; City of Temple Terrace (official), City of Tampa. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  32. 32.2023 Florida Building Code, Building, 8th ed., Chapter 15 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription), UpCodes (Florida Building Code transcription). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  33. 33.FRSA, "New 2023 FBC Eighth Edition is Now in Effect", 2024-02-13, floridaroof.com. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  34. 34.Miami-Dade County RER notice, Miami. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  35. 35.NOAA National Hurricane Center, Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Eta, NOAA National Hurricane Center. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  36. 36.Wikipedia articles for each place (secondary), Wikipedia. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  37. 37.NOAA Atlas 14 at Palm River-Clair Mel: 9.59 in/hr (5-minute, 10-year). NOAA Atlas 14 Precipitation Frequency Data Server. Read Oct 5, 2026.

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Gutters in Palm River-Clair Mel

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