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Gutters · Jupiter Island

Gutters in Jupiter Island, FL

In a 10-year storm, rain on Jupiter Island can fall at 10.5 inches an hour for five minutes. A gutter sized for light rain will overflow in that burst. Gutter size and downspout count need to match that rate, not an average day.

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Updated October 2026

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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.Our work
Photo: Blowing Rocks Nature Preserve by apasciuto, CC BY 2.0, cropped

Sizing on the island

How big a gutter the island's rain calls for

Plumbing code sizes horizontal gutters from the flow rate off the roof. A 6-inch half-round gutter at a 1/8-inch-per-foot slope carries about 110 gallons per minute. A 5-inch one carries about 74. On a roof this wet, the extra inch matters, so ask for the larger profile unless the roof area is small.

Copper-tone half-round gutters on decorative hangers with a round copper downspout on an upscale cream stucco home with a flat tile roof, live oak with Spanish moss and palm (illustration)Illustration

Illustration: half round copper

Downspouts are sized the same way. A 2 1/2 by 3 inch or 3-inch round leader carries about 92 gallons per minute, and a 4-by-5-inch or 5-inch round leader carries about 360. Count the downspouts against the roof area that drains to each one, and add half the area of any vertical wall that sheds rain onto the roof.

The design rainfall rate changes the answer a lot. A common older sizing table was built on records through 1978, and it uses lower burst rates than the current Atlas 14 numbers for this coast. By our arithmetic, a 6-inch gutter at the same slope serves about 2.4 times more roof on the plumbing code's hourly basis than on the five-minute burst that older sizing uses. Confirm the design basis with the building office before you buy.

Code and lot drainage

Downspout discharge and where the water goes

On a new or replaced gutter system, the residential code requires downspouts to discharge at least 1 foot from the building's sidewall. That can be underground piping, tail extensions or splash blocks. About 92.3 percent of the island's housing units are single-family detached homes, so most lots have open yard on every side and room to run the water well away from the slab.

The code also requires gutters with downspouts on buildings whose eaves project less than 6 inches, except at gable end rakes or where a roof sits above another roof. Fasteners must be corrosion resistant and compatible with the gutter metal, and joints must be lapped, soldered or caulked. With the Atlantic on the island's east side, salt air makes that fastener rule matter here.

Trees and upkeep

Leaves, pollen and cleaning on this lot

Southern live oaks are semi-evergreen and can reach 60 to 80 feet with a 60 to 120 foot spread. Their fruit and leaves become a litter problem in gutters. Pollen from oaks and pines is heaviest from March through April, so spring is the first cleaning window.

Pine needles fall in volume from September through November, which lands right before the island's wettest stretch. Plan a cleaning visit for late November, after the needles have dropped and before the rain season ends. Clean more often under heavy canopy, since blocked runs can back water onto the fascia.

Rain on your roof

Preset: 8.89 inches, the 10-year 24-hour rain (NOAA Atlas 14 at Jupiter Island).

11,077 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 Jupiter Island: questions

How hard does it rain on Jupiter Island?

A 5-minute downpour in a 10-year storm falls at 10.5 inches an hour here. A 100-year storm reaches 15.3 inches an hour in that burst. A 1-hour 10-year rain falls at 3.29 inches an hour. Gutters sized for average rain will overflow in these bursts. Ask your installer which design rate they used.

Source: NOAA Atlas 14 Volume 9 version 2, partial-duration intensity estimates at the Jupiter Island 2020 Census internal point (27.0269, -80.1019), read Oct 5, 2026

Related: Gutters

What size gutter does a Jupiter Island home need?

Plumbing code lists a 6-inch half-round gutter at a 1/8-inch-per-foot slope at about 110 gallons per minute. A 5-inch one carries about 74. The right size depends on your roof area and the rainfall rate you design for. Have the building office confirm the design basis before you order.

Source: 2023 Florida Building Code, Plumbing, 8th ed., Chapter 11 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription), read Oct 5, 2026

Related: Gutters

Where should my downspouts drain on Jupiter Island?

The residential code requires downspouts to discharge at least 1 foot from the house wall, and Jupiter Island's sandy lots drain fast, so water near the foundation can wash soil out from under the slab. Use underground piping, tail extensions or splash blocks, and check the Town of Jupiter Island Building Department before you change the runoff path.

Source: 2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th ed., R318.5 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription); FBC-Building 1503.7, read Oct 5, 2026

Related: Gutters

How often should gutters be cleaned under oaks and pines here?

Gutter cleaning on Jupiter Island should follow the pollen and needle calendar rather than a fixed monthly schedule. On this island, with 36.4 percent of housing units held for seasonal or occasional use, a gutter left unchecked for months can fill before an owner returns. Pollen peaks March through April, and pine needles fall most September through November.

Source: thig.com, read Oct 5, 2026

Related: Gutters

Nearby

Gutters near Jupiter Island

Sources for this page(34)
  1. 1.Single-family detached share of housing units: 92.3%. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024), table B25024, via Census Reporter API. Read Oct 5, 2026.
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  14. 14.2023 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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  32. 32.FRSA, "New 2023 FBC Eighth Edition is Now in Effect", 2024-02-13, floridaroof.com. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  33. 33.Miami-Dade County RER notice, Miami. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  34. 34.NOAA Atlas 14 at Jupiter Island: 10.5 in/hr (5-minute, 10-year). NOAA Atlas 14 Precipitation Frequency Data Server. Read Oct 5, 2026.

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Gutters in Jupiter Island

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