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Gutters · Longwood

Gutters in Longwood, FL

In a 5-minute downpour of the kind a 10-year storm produces, rain in Longwood falls at 8.76 inches an hour. That is the number gutters here have to handle, not the gentle rain most people picture. A gutter that works for a light rain can overflow in one of these bursts, and the water then runs down the fascia and into the wall.

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Updated October 2026

Yellow single-storey city hall building beside a green directional sign and a tall palm under blue sky.
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: Longwood City Hall FL by Connor J Williams, CC BY 2.0, cropped

Sizing for local rain

Sizing your gutters and downspouts for the rain Longwood actually gets

Gutter size is set by how much roof drains into it and how hard it rains. For the short, intense bursts that matter most, the 25-year 5-minute rate here is 10.1 inches an hour and the 100-year rate is 12. A 1-hour 10-year storm falls at 2.88 inches an hour. Your installer should size against these local rates, not a generic chart.

Close-up of a fine stainless micro-mesh gutter guard over a white gutter at a shingle roof edge, with oak leaves, catkins and raindrops resting on top (illustration)Illustration

Illustration: micro mesh guard

Plumbing code Table 1106.6 lists a 6-inch half-round gutter at 1/8 inch per foot slope at 110 gallons per minute, about 49 percent more than a 5-inch gutter at the same slope. Downspouts are rated separately. A 2 1/2 by 3 inch or 3 inch round downspout carries 92 gallons per minute, so a single small leader can choke a large roof plane.

Add half the area of any wall that sheds rain onto the roof, as code section 1106.4 requires. A two-story wall above a porch roof can add a lot of water that a roof-only measurement misses.

Keep water off the wall

Downspout discharge and where the water goes on your lot

Florida code requires downspouts to discharge at least 1 foot from the structure sidewall, by underground piping, tail extensions or splash blocks. Water that lands at the foundation can soak the soil under a slab or crawlspace, so check each downspout at the next heavy rain.

Longwood has about 6 percent of its total area under water, and the county share is 10.4 percent. Low ground near lakes and creeks can hold runoff, so direct downspouts away from the lowest part of the lot.

Gutters on the roof's eaves need hangers that hold in wind. For storm-prone areas a hidden-hanger maker recommends 16-inch spacing for added uplift resistance, against a standard 24 inches on center.

Rain on your roof

Preset: 6.15 inches, the 10-year 24-hour rain (NOAA Atlas 14 at Longwood).

7,663 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 Longwood: questions

How often should gutters in Longwood be cleaned?

Gutters in Longwood should be cleaned at least twice a year, typically in spring and fall. Tower Hill Insurance Group, a Florida home insurer, recommends this schedule and advises cleaning more often under overhanging trees or during frequent storms. Under southern live oaks, which the UF/IFAS describes as a litter problem, plan a cleaning after the spring oak leaf drop, before the June to September storm season, and after the autumn pine-needle peak. Many homes in the area were built around 1983, so older gutters may be more prone to sagging and leaks. When gutters clog, you may end up dealing with water intrusion, mildew, damage to the roof deck, and trouble with the foundation.

Source: thig.com, read Oct 5, 2026

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Do I need a permit to replace gutters in Longwood?

Confirm with the City of Longwood Permitting and Inspections office before you start, since rules can change. Florida code sets the gutter and downspout rules, including the requirement for gutters where eaves project less than 6 inches and the 1-foot discharge distance.

Source: City of Longwood Permitting and Inspections, read Oct 5, 2026

Related: Gutters

Are gutters on a home in Longwood required by code?

Florida's building code calls for gutters and downspouts on any structure where the eave projects less than 6 inches, excluding gable end rakes and roof sections that rest on top of another roof. Each downspout has to empty water at least 1 foot away from the side wall. Many Longwood homes were built around 1983 under older rules, so check what is on your house before assuming it meets the current code.

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

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Nearby

Gutters near Longwood

Sources for this page(27)
  1. 1.Water share of total area: 6%. U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census (TIGERweb tigerWMS_Census2020 MapServer: POP100, HU100, AREALAND, AREAWATER). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  2. 2.U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census (TIGERweb tigerWMS_Census2020 MapServer: POP100, HU100, AREALAND, AREAWATER). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  3. 3.U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census (TIGERweb tigerWMS_Census2020 MapServer: POP100, HU100, AREALAND, AREAWATER). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  4. 4.Permit office: City of Longwood Permitting and Inspections. City of Longwood Permitting and Inspections. Read Oct 10, 2026.
  5. 5.Median year homes were built: 1983. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates (acs2024_5yr), via Census Reporter API. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  6. 6.U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates (acs2024_5yr), via Census Reporter API, table B25035. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  7. 7.2023 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").
  8. 8.2023 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").
  9. 9.2023 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).
  10. 10.Gutterall 6K hanger. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  11. 11.thig.com. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  12. 12.ask.ifas.ufl.edu. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  13. 13.2023 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).
  14. 14.NOAA Atlas 14 Volume 9 version 2, partial-duration intensity estimates at the Longwood 2020 Census internal point (28.7014, -81.3484), NOAA Hydrometeorological Design Studies Center. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  15. 15.City of Longwood Permitting and Inspections, City of Longwood Permitting and Inspections. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  16. 16.NOAA Atlas 14 Volume 9 version 2, partial-duration 24-hour depth estimates at the Longwood 2020 Census internal point (28.7014, -81.3484), NOAA Hydrometeorological Design Studies Center. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  17. 17.U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates (acs2024_5yr), via Census Reporter API, U.S. Census Bureau (via Census Reporter). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  18. 18.Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, inspections FAQ (updated 2026-03-17), Citizens Property Insurance. Read Oct 4, 2026.
  19. 19.U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates (acs2024_5yr), via Census Reporter API, table B25024, U.S. Census Bureau (via Census Reporter). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  20. 20.City of Longwood, Historic District, City of Longwood. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  21. 21.2023 Florida Building Code, Building, 8th ed., Chapter 1 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription), UpCodes (Florida Building Code transcription). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  22. 22.NWS Melbourne, Post Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Irma (2017), National Weather Service. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  23. 23.NWS Melbourne, Post Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Matthew (2016), National Weather Service. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  24. 24.NWS Melbourne, Post Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Ian (2022), National Weather Service. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  25. 25.NOAA NCEI, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 (annual/seasonal), access-data API, NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  26. 26.2023 Florida Building Code, Building, 8th ed., Chapter 15 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription), UpCodes (Florida Building Code transcription). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  27. 27.NOAA Atlas 14 at Longwood: 8.76 in/hr (5-minute, 10-year). NOAA Atlas 14 Precipitation Frequency Data Server. Read Oct 5, 2026.

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Gutters in Longwood

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