Are Rain Gutters Required By Code

General inspection and maintenance of gutters and downspouts.

Are rain gutters required by code.

In order to decide for yourself whether rain gutters are necessary for your home it is best to first weigh the facts. Today the international code council icc interpretation mentions that a post tension slab on grade foundation built on expansive clay is not required to collect water at the roof and discharge it at the ground put it in a gutter. They are generally not required by law on a sloping roof and many modern homes omit them even in instances where they are beneficial. From my cursory knowledge of building code gutters are never explicitly required although r 801 3 requires some controlled method of drainage 5 ft from the foundation walls or to an approved drainage system.

Local codes may require that drainage systems only be designed for the latter. 1106 6 size of roof gutters from the 2018 international plumbing code. In many parts of the country rain gutters are an absolute must and are integral in keeping water out of basements and preventing damage to homes. Plumbing codes typically use the vertically projected roof.

The gutter slope also called the pitch is the amount the gutter tilts down to let rainwater flow out of it. Chapter 8 code of miami dade county requires that roof slope drains gutters crickets and overflow scupper calculations appear on the framing plans. The amount of collected water increases until it spills over the sides of the gutter. How that is easily achieved in our area is by use of gutters and downspouts.

So no gutters are not required by code but positive drainage away from a building foundation while controlling erosion is required by code. It takes 96 15 square feet 8 93 square meters of surface with 1 inch per hour 25 mm hr of water to correspond with 1 gpm 0 063 l s flow rate. Rain gutters are the most controversial type of gutter. Available on the upcodes website.

See ubc 1806 5 5 suggesting alternate methods possible. 1 if the roof overhang eave is less than 6 inches. Sunday august 23 2020. See ubc 1804 7 no distance indicated.

2 if the home has a footing and foundation wall not a thickened edge concrete slab foundation like most newer homes and is in an area that has expansive clay or collapsible soils. The wikipedia article on gutters provides an accurate overview. Averaging about 1 2 inch deep rain run off has washed roof granules down the flow line of the gutter. Some roofers even advise against them.

If gutters don t slope water gathers in them. If gutters slope too severely they don t hold water and water could splash over the sides in heavy rain.