When a mobile home has no gutters, the rain runs off the roof edge, lands next to the skirting, and soaks into the ground around the supports. For a while nothing seems wrong. Then the skirting warps, or the home goes out of level and needs releveling.

Mobile and manufactured homes are a big part of our area. In Citrus County about 1 in 5 homes is one. Rain Storm Solutions started in 2012 setting up, installing and leveling mobile homes, before we added gutters in 2019. So this guide comes from people who have spent a lot of time under these homes, not just on the roof.

Why Rain Hits a Mobile Home Harder

Most site-built houses have a roof overhang that throws water out past the walls before it lands. Many mobile homes do not have that. One engineering guide puts it plainly: “many mobile homes feature a minimal or non-existent roof overhang” (Engineer Fix).

With little or no overhang, the water comes off the roof and drops almost straight down, right at the edge of the home. On a long single-wide or double-wide, that is a lot of roof feeding one narrow line of ground.

The roof edge itself is different too. The same guide notes that manufactured homes “may have thinner fascia boards,” so installers may need special brackets or have to fasten the hangers into the rafter tails instead. That is one reason a mobile home is not a job you size up the same way as a house in a subdivision.

Where That Water Ends Up

A mobile home does not sit on a poured slab the way many Florida houses do. It sits on piers or blocks, with skirting around the bottom, and the ground under it is open. That makes the drip line along the edge matter more.

The skirting takes the splash. Water that hits the ground right at the wall splashes back onto the skirting, over and over. Engineer Fix warns that constant splashback and soaking “can cause vinyl skirting to warp,” and that metal skirting rusts and wood rots the same way.

The ground under the home gets wet. Water that soaks in at the drip line can work its way under the home, which is exactly what the federal setup rules below are written to prevent.

The supports can move. That is the part that costs real money. Engineer Fix says concentrated runoff can wash soil away, “undermining the stability of the concrete pads, piers, or blocks that support the home.” When the ground under a pier softens or washes out, the pier can settle, and when piers settle unevenly, the home goes out of level and needs releveling.

We know that last part well. Releveling homes is how this business started.

What the Setup Rules Say About Water and Gutters

Manufactured homes are set up under federal rules from HUD, and Florida has its own rules for the people who install them. Both say the same thing about water: keep it away from the home.

The federal site drainage rule says drainage must direct surface water away from the home, to prevent erosion of the foundation supports and water building up under the home. It sets a minimum slope: the ground should fall away from the home at least one half inch per foot for the first ten feet. Where the lot cannot do that, the site needs drains, swales or other grading that carry the water away (24 CFR 3285.203, via Cornell Law School).

The same rule has a line about gutters. The home’s manufacturer must say in its installation instructions whether the home can take gutters and downspouts. If it can, the instructions must say that the water from them is to be directed away from the home.

Florida’s rules point the same way. The state’s Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, which licenses mobile home installers, says that “water must be directed away from the home’s foundation” when a site is prepared (FLHSMV, Mobile Home Installer FAQ).

Two practical takeaways:

Gutters only help if the downspouts do. A gutter that empties next to the skirting just moves the problem to one corner. The rules talk about water directed away from the home, and that is the job.
Your home’s installation instructions matter. If you have the manufacturer’s installation manual, it should say whether gutters can go on. If you do not have it, tell us at the estimate, and we will look at how your roof edge is built.

Rain pouring off the edge of your mobile home? Call (727) 857-3714 or get a free estimate. Chris will look at the roof edge, the skirting and where the water goes.

Which Gutter Fits a Mobile Home?

Not the same one that goes on most houses. Jennifer puts it simply: mobile homes generally take a roll form or pan gutter, while site-built homes take a K-style gutter mounted to the fascia.

The reason is the roof edge. A K-style gutter hangs from a fascia board, and as the guide above notes, a mobile home’s fascia can be thin, or the roof edge can be built differently altogether. The gutter has to fit how your home is built, not the other way around.

That is why we do not quote a mobile home gutter from a photo or over the phone. Chris looks at the roof edge first and tells you which gutter it needs and how it will be fastened.

Metal Roofs and Roof-Overs

If your mobile home has a metal roof, from the factory or as a roof-over (a new roof put on over the old one), we gutter those too.

On a metal roof, Jennifer says the standard attachment is behind the drip edge where applicable, the metal strip that runs along the roof edge. That keeps the water running off the roof and into the gutter instead of behind it. Our post on gutters for metal roofs in Florida goes deeper on why metal roofs need extra care.

If you are planning a roof-over, keep the gutters in mind. A new roof changes the edge the gutter attaches to, so it helps to plan both together.

Downspouts: Where the Job Is Won

On a mobile home, the downspouts do most of the work. Engineer Fix says downspouts “must channel water several feet away from the home’s base to ensure it bypasses the skirting.” The federal slope rule above uses the first ten feet from the home as the zone that has to drain away.

So when you look at a mobile home gutter quote, check the downspouts first:

Where each one lets out, so the water lands well away from the skirting.
Which way the ground falls, so the water keeps going instead of running back under the home.
What is in the way, like a carport, a deck, a shed or a neighbor’s lot line.

If the yard itself slopes toward the home, a gutter alone will not fix that. The federal rule covers this case too: a home on a sloped site must be protected from runoff coming from the surrounding area. Regrading or drains are a separate job, and not one we do.

Why Chris Knows These Homes

Chris holds a Florida mobile home installer license, IH1128002. In Florida, installers licensed by FLHSMV are the ones allowed to set up mobile homes, and the state requires each licensed installer to carry a $5,000 performance bond and $100,000 in general liability insurance (FLHSMV, Mobile Home Installer). Before Rain Storm Solutions did gutters, the business set up, installed and leveled mobile homes, starting in 2012 as Storm Solutions.

That history shows up in the gutter work. Chris knows what is under the skirting, how the piers are set, and what water does to them over time. We also work with builders on new mobile homes, so we see these homes from the setup on.

Our own crew does the work. We do not use subcontractors on gutter jobs.

How a Mobile Home Gutter Job Goes

You call or send the form. Jennifer gets back to you to set up a visit. Chris can usually come out within 24 to 72 hours.
Chris looks at the home. The roof edge, the fascia, the roof type, the skirting, and which way the ground falls.
You get a written price. It says which gutter goes on and where the downspouts let out. The price is good for 30 days.
We hang the gutters. A typical install takes one day.

We take 10% off for military members and veterans, first responders, and seniors 65 and up.

Rain Storm Solutions hangs gutters on mobile and manufactured homes across Hernando, Pasco and Citrus counties, from Brooksville and Spring Hill to Inverness, Floral City and Homosassa. See our mobile home gutters page for the full job, read do you really need gutters in Florida if you are still deciding, or call (727) 857-3714 or get a free estimate.

Do Mobile Homes Need Gutters? A Florida Installer Explains