Neighborhoods we work in regularly
The Old Bartow Historic District is the heart of our work in this town. Pre-1900 Queen Anne homes, Folk Victorian on the side streets, and a long run of Craftsman bungalows. We have installed half-round copper on a handful of pre-1900 homes within walking distance of the L.B. Brown House Museum, and color-matched aluminum on most of the bungalow stock. The eye-line from the street is the thing. A poorly sized white gutter wrecks the front elevation, and we have walked away from jobs where the homeowner wanted the wrong material because it would have damaged the home.
Wonderland, Stahl Park, and Loyal Estates are the established residential rings outside the historic core. Mostly single-story homes from the 1950s through the 1980s, oak-shaded lots, and straightforward 5-inch K-style installs. Guards are almost always worth it because of the canopy.
South Bartow has more 1990s through 2010s construction, often on land that was previously ag or pasture. Drainage on these lots tilts in ways that are not obvious until you put a gutter on the roof and watch where the water lands. We walk every property before we quote, because the soil situation in this town does not show up on a plot plan.
Materials and sizing for Bartow homes
Aluminum at .032 gauge handles most Bartow homes, but the historic district pulls more copper and color-matched aluminum than other parts of the county. We carry both. Copper is the right answer on the most architecturally significant properties. Its patina pairs with brick and clapboard, and it has effectively no lifespan in this climate.
For sizing, the standard is 5-inch K-style with downspouts every 35 feet. We step up to 6-inch on steep roofs, on properties with heavy oak overhang, and on larger homes. The downspout sizing matters as much as the gutter width in this town. 3 by 4 downspouts choke on sediment-laden runoff. We use 4 by 5 on Bartow homes where the soil situation argues for it.
We also use longer downspout extensions in Bartow than we do in most of the county. A standard 18-inch elbow off the wall is not enough when the soil eats away from the termination. We carry 36-inch and 48-inch extensions on the truck.
Landmarks we have worked near
We have installed gutters on properties within walking distance of the Polk County Courthouse, around Mary Holland Park, near the L.B. Brown House Museum, and through the streets bordering the Peace River corridor. Half-round copper on a Folk Victorian a block off the courthouse square is one of our favorite installs from the past five years. We have also worked the residential streets running south from the civic center, where the canopy is thickest and the guards do their most work.