Water Heater permits across Florida
Where each city draws the line on water heater work. Sort any column — useful if you build across several towns and need to know where the rules change.
Cities compared
36
Always need one
36
Depends on size
0
The statewide starting point is Florida Building Code, Building, 2023, 8th edition. Cities that changed the rule are the interesting rows below.
| Where the line falls | Fee | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville | 1,009,833 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or move a water hea… | The code lists no dollar amounts. Plumbing permit fees are … |
| Miami | 487,014 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or relocate a water… | The code names no water heater amount. Sec. 10-9 sets a per… |
| Tampa | 414,547 | Yes | You need a permit to replace or relocate a water heater. … | The code names no water heater amount. Sec. 5-109.2 charges… |
| Orlando | 334,854 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or move a water hea… | The code names no water heater amount. Orlando publishes it… |
| St. Petersburg | 267,102 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | There is a permit fee for a water heater changeout under th… |
| Port St. Lucie | 258,575 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or move a water hea… | The code names no water heater amount. Port St. Lucie publi… |
| Hialeah | 235,388 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or relocate a water… | The code names no water heater amount. Sec. 14-3 says permi… |
| Cape Coral | 233,025 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater is new work, not a… | — |
| Tallahassee | 205,089 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or move a water hea… | The code lists no dollar amounts. Plumbing permit fees come… |
| Fort Lauderdale | 190,641 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater counts as new work… | — |
| Gainesville | 148,720 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or move a water hea… | The code lists no dollar amounts. Plumbing permit fees are … |
| Miramar | 143,242 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater counts as new work… | — |
| Coral Springs | 140,808 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater counts as new work… | — |
| West Palm Beach | 127,744 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | — |
| Lakeland | 124,990 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater counts as new work… | — |
| Clearwater | 116,811 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater is new work, not a… | — |
| Miami Gardens | 116,173 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or relocate a water… | The code lists no dollar amounts. Fees are set by the city;… |
| Davie | 112,052 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | — |
| Palm Coast | 106,729 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or move a water hea… | The code lists no dollar amounts. Fees are published by the… |
| Boca Raton | 102,238 | Yes | You need a permit to replace or relocate a water heater. … | The dollar amount is set by the city's municipal facilities… |
| Plantation | 100,694 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or move a water hea… | The permit fee is 1.75% of the subcontract cost. The city n… |
| Deltona | 100,513 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater is new work, not o… | — |
| Sunrise | 100,128 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater counts as new work… | — |
| Fort Myers | 99,918 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | — |
| North Port | 92,875 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater is new work, not o… | — |
| Deerfield Beach | 90,507 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | The city sets permit fees by a separate commission resoluti… |
| Melbourne | 87,561 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or move a water hea… | The code lists no dollar amount. Plumbing permit fees are s… |
| Daytona Beach | 86,015 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or move a water hea… | The code lists no dollar amounts. Plumbing permit fees are … |
| Homestead | 85,796 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater is new work, not a… | General building permit application fee: $125 minimum plus … |
| Kissimmee | 84,756 | Yes | You need a plumbing permit to replace or move a water hea… | The city permit fee schedule (Sec. 9-186) lists a fee for e… |
| Doral | 83,625 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | Building permit fees are set by Schedule A, a fee schedule … |
| Miami Beach | 83,251 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | Plumbing permit fees follow Appendix A, the city's fee sche… |
| Boynton Beach | 83,095 | Yes | You need a permit to replace or relocate a water heater. … | The dollar amount is set by the city's fee schedule, not pr… |
| Largo | 82,337 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater is new work, not o… | — |
| Lauderhill | 76,627 | Yes | Replacing or relocating a water heater counts as new work… | — |
| Tamarac | 75,147 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | Building permit fees are set by city commission resolution … |
“Unconfirmed” means the city's code doesn't state the rule plainly enough to publish. Those city pages link straight to the ordinance section instead.
Why neighboring cities disagree
Every city starts from a model code and then edits it. One town raises the shed cutoff, the next lowers the fence height, a third exempts the structure where its neighbor only exempts repairs to it. None of that is visible from a national article — you have to read each ordinance, which is what these pages do.