The Advantages To Florida Home Owners When Working With Companies That Offer Products With Florida Product Approval

Structures that are built in Florida need to comply with specific standards and regulations to be signed off on by local county and government officials. One of the main considerations that needs to be met when building a structure, or even something like a canopy, is the Florida Product Approval standard.

This guideline is required due to the severe weather that Florida often experiences, which can include things like hurricanes and tropical storms. Certain products have to meet this set standard so that homes and other structures can be signed off on as likely to survive a storm.

What You Need to Know About Florida Product Approval

Florida Product Approval impacts the standards that are used for a variety of different components and parts of homes, outbuildings, and canopies. You need to have Florida Product Approval in mind if you are looking at using these products for your home, canopy, or other structure that you want to build:

·        Exterior doors

·        Windows

·        Panel walls

·        Roofing products

·        Shutters

·        Skylights

·        Structural components

·        Impact systems

The benefits of applying these standards for these items are numerous since storms in Florida can cause significant damage. The cost of insurance has skyrocketed in Florida since the past two or three storm seasons were so intense. This kind of product approval requirement helps to reduce the cost of damage associated with the inevitable winter season storms that can impact all of Florida.

Without this kind of rigorous oversight, the damage that might be caused to the above products during the stormy season could be catastrophic for homeowners. While it might seem like a lot of extra work to have to take this kind of compliance into consideration, it is for the best overall.

What Are the Standards for the Florida Product Approval?

Florida Product Approval is only given to products that meet specific testing standards. These standards and the compliance associated with them are necessary for all products in this category if they are going to be installed in a building or structure in Florida. You might still find that there are products on the market that do not meet these standards, and you will need to avoid them if you want your construction efforts to be signed off on.

To get Florida Product Approval, products must go through the following:

• Independent Third-Party Testing:

This testing is completed by a lab that knows the standards for the Florida Product Approval and tests specifically to these requirements. Even if a business that creates the building materials listed above has their own in-house testing and engineering team that looks at the quality of the items that they sell, this independent testing must be completed for them to be certified. The products are rigorously tested by the third-party entity and signed off on during this phase of the approval process.

• Engineering Evaluation:

After products pass the third-party testing process, they are handed over to a Florida-licensed engineer who also tests them. They need to meet specific durability and impact-resistance standards during this part of the process.

•  Approval and Maintenance:

Once the engineer has signed off on the products in question, they are required to be re-tested at regular intervals to be sure that the materials will hold up to long-term application and abuse by storms and other weather challenges. Retesting is required once every three years.

Canopies are not tested in this way, which is why you will need to be sure that you are familiar with the requirements of the Florida Product Approval law with regard to this specific kind of structure. You do not want your canopy to fall down if there is a storm that comes through your area, and you also do not want to have to pay to have significant parts of your canopy re-engineered or repaired because it could not be signed off on.

Working with a skilled builder who is familiar with Florida laws and regulations might be the best way to go when it comes to building something on your property. You will find that this is usually the best way to save money and time, as well as to prevent frustration. Be sure that you ask your builder about the Florida Product Approval standard so that you can ensure that your build will be done with this standard in mind.

It can be tempting to make your own canopy or added structure to save money, but you might run into major problems that will end up costing you far more money and heartache than you thought possible. Even those with the skills to build a structure like this might not be familiar enough with the legal requirements of this type of structure to be able to build on their own property.

There Are Many Advantages to Compliance With Florida’s Product Approval Process

There are so many reasons that compliance with the Product Approval Process is key in the state of Florida. If you have been worried about the potential damage that could be caused by storms to your home or business, you will want to put this compliance process at the top of your list of things to worry about. These compliance requirements will have to be adhered to for all new construction projects, and you might want to have your existing property checked to see if the windows, roof products, skylights, and other components meet the necessary standards.

Being able to protect your investment from storm damage is critical all over the state of Florida. You might think that your area will never be impacted by a storm, but that is rarely the case. Most of the state of Florida can be impacted by stormy weather and the damage that can be caused by these weather events can be devastating without proper precautions being taken. Protecting your home allows you to protect your loved ones, your property, and your safety during the toughest weather season of each year.