Reading the Number on Your Tile Roof Product Approval

Tile roof product approval in Florida is the state’s check that a roofing product meets the Florida Building Code before it goes on a building. To check one, read its approval number, its revision suffix, and its code basis. Then compare them with your permit documents.

What Florida Tile Roof Product Approval Means

Florida product approval is the statewide process that confirms a roofing product complies with the building code. State law lists roofing among the product categories that must be approved through one of the statewide methods in Fla. Stat. § 553.842. Under Fla. Stat. § 553.842, roofing is one of the product categories that must be approved statewide. Code R. 61G20-3.002.

The approval covers the product itself. Under Fla. Admin. Code R. 61G20-3.004, every product used in covered construction must comply with the code or its intent. A permit reviewer may ask for the approval number for each tile product on a project. The number ties that exact product to a state record. A company name alone does not show approval.

State law also restricts how a product may be advertised as hurricane or impact protection under Fla. Stat. § 553.842(5). Fla. Stat. § 553.8425 covers local product approval: products or systems of construction must demonstrate compliance with the structural windload requirements of the Florida Building Code through one of the listed methods.

Where the Approval Number Comes From

Approved products appear in the state’s public product approval records at www.floridabuilding.org.

Start with the number printed on the manufacturer’s documentation or submittal sheet. Search the records for that same number. Then confirm the manufacturer and product name match the papers you have.

If the number does not appear in the state record, ask the manufacturer for the correct documentation before you order the tile. A number that points to a different product will cause problems at inspection.

How to Read an FL Approval Number

An FL approval number ends in a revision suffix. In the example FL10450-R18, the R18 marks which revision you are looking at.

Under Fla. Admin. Code R. 61G20-3.012, a revision keeps the same Florida Product Approval number and adds a revision number, such as R1 or R2. Once the Commission approves a revision, it supersedes the original approval. An older revision on your paperwork may no longer be the current one.

Read the listed components in the record, such as underlayment and fastening requirements. Compare them with your installation plan. If they differ, expect the reviewer to ask why.

Miami-Dade NOA and the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone

Miami-Dade County uses its own product control system. Its tile approvals come as separate Notices of Acceptance (NOA). These approvals refer to the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone (HVHZ) provisions of the code.

For example, the Miami-Dade metal barrel-tile approval says Florida-approved metal panels were evaluated for code compliance, including the HVHZ provisions. The Miami-Dade Plantation concrete tile approval covers a flat-profile, interlocking concrete tile. That system is tested under TAS 112 and approved for specified applications.

Match the NOA to the exact tile profile. Check delivered tiles for that label.

For local context, see our Miami tile roofing guide and Fort Lauderdale tile roofing guide.

Checking a Product Approved Outside Florida

A product approved in another state does not carry a Florida approval number on its own. Florida law requires roofing products to be approved through one of its statewide methods.

Florida’s statewide product approval statute, Fla. Stat. § 553.842, requires products that need approval to be approved by one of the methods established in subsection (5) before their use in construction in this state. A local building official reviews compliance documents. The official may deem a product approved when it complies, in line with its approval and limits of use.

Read the approval’s limits of use before you rely on it.

Why the Florida Building Code Edition Date Matters

Code changes do not void approvals for products already installed. Under Fla. Stat. § 553.8425, this applies if the product met code requirements when it was installed. Check the record’s code basis against your permit documents.

Palm Beach County’s product approval page states that metal roofing is subject to Florida’s statewide product-approval system. For how permits apply to tile repairs, read do I need a permit to fix roof tiles in West Palm Beach.

Matching the Approval to Your Permit and Inspection

Compare five items: product name, manufacturer, approval number, revision, and code edition. Each one should match across the approval record, the delivered product, and the permit file.

Under Fla. Stat. § 553.79, it is unlawful to repair a building in Florida without first getting a permit. A separate exemption from contractor licensing exists for owners of property who personally provide direct, onsite supervision of all work not performed by licensed contractors, but only for the structures and within the limits set out in Fla. Stat. § 489.103(7). This exemption does not waive the owner-builder permit requirement. Tile repair and replacement work generally goes through this permit process.

That tells you exactly what a valid inspection question looks like.

A mismatch between the approved product and the tile on the roof can raise a permit or inspection question. Keep copies of the approval record and product documentation in the permit file.

Talk Through Your Tile Roof Approval Questions With ASP Superhome

If an inspector has asked for your tile’s approval number, you need to confirm it matches the product on your roof. You may be waiting on that answer before your tile roof replacement or repair can move forward.

Bring the product name, manufacturer, and approval number to ASP Superhome. Our team can review them with your tile roof plan before installation. Our initial consultation is free, confidential, and comes with no obligation to continue. Request your estimate here.