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Stellar Building Performance is a Florida family-run company providing energy code testing across Okeechobee County, including Fort Drum. Fort Drum is unincorporated, so permits and inspections run through the Okeechobee County Building Department.
What Is a Duct Leakage Test?
A duct leakage test measures how much air escapes the duct system instead of reaching the rooms it was sized for. In Fort Drum, it is the last check before a new home or conditioned addition can close out with the Okeechobee County Building Department.
Fort Drum is an unincorporated community on US 441 about 20 miles north of the City of Okeechobee, between Okeechobee and Yeehaw Junction, and the namesake of the Fort Drum service plaza on Florida’s Turnpike. It grew up as cattle country after the Seminole Wars and is still rural today.
Registers are sealed and a calibrated fan pressurizes the system to 25 Pascals, reporting the result as CFM25 per 100 square feet of conditioned floor area. The result is filed with the Okeechobee County Building Department against the Florida Energy Conservation Code.
Request Duct Leakage Testing
we coordinate Fort Drum duct leakage testing around your stage of construction, with the report sent the same day.
Projects Our Team has Worked On Across Our Service Area
Florida Energy Code Duct Leakage Requirements
A duct test is required here whenever any part of the duct system or the air handler sits outside the conditioned space. Total leakage must be no more than 4 CFM25 per 100 square feet of conditioned floor area, or 3 CFM25 per 100 square feet at rough-in where the air handler is not yet installed. Where every duct run and the air handler are inside the thermal envelope, the code does not require a test at all.
Fort Drum is unincorporated, so the Okeechobee County Building Department issues the permit and handles the inspections. The county runs the department under contract with SAFEbuilt, offers online permitting and inspection requests, and has a permit technician review construction documents for completeness before a submittal is accepted, so an incomplete package costs time before it ever reaches plan review.
Why is Duct Leakage Testing Beneficial?
Fort Drum sits in Florida’s hot, humid Climate Zone 2, which is unforgiving about air and moisture, and the duct system is where conditioned air goes missing.
Ducts losing air outside the conditioned space can cause:
For Fort Drum projects the test does two jobs at once: it satisfies the Okeechobee County Building Department and it tells the builder whether the assembly actually performed the way it was drawn.
How We Keep Our Services Simple and Easy
We want completing your Duct Leakage Testing in Fort Drum to be as easy as possible.
1.
Schedule your test
You tell us the Fort Drum address and when the home will be ready. Okeechobee County is a longer drive for us than our coastal work, so put the test on our calendar as early as you can and we will line it up with your final inspection.
2.
onsite testing
We show up at the Fort Drum address with everything needed. Registers are sealed and the duct tester is connected to the system, which is then brought up to test pressure.
3.
Diagnostics and Measurements
We measure total duct leakage in CFM25 per 100 square feet and compare it against the limit for the test stage. If it is over, we identify where it is going rather than just handing you a fail.
4.
Report delivered same day via email
Everyone on the Fort Drum project team gets the signed report the same day, not on the next visit.
5.
Ready for Final Inspection approval
With the report on file, the Okeechobee County Building Department can close out the permit and issue the certificate of occupancy.
Contact Us for Convenient Duct Leakage Testing in Fort Drum
Why Builders Choose Stellar Building Performance
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Recent Duct Leakage Tests
Checking in from the field! See some highlights of our recent Duct Leakage Test site visits!
Frequently asked questions about Duct Leakage Testing
Typically 30 to 60 minutes for a Fort Drum home. The setup takes longer than the measurement itself, and nothing about it is destructive.
Simple rule of thumb: if it’s a conditioned space intended for people, it will require duct leakage testing.
By code definition, any dwelling unit permitted for residential use requires duct leakage testing in Fort Drum. This includes:
Common Structures Like:
Additional Structures Like:
In Fort Drum, duct leakage testing is required for new residential buildings where any part of the duct system or the air handler sits outside the conditioned space. That covers most homes with ducts in an attic, a garage, a crawlspace, or a soffit chase. If every duct run and the air handler are inside the thermal envelope, the code exempts the system from testing.
Yes. If duct leakage testing is on the permit and the result is not documented, the Okeechobee County Building Department can hold final approval until it is. That is the whole reason to book the test early, with a provider who shows up when they said they would.
Either one is allowed. A rough-in test is run before the drywall closes the system up, which is the better moment to catch a problem because the ducts are still reachable. A postconstruction test is run near the end, once the air handler is in and the home is approaching final inspection. The limit is 4 CFM25 per 100 square feet in both cases, except at rough-in without the air handler installed, where it tightens to 3.
In most cases, no. Other trades can keep working in Fort Drum while we test — we only need the openings closed and the house in its final configuration.
Okeechobee County. Fort Drum is unincorporated, so the permit and the inspections run through the Okeechobee County Building Department. We schedule the test against the county inspection date.
No. Fort Drum is part of our Okeechobee County service area. Okeechobee County is a longer drive for us than our coastal work, so put the test on our calendar as early as you can and we will line it up with your final inspection.
Want the longer version? Read our complete duct leakage testing FAQ.
Duct Leakage Testing Code Reference
Duct Leakage Test Florida Requirements Explained
Duct leakage testing is required in Fort Drum under R403.3.3 of the 2023 Florida Building Code, Energy Conservation, Eighth Edition, which calls for ducts to be pressure tested at 25 Pascals either at rough-in or after construction.
The limits live in R403.3.4. Total leakage must be no more than 4 CFM25 per 100 square feet of conditioned floor area on a postconstruction test, and the same 4 CFM25 on a rough-in test where the air handler is installed. If the air handler is not in place at rough-in, the limit tightens to 3 CFM25 per 100 square feet.
There is a real exception: no duct test is required where the ducts and air handlers are located entirely within the building thermal envelope. Homes on the performance path under R405 are handled differently again, and are tested against the duct leakage rate assumed in the energy calculation.
We keep the full code language, including the complete text of R403.3.3, R403.3.4 and the R405 provisions, on our main duct leakage page: read the full Florida duct leakage code references.
questions? give us a call, this is our specialty!
Need Duct Leakage Testing in Fort Drum to Pass Final Inspection?
Helping Fort Drum Builders Stay on Schedule
Coordinated Scheduling
Testing in Fort Drum gets scheduled to land before the inspection, not chase it.
accurate results
Calibrated equipment and a RESNET certified inspector, so the number holds up when the Okeechobee County Building Department reviews it.
same day reports
Same-day digital reporting to the whole Fort Drum project team, with deficiencies named if there are any.
Other Areas We Serve
Local duct leakage testing in Fort Drum, with additional service throughout Okeechobee County, Brevard County, Indian River County, St. Lucie County and Martin County.