Freedom Code Compliance
Commercial

Commercial Solar Installation

Solar PV installation at commercial, apartment, or condo property, including wiring and roof mounting. Battery-only work uses Battery Storage.

Last updated: Sep 29, 2026

Section 1

Required Documents

Submit these with your initial project package.

Always required

  • Construction Plans
    Solar installation plans including structural attachment details, equipment specifications, and electrical diagrams. Plans prepared by a Florida-registered architect or engineer carry that professional's seal. Plans prepared by a contractor or owner are accepted without a seal unless Florida law or the building department requires professional plans.
  • Site Plan
    Rooftop system: the site or roof layout sheet showing the array, roof access pathways and ridge setbacks, and equipment locations. Ground-mounted system: a site plan with distances to lot lines and other structures.

Courtesy screen

Courtesy screen on every plan review

Every plan FCC reviews receives a limited courtesy screen for the items below when they are reasonably visible in the submitted documents. If we see an apparent issue that could cause the plans to fail review by another agency, we will identify it as a Courtesy Comment. Courtesy Comments alone do not cause FCC to fail or return the plan set unless the same condition also creates a building-code compliance issue within FCC's review scope. The responsible agency makes the final determination—for example, Planning and Zoning for setbacks, lot coverage, use, and other lot-compliance matters. The absence of a Courtesy Comment is not approval of those separate requirements.

  1. #01Plan and document coordination

    Obvious clerical, title-block, sheet-index, permit-description, or cross-sheet inconsistencies visible in the submitted documents. A Courtesy Comment on these items does not cause FCC to fail or return the plan set unless the same condition also creates a building-code compliance issue within FCC's review scope.

    FBC-B 107.2.1
  2. #02Zoning and site coordination

    Apparent setback, lot-coverage, use, or site-dimension conflicts visible in the submitted plans that could cause the plans to fail Planning and Zoning review. Planning and Zoning makes the zoning and lot-compliance determination. The absence of a Courtesy Comment is not approval of those separate requirements.

  3. #03Floodplain coordination

    Apparent inconsistencies or missing coordination in flood-zone, design-flood-elevation, finished-floor, or flood-opening information shown on the plans that could cause the plans to fail floodplain review. The floodplain administrator makes the determination. The absence of a Courtesy Comment is not approval of those separate requirements.

  4. #04Fire-authority coordination

    Apparent separately reviewed fire alarm, sprinkler, hood-suppression, smoke-control, or similar coordination issues visible on the plans that could cause the plans to fail fire review. The fire marshal makes the determination. The absence of a Courtesy Comment is not approval of those separate requirements.

Section 2

Approval criteria for this project type

These are the building-code criteria FCC uses to determine the plan-review result. An unresolved item may be issued as a Required Correction and cause the plan set to be returned for correction.

BuildingRequired

  1. #01Structural attachment and uplift (commercial solar)Life Safety

    Commercial solar racking designed for wind uplift.

    FBC-B 1607.13ASCE 7
  2. #02Roof load and fire access (commercial solar)Life Safety

    Commercial roof must support solar array; fire access pathways per jurisdiction.

    FBC-B 1603FBC-B 3111.3.4
  3. #03Engineer of record seal, when engineeredDocumentation

    When a Florida engineer prepared the structural drawings, the document carries that engineer's seal and signature. Contractor- or owner-prepared structural drawings need a seal only when Florida law or the building department requires one.

    Florida Statutes Chapter 471FBC-B 107.3.5

ElectricalRequired

  1. #01PV disconnect, RSD, and labeling (commercial)Life Safety

    Commercial PV disconnects per NEC 690.13 and RSD per 690.12.

    NEC 690.12NEC 690.13
  2. #02Grounding and interconnection (commercial solar)Life Safety

    Commercial PV grounding and interconnection per NEC 690/705.

    NEC 690NEC 705.12

Section 3

Inspection Walkthrough

Inspections are listed in their typical phase order. Your own inspection list comes from your approved plans. Inspections marked “If in scope” apply only when your plans include that work. Call (772) 222-6679 with questions.

Electrical

Phase #1

Electrical Rough-In

  1. Mounting and racking systemCritical

    Verify solar panel mounting and racking system is installed per engineered plans with proper roof attachment

    FBC-B 1510.7.3
  2. Electrical conduit and wiringCritical

    Verify conduit routing, wire sizing, and connections per approved plans and NEC

    NEC 690.31NEC 690.8
  3. Grounding and bondingCritical

    Verify equipment grounding conductor and bonding of all metallic racking components

    NEC 690.43NEC 690.47
  4. Rapid shutdown complianceCritical

    Verify rapid shutdown system is installed and labeled per NEC

    NEC 690.12
  5. Roof penetration waterproofingCritical

    Verify all roof penetrations are properly flashed and sealed

Phase #2

Power Release / Service

If in scope
  1. Service equipment installedCritical

    Show meter enclosure, disconnect, and service conductors ready for utility connection.

  2. Service grounding and bondingCritical

    Show grounding electrode and bonding connections at the service.

  3. Panel and circuit identificationCritical

    Label service and affected panels clearly.

  4. Utility release readinessCritical

    Have the approved service plans and required utility coordination available.

  5. Safe energizationCritical

    Confirm exposed wiring is protected and all covers are installed before release.

Phase #3

Electrical Final

Typical Final
  1. Panel installation and layoutCritical

    Verify solar panel layout matches approved plans and all panels are secured

  2. Inverter installationCritical

    Verify inverter is properly installed with required clearances and labeling

  3. Disconnect and labelingCritical

    Verify AC and DC disconnects are installed, accessible, and properly labeled

    NEC 690.13NEC 690.56
  4. System operational test

    Verify system powers on and produces expected output

  5. Building portion completeCritical

    The solar final covers the electrical and the building work. Show roof attachments, flashing, and penetrations complete and sealed, and the array layout matching the approved roof plan and manufacturer instructions.

    FBC-B 1510.7FBC-B 1510.7.3