St. Cloud energy calcs & Manual J.
Twenty megabytes, two leakage tests on site, and surveys before the slab.
St. Cloud takes residential permits online through its New Structure application, which caps all uploaded documents at 20 MB combined and posts a Building Air Leakage Test form beside it. The city's 2026 guidebook says the blower door and duct leakage tests must be on site at the building final. Climate zone 2A, 91°F cooling.
- Department
- City of St. Cloud, Building DepartmentNew Structure Permit Application (online form center)1
- Code edition
- FBC Energy Conservation, 8th Ed. (2023)9th Ed. (2026) scheduled for Dec 31, 2026 · what changes2
- Climate zone
- Zone 2A1% cooling 91°F · 99% heating 42°F3
- Price
- $195 · $445 · $595Energy calc from · full package · sealed. Same in all 67 counties · price list
- Ready by
- 2–3 business daysExpedited: within 24 business hours, +$150. Clock starts when complete plans pass intake (3:00 PM ET cutoff) · how it works
- Evidence
- 11 primary sourcesEvery number on this page links to its source · references
What St. Cloud reviewers ask for
The residential New Structure application opens with the class of work, single-family detached or attached, multi-family or ADU, because permit and impact fees are assessed from that choice.4 Its upload section asks that files be named as listed and carries one hard limit: all uploaded documents together cannot exceed 20 MB.4 Scanned calc packages eat into that quickly; ours are text-based PDFs.
The rest of the St. Cloud submittal notes2 more paragraphs
Alongside the application the city posts its own Building Air Leakage Test form, the notice of commencement and its product approval form, plus OUC and KUA underground-service agreements.4 Its 2026 guidebook adds that the blower door test and the duct leakage test must be on the job site for the building final inspection, or the inspection is disapproved.5 The online form doesn't list the energy documents themselves in what we could read; so ask the city which energy documents it wants with the application.
Flood paperwork runs through construction. The application requires a pre-construction elevation certificate in Zone A at form-board survey, a finished-construction certificate in Zones A and AE at final survey, an approved form-board survey before the slab inspection and an approved final survey before the building final.6 A notice of commencement is required at $5,000 of value, materials plus labor, recorded at the Osceola County Courthouse in Kissimmee and posted on site before the first inspection.46
Building departments
1 department · addresses, phones, portals
St. Cloud runs its own Building Department; Osceola County's FAQ tells applicants to check whether an address is in St. Cloud or Kissimmee before filing with the county.8 The city issued 1,430 one-unit permits in 2025, sixth among Florida cities outside consolidated Jacksonville.9 Unincorporated Osceola is on our Osceola County page.
| Department | Address | Phone | Portal |
|---|---|---|---|
| City of St. Cloud, Building Department | 1300 Ninth St., St. Cloud, FL 34769 | 407-957-7224 | New Structure Permit Application (online form center)1 |
Design conditions
91°F cooling · 42°F heating · zone 2A · weather stations
Cooling station: Melbourne Regional Airport (Manual J). Heating station: Orlando International Airport (Manual J).3
St. Cloud uses Osceola County's limits, 91°F cooling from Melbourne Regional Airport and 42°F heating from Orlando International.3 Zone 2A.2 Two airports, neither in the city: that is how RESNET assigns Osceola, and the county value is what a reviewer will check against.
Worked example
2,400 sq ft house → 29,090 Btu/h, 2.42 tons · illustrative
Illustrative · not a Manual J
A 2,400 sq ft, four-bedroom two-storey frame house; the size and frame walls are our assumptions, set a little above the city's 5.9-room median.10 The 50-grain moisture difference reflects inland Central Florida summers and is also our choice.
| House | new two-storey frame home, St. Cloud |
|---|---|
| Conditioned area | 2,400 sq ft, 2 storeys, 9 ft ceilings |
| Bedrooms / occupants | 4 / 5 |
| Glazing | 15% of floor area (360 sq ft), U 0.3, SHGC 0.25 |
| Walls / ceiling | R-13 walls, R-38 ceiling under a vented attic |
| Air leakage | 5 ACH50 |
| Ducts | in the attic, 8% gain allowance |
| Ventilation | mechanical, per FBC formula |
| Outdoor design | 91°F cooling / 42°F heating (sourced above) |
| Indoor design | 75°F cooling / 70°F heating |
| Design grains difference | 50 gr/lb (assumption) |
Illustrative only. A simplified block-load estimate with the inputs shown, not an ACCA Manual J, and not for permitting. A real calc goes room by room with your plans, orientation and equipment data. Code ceiling for single-stage cooling at 1.15× total load: 33,460 Btu/h.11
Local housing
Median year built 2003 · 71.9% single-family detached · Census ACS
St. Cloud's units are 71.9% single-family detached and 6.4% mobile homes, with a 2003 median year built and 56.6% from 2000 on.10 Owners occupy 72.5% of homes; electricity heats 92.5% of them.10 The city adopted the 8th Edition (2023) Florida Building Codes effective December 31, 2023.4
Utility rebates
OUC
- OUC. Where OUC is the electric provider, its heat-pump rebate is a bill credit of $45 to $1,150 for qualifying systems rated 15.2 SEER2 or higher; confirm the provider first, since the city's forms include both OUC and KUA service agreements.74
Utility programs change often; check the program page before you count on a rebate.
St. Cloud questions
3 answers · What is the upload limit for a St. Cloud permit application?
What is the upload limit for a St. Cloud permit application?
The city's residential New Structure application caps all uploaded documents combined at 20 MB and asks that files be named as they appear in its upload list. Large scanned plan sets and calc packages can exceed that, so submit text-based PDFs and compress drawings before uploading.
What energy tests does St. Cloud check at the final inspection?
Its 2026 Building Department guidebook says the blower door test and the duct leakage test must be on the job site for the building final inspection, along with the termite certificate. Missing documents mean a disapproved inspection. The city also posts a Building Air Leakage Test form with its permit applications.
Where do I record a notice of commencement for St. Cloud?
At the Osceola County Courthouse in Kissimmee, recorded or e-recorded, per the city's application page. St. Cloud requires one on projects valued at $5,000 or more, counting materials and labor, and its application says it must be recorded and posted on the job site before the first inspection.
Price
One statewide price in all 67 counties. Building departments decide what they accept; we don’t guarantee approval. Revisions for plan-review comments on the same design are free.
Nearby and related
Sources
11 primary references · numbered to match the citations
- 01City of St. Cloud, Building Departmentstcloudfl.gov
- 022023 Florida Building Code, Energy Conservation (8th Ed.), Table R301.1, climate zones by countyup.codes
- 03RESNET / ENERGY STAR, Appendix A: HVAC Design Temperature Limits by State and County (v4, 2019). 1% cooling and 99% heating values drawn from the ASHRAE 2013 Handbook of Fundamentals and ACCA Manual J 8th Ed.resnet.us
- 04City of St. Cloud Form Center, New Structure Permit Application – Residentialstcloudfl.gov
- 05City of St. Cloud, Building Department Guidebook 2026 (PDF)stcloudfl.gov
- 06City of St. Cloud, New Structure – Building Permit Application (PDF)stcloudfl.gov
- 07OUC, Heat Pump A/C Rebateouc.com
- 08Osceola County, Building Office Frequent Questionsosceola.org
- 09U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2025 annual place data, South Region (1-unit housing units by permit-issuing place)www2.census.gov
- 10U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates for St. Cloud (B25018, B25024, B25034, B25035, B25003, B25040), via Census Reportercensusreporter.org
- 11Florida Building Commission, R405-2026 documentation checklist example (quotes R403.7.1.1 cooling equipment sizing limits)floridabuilding.org