Doral, FL Noise from Specific Sources: HVAC & Mechanical Noise (2026)

Section 26-128(13) of the Doral Code of Ordinances declares 'steady, mechanical noise' from an air conditioner, electric motor, pool pump, exhaust fan, filter, or similar noise-producing mechanical equipment to be an unreasonably loud noise violation when it causes frequent, habitual, or long continued noise plainly audible at a distance of 100 feet from the building, structure, or property line where the equipment is located. Because § 26-128 defines 'frequent, habitual or long continued' noise for the article as a whole in subsection (3)(b), that same duration test applies here: the noise must run for more than 30 minutes straight, or for at least three separate periods each exceeding 15 minutes within three consecutive days, before it qualifies.

A neighbor affected inside their own residence or place of business qualifies as a 'complainant' under § 26-127. Emergency work and equipment used under a special-event or municipal-facility exemption in § 26-133 are excluded from the standard. Enforcement follows the same path as the rest of Article V: a code compliance officer investigates a report under § 26-134, and upon personally confirming that the mechanical equipment's noise meets the 100-foot, duration-based threshold, warns the property owner or operator to stop and issues a notice of violation.

Section 26-135 sets civil fines of $100 for a first offense and $500 for a second or later offense within one year, with a separate notice possible for each hour the noise continues and a per diem fine for three notices within a month.