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

Section 13-120 prohibits operating any sound-creating blower, power fan or internal combustion engine unless the noise is muffled to meet the sound-zone standards set in § 13-144. The town's definitions section, § 13-137, defines 'mechanical equipment' to include air-conditioning units, pool equipment, satellite dishes, aboveground gas tanks, solar panels, antennas and generators, and defines a 'fixed sound source' as a stationary device such as residential, agricultural, industrial or commercial machinery, pumps, fans, compressors, air conditioners and refrigeration equipment. Read together, § 13-120 and these definitions reach the compressor and fan noise from a home or commercial air conditioning condenser.

Compliance is measured against § 13-144's Table 1 sound-zone standards: 55 dBA daytime and 45 dBA nighttime in a residential zone, 60/50 dBA in a mixed-use zone, 65/55 dBA in a commercial zone, and 70/60 dBA in an industrial zone, each measured as a three-minute equivalent continuous sound level (Leq) at the property line. Section 13-144(b)(2) also allows a separate instantaneous peak standard for mechanical equipment: an A-weighted peak that exceeds the applicable Leq standard by ten dBA at any time is independently a violation, which specifically targets the cyclical on/off noise spikes typical of HVAC compressors and pool pumps rather than only their steady running hum.

Because the muffler requirement in § 13-120 has no time-of-day exemption, a poorly maintained or oversized HVAC unit that exceeds the applicable sound-zone limit violates the code whether it runs at noon or at midnight.