Florida septic rules
Florida septic tank size & cost
Florida counts your living area, not just your bedrooms. A typical new 3-bedroom system in Florida runs about $8,000–$12,400 installed by our line-by-line estimate. Below: the state's actual size rule, the full table, and where every number comes from.
Rule: Rule 64E-6.008, F.A.C., Table I · Administered by Florida Department of Health · Read the official text · Checked 2026-11-08
Florida's rule, in plain words
Florida is the only state in our first ten that sizes by bedrooms AND living area together — a big house needs a bigger tank even with the same bedroom count.
Florida's Table I (Rule 64E-6.008) is a two-way table: bedrooms down one side, roofed living area across the top. A 3-bedroom home needs 900 gallons at up to 2,250 sq ft, 1,050 at up to 3,300 sq ft, and more above that — the same bedroom count can need three different tanks depending on the size of the house. Any Florida chart that lists one number per bedroom count is missing half the rule.
Beyond the printed bands, the rule keeps counting: +150 gallons for each additional 750 sq ft of living area, +150 per bedroom past five, and a flat +250 gallons for a garbage disposal.
The Florida size table
| Bedrooms | Up to 1,250 sq ft | Up to 2,250 sq ft | Up to 3,300 sq ft | Up to 4,400 sq ft | Above 4,400 sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 900 | 1,050 | 1,200 | 1,350 | 1,500 |
| 2 | 900 | 1,050 | 1,200 | 1,350 | 1,500 |
| 3 | 900 | 1,050 | 1,200 | 1,350 | 1,500 |
| 4 | 1,050 | 1,050 | 1,050 | 1,200 | 1,350 |
| 5 | 1,200 | 1,200 | 1,200 | 1,200 | 1,350 |
Florida Table I, Rule 64E-6.008. Above the top band: +150 gal for each additional 750 sq ft of living area above the top band; +150 gal per additional bedroom beyond five.
Garbage disposal: A garbage disposal (food-waste grinder) adds 250 gallons in Florida — a flat add-on, not a percentage.
Living area means roofed space; Florida counts it because bigger homes generate more wastewater at the same bedroom count.
Check your Florida home
State minimum — your county can require more. Estimate this system's cost →
What a Florida system costs
Our estimator prices a conventional 3-bedroom system in Florida (typical-cost area, 1,050-gal tank) at $8,000–$12,400 installed, assembled from a soil test, the permit, the tank at published prices, drainfield material, fittings and labor. Build your own estimate →
How Florida compares (3-bedroom minimum)
Full ten-state chart: septic tank size chart.
Other states we've checked
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