How to Meet Salon Ventilation Requirements in a Hair or Nail Salon
Salon ventilation takes exhaust of 0.6 cfm per square foot in a beauty salon or nail salon and 0.5 in a barber shop (Florida Building Code, Mechanical, Table 403.3.1.1).
At Reach Commercial Real Estate, we represent tenants. We help you find locations, compare costs, investigate property questions and negotiate the lease.
1. Find your salon ventilation figures
The code gives barbers, beauty salons and nail salons their own occupancy and outdoor air figures (Florida Building Code, Mechanical, Table 403.3.1.1, Chapter 4):
Barber: 25 occupants per 1,000 square feet, outdoor air of 7.5 cfm per person plus 0.06 cfm per square foot.
Beauty salons: 25 occupants per 1,000 square feet, outdoor air of 20 cfm per person plus 0.12 cfm per square foot.
Nail salons: the same figures as beauty salons.
Barber and beauty shops are listed in Group B (Florida Building Code, Building, section 304.1).
2. Check the recirculation rule
Beauty salons and nail salons must have mechanical exhaust, and air from those spaces cannot be recirculated (Florida Building Code, Mechanical, Table 403.3.1.1, footnote b).
Air that stays completely inside the space can be recirculated.
3. Plan the exhaust at each nail station
Each manicure and pedicure station in a nail salon needs a source capture system that exhausts at least 50 cfm (Florida Building Code, Mechanical, Table 403.3.1.1, footnote h).
A 1,000 square foot salon with six nail stations comes to 600 cfm of exhaust at 0.6 cfm per square foot. It also needs 300 cfm of source capture at 50 cfm per station.
4. Read the state salon rule
A salon that extends or sculptures nails has to do that work in a separate area that is adequately ventilated for the safe dispersion of all fumes (Rule 61G5-20.002).
Before opening a salon, the owner has to meet the safety and sanitary requirements in the rule and follow all local building and fire codes (Rule 61G5-20.002).
A cosmetology salon or specialty salon cannot operate without a license from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR), with exceptions the statute lists (Florida Statutes, section 477.025(1)).
5. Check the change of occupancy, the permit and the trades
A change of occupancy can bring increased mechanical ventilation requirements. If it does, the new occupancy has to meet the Florida Building Code, Mechanical (Florida Building Code, Existing Building, section 1009.1).
You need a permit to install, alter or replace a mechanical system (Florida Building Code, Building, section 105.1).
A mechanical contractor can take on any contract for central air-conditioning, refrigeration, heating and ventilating systems (Florida Statutes, section 489.105(3)(i)). A contractor has to subcontract mechanical work unless the contractor holds a state certificate or registration in that trade (section 489.113(3)).
6. Compare the full cost of the space
We compare more than base rent. Your occupancy review should include:
Base rent.
CAM and other additional charges.
Scheduled increases.
Utilities.
Repairs and maintenance assigned to you.
Construction and equipment installation.
Deposits.
Rent due before opening.
7. Put the ventilation into the lease and track the dates
Ask for each term on the lease checklist: landlord work versus tenant work, a TI allowance, free rent during the buildout and a permit contingency.
Once you pick a property, we negotiate rent and concessions, then CAM caps, HVAC, escalations and assignment. After signing, keep track of:
Possession and delivery dates.
Landlord work.
Improvement-allowance submissions.
Construction deadlines.
Insurance requirements.
Rent commencement.
Extra items to add to your list
A license for each location and each cosmetologist. The City of Melbourne's License Requirements for Businesses page lists a salon license for each location and a state license for each cosmetologist, from DBPR.
Parking per station. Melbourne requires two parking spaces per station for beauty salons and barbershops (Land Development Code, Section 9.72(a)(9)).
A salon next to another business. Permanent walls have to separate the two, and each has its own distinctly marked entrance (Rule 61G5-20.002).
Start your search with Reach
You do not need to find the property before calling us. In most deals the landlord pays our fee.
Call 321-514-0876 with your equipment list, expected staffing, opening budget and target opening date, or with the address of a space you have found.
Related: the guide to operating expense charges.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does station exhaust count toward the room total?
Yes. In a nail salon, station exhaust running continuously during occupancy counts toward the room total (Table 403.3.1.1, footnotes b and h).
What other space requirements does the state salon rule set?
At least 100 square feet of floor space, plus 50 for each additional cosmetologist or specialist (Rule 61G5-20.002). A salon with three cosmetologists needs 200 square feet. The salon also has to provide toilet and lavatory facilities within 300 feet and shampoo bowls with hot and cold running water.
Sources
Written by Cassandra Hartford, founder and CEO of Reach Commercial Real Estate. She has worked in Brevard County commercial real estate for 17 years, representing buyers, sellers, landlords, and tenants across Florida's Space Coast.
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