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How to become a sprinkler fitter in Florida

To work as a sprinkler fitter for an employer in Florida, you don't need a state certificate. The Florida Department of Financial Services, Division of State Fire Marshal (the Division of State Fire Marshal) certifies the contractor you work for and not the sprinkler fitters it employs.

Find an apprenticeship What the business needs

Your ladder

  1. ApprenticeStart here
  2. Fire protection system Contractor II certificateRun your own business

First: get hired by a certified sprinkler contractor.

Find an apprenticeship

Florida has no state license for sprinkler fitters. It licenses fire protection contractors.

Your steps

If you have no experience, you can start as a helper or an apprentice with a certified sprinkler contractor. You get paid while you learn.

If you want to take sprinkler work in your own name, you need the fire protection system Contractor II certificate.

If your job is to inspect installed sprinkler systems for a certified contractor, you need the water-based fire protection inspector permit.

Steps for: You have no experience. Change where you are at the top of the page.

  1. Step 1, Now Start here

    Get hired by a certified sprinkler contractor

    Find a job as a helper or an apprentice with a certified sprinkler contractor. You can also apply to a registered apprenticeship (a paid job with training).

    An apprenticeship is a paid job with training. You work for an employer and you learn the trade on the job. You can compare 4 registered sprinkler fitter apprenticeship programs in Florida by what they pay. Pay on day one runs from $9.18 to $17.02 an hour, and pay at completion runs from $15.02 to $34.04 an hour.

    The lowest listed pay on day one is lower than Florida's minimum wage. Your employer must pay you at least the minimum wage.

    The programs that pay the most at completion

    See all 4 programs

  2. Step 2,

    Learn the trade on the job

    You learn the trade on the job and, in an apprenticeship, in classes.

  3. Step 3,

    Ask your city or county whether it requires a license

    Ask the city or county where you work whether it licenses sprinkler fitters.

Other sprinkler fitter licenses

To install sprinkler pipe for an employer, you don't need a state permit or a state certificate. You need the water-based fire protection inspector permit only if your job is to inspect installed systems.

Water-Based Fire Protection Inspector permit

The water-based fire protection inspector permit allows you to inspect water-based fire protection systems as an employee of a certified contractor. The contractor must hold a fire protection system Contractor I certificate or a fire protection system Contractor II certificate.

To get the permit, you need Level II certification in the inspection and testing of fire protection systems from the National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET). You can also qualify with training that the Division of State Fire Marshal accepts as equivalent.

The application fee is $100.

You renew the water-based fire protection inspector permit every 2 years. The renewal costs $50.

The application fee doesn't include your NICET certification. Ask NICET what its certification costs.

To run a sprinkler business

Fire protection system Contractor II certificate

Exam
$100
Fee
$300

The fire protection system Contractor II certificate allows you to take sprinkler system work in your own name. To take the exam, you need 4 years of full-time employment by a licensed fire protection contractor. You must be at least 18 years old.

A current NICET Level III or Level IV certification in Automatic Sprinkler System Layout can replace the 4 years. You can also qualify with a mix of experience and education that equals the 4 years, and the education can be a degree in engineering or in fire science.

The application fee is $300 for each class of certificate.

You renew the fire protection system Contractor II certificate every 2 years. The renewal costs $150.

The contractor that employs you must confirm your experience in a letter on company stationery. The letter must state your duties, the kinds of jobs you worked on and your dates of employment.

Take the exam

The Division of State Fire Marshal gives the exam for the fire protection system Contractor II certificate. Each attempt costs $100 for each class of certificate, and you pay the application fee separately.

The water-based fire protection inspector permit has no state exam.

What sprinkler fitters earn in Florida

$25.44an hour

$52,910 a year, full time

The federal wage survey groups sprinkler fitters with plumbers and pipefitters. Half of the workers in that group on a payroll in Florida earn more than $25.44 an hour, and half earn less. The federal wage survey puts the yearly figure at $52,910.

These figures cover everyone on a payroll in that group in Florida, from apprentices to people with decades in the trade, so they aren't a starting wage. The survey counts 29,260 jobs. The figures don't include self-employed workers.

The yearly figure is for full-time work all year, which is 2,080 hours.

Use a license from another state

If you hold a sprinkler contractor license from another state, contact the Division of State Fire Marshal before you move to Florida. Ask whether the Division of State Fire Marshal recognizes your license.

If you move from Florida to another state, ask the office that issues sprinkler contractor licenses in that state whether it recognizes your Florida certificate.

Questions

Do you need a license to work as a sprinkler fitter in Florida?

You don't need a state certificate to install sprinkler pipe for an employer. Florida law lets cities and counties license journeymen in plumbing, pipe fitting, mechanical work, and heating and air conditioning work. Ask the city or county where you work whether it licenses sprinkler fitters.

How much does the fire protection system Contractor II certificate cost?

The application fee is $300, and each exam attempt costs $100.

Can you become a sprinkler fitter with no experience?

Yes. You can start as a helper or an apprentice with a certified sprinkler contractor, and you learn the trade on the job.

Contact the licensing office

Florida Department of Financial Services, Division of State Fire Marshalmyfloridacfo.com/division/sfm/bfp/regulatory-licensing
Check a licenseLook up a license

Words to know

Apprentice
Someone who learns the trade on the job, working under a licensed worker.
Journeyman
The license level after apprentice. Some states write journeyperson, journeyworker or journey level.
JATC
A Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee, an apprenticeship program run together by a union and contractors.
Median
The middle figure. Half of the workers earn more, and half earn less.

Sources

9
  1. Florida Statutes 633.102, the definitions for the fire prevention and control chapter
  2. The regulatory licensing section of the Florida Department of Financial Services, Division of State Fire Marshal
  3. Florida Statutes 633.336, which bars contracting for fire protection work without a certificate
  4. The Division of State Fire Marshal's licensing portal
  5. Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 state file
  6. Florida Statutes 633.326, which makes the certificate effective statewide and not transferable
  7. Rule 69A-46.010 of the Florida Administrative Code, the Division of State Fire Marshal's application rule
  8. Florida Statutes 633.318, the certificate and permit application rules
  9. Florida Statutes 633.132, the fee schedule for the fire prevention and control chapter

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