Florida Hurricane Season: Does Your Patio Door Meet Code?
If you're in Florida and your patio door isn't rated for windborne debris, that's not a minor gap.
It's a code issue in many counties, and insurance companies know it.
It's a code issue in many counties, and insurance companies know it.
This isn't about worst-case scenarios. It's about a specific building-code question that matters every time a named storm tracks toward Florida's coast: is your patio door rated for the zone your house is in?
Windborne Debris Zone
What “Windborne Debris Zone” actually means
Florida divides the state into wind zones based on the sustained wind speeds a structure is expected to face. In certain areas, called windborne debris regions, building code requires that openings like windows and doors either be protected by rated shutters or be made from impact-resistant materials.
The most stringent designation is the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, or HVHZ, which covers Miami-Dade and Broward counties. In the HVHZ, impact-rated doors and windows aren't a suggestion. They're a permit requirement for new construction and replacement projects. Other coastal counties have their own windborne debris requirements that fall short of HVHZ but still require rated products in many situations.
The practical starting point is to check your county's building department before you order a replacement door. The requirement varies not just by county but sometimes by exact location within a county.
The Certification
What the certification actually tells you
When a door is tested and approved for use in Florida's windborne debris regions, it receives a Florida Building Code (FBC) product approval number. That number is public record. Anyone can search it at floridabuilding.org and pull the original approval document.
The MP Doors Impact Hinged door carries approval number FL-29714, currently at revision 15 (November 2025). The approval covers two sub-product configurations:
MP Doors Impact Hinged — Florida approval at a glance
Both configurations are rated at DP +50/−50, meaning the door is tested to withstand positive and negative design pressure of 50 pounds per square foot. Testing was conducted to TAS 201, TAS 202, and TAS 203, which are the Florida-specific large-missile impact, cyclic wind pressure, and uniform static air pressure standards.
To verify this yourself, go to floridabuilding.org, search product approval number FL29714, and pull the current record. The full test report is there.
The takeaway is simple:
There are two versions of this door.
MP Doors Impact Hinged
What's not impact-rated in the MP Doors lineup
Clarity matters here.
The standard MP Doors gliding and hinged patio doors include the Full Lite Gliding, Shaker Gliding, Hinged Full Lite, Hinged 3/4 Lite, and Shaker Hinged 2/3 Lite. These models are not impact-rated. They carry Florida Building Code approval for non-impact use in windborne debris regions with appropriate shutter protection, but they are not tested or certified as impact-resistant units on their own.
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If you're in a county or zone that requires impact-rated products without shutter alternatives, only the MP Doors Impact Hinged qualifies.
Before you order
Three things are worth doing before you finalize a patio door order in Florida:
- Check your zone.
Your county building department can confirm whether your address falls in a windborne debris region and what the specific product requirements are. In Miami-Dade and Broward, the HVHZ requirement is nearly universal. In other coastal counties, it depends on distance from the coast and local wind speed maps. - Pull the approval record.
Search FL29714 at floridabuilding.org. Compare the sub-product configurations against your permit requirements. Your contractor or permit office will be doing this check anyway. Doing it yourself first means no surprises. - Confirm the configuration at checkout.
The MP Doors Impact Hinged is available in the HVHZ-approved configuration. When ordering through The Home Depot, verify which configuration you're selecting. If you're unsure, MP Doors' customer service team can confirm the right choice for your project: 1-888-366-7717 or customerservice@mpdoors.com.
Summary Card
You can find the full certification documentation for the MP Doors Impact Hinged door, including links to the original Florida Building Code approval, at https://mpdoors.com/learn/. The door itself is available at The Home Depot, both in stores and online.
Impact-rated for Florida's toughest zones
The MP Doors Impact Hinged patio door — FL-29714, HVHZ-ready, DP +50/−50. See the full specs or shop at The Home Depot.