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PermitBase

Mechanical permit in Des Moines, Washington

Permit for heating, ventilation and air conditioning work in Des Moines under the International Mechanical Code adopted by reference at DMMC 14.01.050.

Verified 2026-09-16 · Source

When you need this permit

  • DMMC 14.01.050(5) adopts “Chapter 51-52 WAC – International Mechanical Code”, with no edition year and no edition phrase, under the chapter's general rolling clause.
  • NO NFPA STANDARD IS NAMED FOR FUEL GAS OR LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS IN THE ADOPTION LIST. The list at DMMC 14.01.050 names NFPA only twice — NFPA 13 and 13R in the fire flow amendment, and NFPA 130 for high-capacity transit stations. Whether a fuel gas standard reaches mechanical work through the state chapter is not asserted here.
  • TWO EXPIRY TRIGGERS AND NO ABSOLUTE CAP, WHICH IS UNUSUAL IN THIS SET. DMMC 14.05.110(1): “Every permit issued shall become invalid unless the work on the site authorized by such permit is commenced within 180 days after its issuance, or if the work authorized on the site by such permit is suspended or abandoned for a period of 180 days after the time the work is commenced. The Building Official is authorized to grant, in writing, one or more extensions of time, for periods not more than 180 days each. The extension shall be requested in writing and justifiable cause demonstrated.” “ONE OR MORE EXTENSIONS” IS THE PHRASE TO NOTICE. Puyallup, Wenatchee and Walla Walla all add a two-year absolute limit that runs regardless of progress, and SeaTac allows a single extension only. Des Moines publishes neither an absolute cap nor a limit on the number of extensions.
  • THE APPLICATION HAS ITS OWN 180-DAY CLOCK, AND MISSING IT CAN COST YOU THE DRAWINGS. DMMC 14.05.110(2): “Applications for which no permit is issued within 180 days following the date of application filing shall expire by limitation, and plans and other data submitted for review may thereafter be returned to the applicant or destroyed by the Building Official.” One extension of up to 180 days is available on request with cause shown.
  • CONSTRUCTION HOURS PUT SATURDAY WITH SUNDAY, NOT WITH THE WORKING WEEK. DMMC 14.01.100: activities “shall be limited to the following hours: (1) Monday through Friday: 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. (2) Saturday, Sunday and Holidays: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.” THREE CITIES IN THIS SET, THREE DIFFERENT PLACES FOR SATURDAY: Issaquah permits no nonemergency construction on weekends or legal holidays at all without an expanded work hours permit; University Place runs Monday THROUGH SATURDAY 7:00 to 7:00 with Sunday and legal holidays at 8:00 to 5:00; Des Moines gives Saturday the short day.
  • DES MOINES RESOLVES CODE CONFLICTS BY A DIFFERENT PRINCIPLE FROM ITS NEIGHBOURS, AND CARRYING THEIRS HERE WOULD GIVE THE WRONG ANSWER. DMMC 14.05.040: “Where, in any specific case, different sections of this code specify different materials, methods of construction or other requirements, the most restrictive shall govern except that the hierarchy of the codes established in RCW 19.27.031 shall govern.” >>> SO THE DEFAULT IS MOST-RESTRICTIVE AND THE OVERRIDE IS A STATE STATUTE, NOT A LOCAL LIST. Pullman and Walla Walla both publish their own ordering and make the FIRST LISTED code govern — and they disagree with each other about where plumbing sits. Des Moines publishes no ordering of its own at all. RCW 19.27.031 was not read for this entry, so what that hierarchy contains is NOT asserted here.
  • DMMC 14.01.050 closes with a filing duty that is useful to a reader: “Not less than one copy of each such code, standards, rules, and regulations, in the form in which it was adopted, and suitably marked to indicate amendments, additions, deletions and exceptions as provided in this Title, shall be filed in the Building Official's office and be available for use and examination by the public.” Because the city adopts by WAC chapter with no edition year, that marked-up filed copy is the concrete way to see which text is actually in force.
  • DMMC 14.01.140: appeals go to the Hearing Examiner under DMMC 18.20.150, 18.20.160 and chapter 18.240 DMMC, and “All references to ‘board of appeals’ in any codes, standards, rules, and regulations adopted in this Title shall hereafter mean the Hearing Examiner.” THE EXAMINER'S POWER IS BOUNDED: “The Hearing Examiner shall have no authority to waive requirements of this Title.” Chapter 18.240 DMMC was not opened, so no deadline is asserted.

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Permit fee
DMMC 14.01.090: “Except as otherwise provided in this Title, the fee for any permit issued by the City under the authority of this Title shall be established by the City Manager or the City Manager's… Show full citationDMMC 14.01.090: “Except as otherwise provided in this Title, the fee for any permit issued by the City under the authority of this Title shall be established by the City Manager or the City Manager's designee.” NO DOLLAR AMOUNT APPEARS IN THE CODE and the schedule itself was not opened. THIS IS THE SECOND CITY-MANAGER FEE IN THIS WASHINGTON SET AND THE TWO ARE NOT IDENTICAL: Puyallup sets its fees by EXECUTIVE ORDER of the city manager, naming the instrument; Des Moines names the officer and the delegate but no instrument at all, so there is no document type to ask for by name. Note also the opening words — “Except as otherwise provided in this Title” — which means the manager's schedule is not necessarily the whole answer; the electrical chapter carries its own fee provision at amended WCEC Section 85.13(N).
Set by the City Manager or designee

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Mechanical permit permit actually take in Des Moines?

Anonymous — one question, no email. Answers are combined and only shown once at least 5 people have reported.

Inspection process

    Tips

    • THE FEE IS SET BY THE CITY MANAGER AND THE CODE NAMES NO INSTRUMENT. DMMC 14.01.090 says the fee “shall be established by the City Manager or the City Manager's designee” — unlike Puyallup, which sets fees by a named executive order, there is no document type here to request by name. Ask the permit counter for the current schedule.
    • The assurance device at DMMC 14.05.080 is written as a condition of a BUILDING permit. Whether a standalone mechanical permit attracts it was not established in the sections read.

    Frequently asked questions

    Des Moines requires a mechanical permit for: DMMC 14.01.050(5) adopts “Chapter 51-52 WAC – International Mechanical Code”, with no edition year and no edition phrase, under the chapter's general rolling clause.; NO NFPA STANDARD IS NAMED FOR FUEL GAS OR LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS IN THE ADOPTION LIST. The list at DMMC 14.01.050 names NFPA only twice — NFPA 13 and 13R in the fire flow amendment, and NFPA 130 for high-capacity transit stations. Whether a fuel gas standard reaches mechanical work through the state chapter is not asserted here.; TWO EXPIRY TRIGGERS AND NO ABSOLUTE CAP, WHICH IS UNUSUAL IN THIS SET. DMMC 14.05.110(1): “Every permit issued shall become invalid unless the work on the site authorized by such permit is commenced within 180 days after its issuance, or if the work authorized on the site by such permit is suspended or abandoned for a period of 180 days after the time the work is commenced. The Building Official is authorized to grant, in writing, one or more extensions of time, for periods not more than 180 days each. The extension shall be requested in writing and justifiable cause demonstrated.” “ONE OR MORE EXTENSIONS” IS THE PHRASE TO NOTICE. Puyallup, Wenatchee and Walla Walla all add a two-year absolute limit that runs regardless of progress, and SeaTac allows a single extension only. Des Moines publishes neither an absolute cap nor a limit on the number of extensions.; THE APPLICATION HAS ITS OWN 180-DAY CLOCK, AND MISSING IT CAN COST YOU THE DRAWINGS. DMMC 14.05.110(2): “Applications for which no permit is issued within 180 days following the date of application filing shall expire by limitation, and plans and other data submitted for review may thereafter be returned to the applicant or destroyed by the Building Official.” One extension of up to 180 days is available on request with cause shown.; CONSTRUCTION HOURS PUT SATURDAY WITH SUNDAY, NOT WITH THE WORKING WEEK. DMMC 14.01.100: activities “shall be limited to the following hours: (1) Monday through Friday: 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. (2) Saturday, Sunday and Holidays: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.” THREE CITIES IN THIS SET, THREE DIFFERENT PLACES FOR SATURDAY: Issaquah permits no nonemergency construction on weekends or legal holidays at all without an expanded work hours permit; University Place runs Monday THROUGH SATURDAY 7:00 to 7:00 with Sunday and legal holidays at 8:00 to 5:00; Des Moines gives Saturday the short day.; DES MOINES RESOLVES CODE CONFLICTS BY A DIFFERENT PRINCIPLE FROM ITS NEIGHBOURS, AND CARRYING THEIRS HERE WOULD GIVE THE WRONG ANSWER. DMMC 14.05.040: “Where, in any specific case, different sections of this code specify different materials, methods of construction or other requirements, the most restrictive shall govern except that the hierarchy of the codes established in RCW 19.27.031 shall govern.” >>> SO THE DEFAULT IS MOST-RESTRICTIVE AND THE OVERRIDE IS A STATE STATUTE, NOT A LOCAL LIST. Pullman and Walla Walla both publish their own ordering and make the FIRST LISTED code govern — and they disagree with each other about where plumbing sits. Des Moines publishes no ordering of its own at all. RCW 19.27.031 was not read for this entry, so what that hierarchy contains is NOT asserted here.; DMMC 14.01.050 closes with a filing duty that is useful to a reader: “Not less than one copy of each such code, standards, rules, and regulations, in the form in which it was adopted, and suitably marked to indicate amendments, additions, deletions and exceptions as provided in this Title, shall be filed in the Building Official's office and be available for use and examination by the public.” Because the city adopts by WAC chapter with no edition year, that marked-up filed copy is the concrete way to see which text is actually in force.; DMMC 14.01.140: appeals go to the Hearing Examiner under DMMC 18.20.150, 18.20.160 and chapter 18.240 DMMC, and “All references to ‘board of appeals’ in any codes, standards, rules, and regulations adopted in this Title shall hereafter mean the Hearing Examiner.” THE EXAMINER'S POWER IS BOUNDED: “The Hearing Examiner shall have no authority to waive requirements of this Title.” Chapter 18.240 DMMC was not opened, so no deadline is asserted.. If your project isn't listed, confirm with City of Des Moines at (206) 878-4595 before starting work.

    In Des Moines, the published Permit fee is: Set by the City Manager or designee. These are the jurisdiction's own published figures — see the fee schedule table and source citations on this page.

    Des Moines does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact City of Des Moines at (206) 878-4595 for current turnaround.

    You'll need: Building permit application. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

    Apply through City of Des Moines at 21630 11th Ave S, Des Moines, WA 98198. Phone: (206) 878-4595. Official information: https://www.desmoineswa.gov/.

    Des Moines, Washington has adopted: DMMC 14.01.050 opens: “The following codes, standards, rules, and regulations, as amended, added to, or excepted in this Title, are adopted by reference pursuant to chapter 19.27 RCW and RCW 35.21.180 as presently constituted or as may be subsequently amended, added to, or excepted as though fully set forth in this Title:”; (1) Chapter 51-11C WAC – International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), Commercial.; (2) Chapter 51-11R WAC – International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), Residential.; (3) Chapter 51-50 WAC – International Building Code (IBC).; (4) Chapter 51-51 WAC – International Residential Code (IRC).; (5) Chapter 51-52 WAC – International Mechanical Code.; (6) Chapter 51-54A WAC – the International Fire Code (IFC), “including the Appendices B, C, E, F and I”, with Appendix B Section B105.2 replaced and Table B105.2 deleted.; (7) Chapter 51-56 WAC – Uniform Plumbing Code.; (8) “The Washington Cities Electrical Code as published and printed by the Washington Association of Building Officials”.; (9) HCT stations and associated facilities — “the most current versions of all applicable sections of the building code, fire code, and National Fire Protection Standard No. 130 (NFPA 130)”.; NO EDITION YEAR APPEARS FOR ANY OF THEM. Also adopted and amended elsewhere in the Title: the International Property Maintenance Code (DMMC 14.05.120, not opened for this entry).. Local amendments apply — see the Des Moines overview page for the full list.

    Chapter 51-52 WAC, the state's adoption of the International Mechanical Code. DMMC 14.01.050 adopts the WAC chapter rather than a dated edition of the model code, “as presently constituted or as may be subsequently amended”, so no year applies and the text changes with the state rule.

    Sources & verification

    Verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-09-16.

    Fees, timelines, and adopted codes are researched from each jurisdiction's published records — see how we verify. Requirements change and vary by project, so always confirm the current details with the Des Moines building department before you submit. PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency.

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