Code Flashcards
Group A Assembly
more than 50 people; for entertainment, recreation, food or drink; could have panic; doors swing out, panic hardware
Group B Business
professional & service facilities; drinking and dining with less than 50 occupants; people familiar with surroundings
Group E Educational
6 or more children that require adult supervision during emergency; education facilities have trained faculty & staff familiar with fire drills & life safety; panic devices w/ 50 or more occupants
Group F Factory
moderate & low hazard materials, share many requirements with B
Group H Hazardous
physical health hazard; explosive, combustible, corrosive, toxic materials
Group I Institutional
houses people supervised 24/7 b/c medical problems or incarceration; hospitals, nursing homes, nurseries, sanitariums, prisons, reform schools, some daycares
Group M Mercantile
display & share of merchandise, similar to B
Group R Residential
sleeping other than institutional; R-1 (hotels) transient facilities; (R-2) apartment houses & dorms; R-3 1&2-family dwellings; least safe
Group S Storage
garages, aircraft hangers, helistops
Group U Utility
not intended for human occupancy; private garages, carports, hseds, fences, stables, towers
Noncombustible
steel, concrete, masonry, or other limited combustible not wood; may or may not have fire rating for structural components; Type I & Type II noncombustible
Combustible
structural components of wood or some plastics may or may not have fire ratings for structural components; Type III, Type IV, Type V; amount time structural components can support loads before collapse
Fire Rated Construction
Type 1A (highest rated) not less than 3 hours based on experience or testing, unlimited height and area because fire personnel can fight fire from inside without danger of collapse
Building Volume (Area & Height)
unlimited, type for noncombustible construction @ 3 hours or higher (except hazardous occupancies); 2 hour noncombustible may include high-rise buildings 75’-0” +; area increases permitted based on accessible building frontage (fire fighting more than 1 direction); area increases if automatic sprinkler system even if used for eight or story increase; and if more than 1 story
Flame spread (wall/ceiling finishes)
flame spread & smoke developed; ASTME 84, UL992, NFPA 255 “Steiner Tunnel Test”; Class A - Flame Spread 0-25 Enclosed Vertical Exitways; Class B-Flame Spread 26-75 Class II Other Exitways, Rooms in Assembly & Institutional Occupancies; Class C - Flame Spread 76-200 Class III Rooms in other occupancies, dwelling units
Floor Finishes
ASTM D2859, NFPA 253, flooring radiant panel test (different from flame spread); Class I more resistant - institutional occupancy vertical exits, exit passageways, exit access corridors; Class II (same locations in other occupancies)
Means of Egress
continuous, unobstructed path of travel from any occupied portion of a facility to a public way
Occupant Load
various occupancies or uses, numeric floor area to determine occupant load)
Egress width
multiply occupant load factor by demadn based on occupancy type then divided by # of exits
Exit doors
not less than 32” clear width not more than 48” nominal width
Exit Access
where occupant is until reaches exit; based on # of exits required for each space, required separation, travel distance to closest, egress through intervening spaces and corridors
Number of exits
each building & each floor required, typically not less than 2 exits for each building and each floor w/ occupant load 501-1000 requires 3 exits, 1,001+ 4 exits
Separation of exits
not less than 1/2 maximum diagonal of space of floor requiring two exits; 2+ required additional exits must be reasonable distance apart in case 1 blocked
Travel Distance
200’ w/out sprinkler ssytem, 250’ w/ sprinkler system typical; 300” business with sprinklers; hazardous and institutional less; factory, storage, utility 300’ typical, 400” with sprinklers; limit passage through intervening spaces, ok with discernible paths, cannot exit through kitchens, storage rooms, closets, toilet rooms, bathrooms (kitchens in dwelling ok); separated dwelling units & tenant spaces cannot be part of required path of travel
Corridors
44” standard, educational occupancies 100+ more require 72”; max dead end 20’-0” (businesses 50’-0”); fire-rated corridors required for most occupancies with no sprinkler systems, and some institutional and hazardous occupancies even with sprinkler systems
Exits
from building/floor to vertical exit enclosure, exit passageway, horizontal exit, or exterior exit ramp or stairway; vertical exit enclosures must be 2-hour fire rated for 4+ stories including basements; exterior exit ramps & stairways, not more than 6 stories or 75’-0” in height (open on 1 side, separated from building with fire rated construction)
Exit Discharge
door to public street
