PX- Chapter 7: Building Regulation and codes Flashcards
what is the most notable national federal law that regulates construction in a project
ADA Americans with disabilities acts
When would local building regulations come in to play vs national or international building codes
when there are specific concerns or needs of a geographical region or local problems that are not in the typical model codes
what is a model code in reference to building regulations
a code that has been written by a group comprised of experts knowledgeable in the field with out reference to a particular geographical area
what is the benefit of using a model code
you don’t have to pay to make up your own code or go through the process of making your own
what is the primary model code, who makes it & what is it’s intent
IBC or international building code made by the ICC. It’s a consolidation of three model codes. purpose is to bring uniformity to code practices across the country and in other countries
why are building codes written
to protect the health, safety and welfare of the public- they set a minimal level of protection. Sometimes this isn’t enough and other codes are referenced like National Electrical Code (NEC)
What/Who is ASTM and what to they do
American Society for Testing and Materials is a standards writing organization. Does not perform tests, it’s procedures and standards are used by testing agencies
What is ANSI, what do they do
standards approving group- American National Standards Institute - does not develop or write standards, they approve standards developed by other organizations and works to avoid duplication between different standards
Who usually adopts and enforces building codes
local governments (municipality or in Canada, provincial)
how are building codes enforced
through the permit process
who is responsible for making sure the design meets all applicable codes
the design professional (the designer)
when do building standards become law
when they are referred to in a building code. Alone, they have no legal standing
What is NFPA
national fire protection agency. Voluntary organization that develops standards related to the causes and prevention of fires
what is the ICC
international code council
what are some other standards writing organizations
industry trade groups like for heating, refrigerating and air-conditioning engineers (ASHRAE). Tons of these guys
who performs tests on materials or products
sometimes a standards writing organization but mostly its a NRTL national recognized testing laboratory- the most well known is the Underwriters Laboratories (UL) who also develop standards
what does it mean when a product has a listed label on it
when a product is successfully tested and passed the UL test
what does it mean when a product has a classified label
the product was tested for certain types of uses only
what is the most common uses of UL testing (for what type of product)
doors and other opening protections
what are the most important types of test for interior design components
tests that rate the ability of a construction assembly to prevent the passage of fire and smoke from once space to another, and those that rate the degree of flammability of a finish material
what test is most commonly used to test for fire resistance of construction assemblies. How is it tested? What is it testing for? What type of rating does it get when it’s done?
ASTM E119 standard test methods for fire tests of building construction and materials
Tested by building a sample of the wall, floor or ceiling assembly in the lab and setting a fire on one side of it. Tests two things:
- measure heat transfer through the assembly- tests what temperature that the material on the other side of the fire will combust at
- hose stream test- uses a high pressure hose stream to simulate how well the assembly stands up to an impact from falling debris and the cooling and eroding effects of water. Goal- prevent the passage of fire, heat and hot gases for a given number of time
a time based rating is given- the amount of time an assembly can resist a fire without failing. Like 1 hour, 2 hours etc. 20 min, 30 min 45 min for doors and opening assemblies.
what test is for testing door assemblies and their resistance to the passage of flame, heat and gasses
NFPA 252. standard methods of fire tests of door assemblies. does the time and hose stream test too
what test is for testing window and glass block assemblies and their resistance to the passage of flame, heat and gasses
NFPA 257 standard on fire test for window and glass block assemblies
what are flammability tests for finish materials testing for
- if a maetiral is flamable- if yes, does it burn with applied heat or does it burn on it’s own? (does it add fuel to the fire)
- degree of flammability- how fast the fire spreads across the material
- how much smoke and toxic gas the material produces when ignited
which test is the most common fire testing standards for finish materials and what does it test, and what types of ratings does it produce
ASTM E84 standard test method for surface burning characteristics of building materials.- AKA the Steiner tunnel test.
rates the surface burning characteristics
result is a flame spread rating from 0-100 0 being the lowest and 100 being the highest. Classifies them in to three groups A , B & C
A- 0-25 min (most fire resistant)
B 26-75 min
C 76-200
what do building codes specify requirements for in regards to fire
since no building is fire proof, only degrees of resistance, code specify for two broad classifications of fire resistance:
- resistance of materials and assemblies
- surface burning characteristics of finish materials
what ASTM E119 rating does an exit-access corridor require to have
walls are 1 hour and doors are 20 min
what assemblies are interior designers most often concerned with when it comes to fire resistance
permanent partitions, doors, glazed openings, portions of floor/ceiling constructions