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  1. R

    Name That Violation- Fire Code Edition

    NFPA 1, sections 13.1.4 & 13.1.5. The language isn't quite as specific as the IFC in terms of what constitutes an obstruction, but as is common with a lot of NFPA standards, I suspect that is intentional. It's left up to the judgement of the AHJ.
  2. R

    How stupid are people?

    What's odd about this particular picture is that isn't a sidewall sprinkler. It's a pendent. The signs for sidewalls are so common I don't even notice them anymore, but seeing one for a pendent in a ceiling is new to me. You have to try pretty hard to get a coat hanger to hold on to that one.
  3. R

    EV Car Battery Storage

    I think Joe B is on the right track. This doesn't sound like ESS, but rather storage of batteries. Unless the batteries are connected to something, I wouldn't expect thermal runaway to be a significant concern. I've heard rumors that the 2024 IBC and IFC will have language to deal with lithium...
  4. R

    An average day

    What's the garage door height? I thought working space height was 6.5' or height of equipment, whichever is greater. If the door and track are above that, it doesn't matter if they are within 36". It's possible that the vertical track on the right is within the working space for the far right...
  5. R

    Demanding fire chief with no authority

    905.4 addresses where to put them when they are required. 905.3 addresses when they are required, and it's rare for a warehouse to check any of the boxes. 4-story buildings, certain A occupancies, covered malls, stages, marinas, rooftop gardens.
  6. R

    Idle Pallets

    And don't let the presence of sprinklers fool you. A lot of light industrial, manufacturing, mercantile, etc. is designed for Ordinary Hazard Group 2. Even with that level of sprinkler protection, you're limited to 6' height, and no more than 4 stacks per pile, with at least 8' of space...
  7. R

    Orange sprinkler protection

    I haven't seen any fire testing, but I have seen them in a fire. I had a fire at a project under construction a few years ago. It was a wood framed apartment building with CPVC piping. The sprinklers were installed, and most systems were live. The first floor had drywall, and the caps had...
  8. R

    Nfpa13....cpvc?

    I've see a lot worse. You can bend a piece of 1" pipe 25" in a 10' length in the arrangement shown. If that pipe snakes back to the stud on the floor below, you can only go a little over 6" if it's a 1" pipe. Take a look at the bending tables in the manufacturer's instructions. You can bend...
  9. R

    Hydraulic question

    See NFPA 13 section 22.4.4.5.1. Systems larger than 40 gallons need to have the calcs verified with the Darcy-Weisbach equation in addtion to the usual Hazen-Williams. At low temperatures, antifreeze solutions are more like syrup than water, so the Hazen-Williams underpredicts the friction...
  10. R

    porte-cochère

    California doesn't like the term either. They ammended those sections to remove Porte Cochere.
  11. R

    6.4.6.3.2 Pendent Sprinklers. nfpa 13R

    If you are comparing residential sprinklers to commercial sprinklers, then yes part of the reason for the added distance is because the performance criteria for residential sprinklers is to wet the walls. Also, residential sprinklers are similar to extended coverage sprinklers in that they are...
  12. R

    Copper question

    The company I work for does parts of systems in copper all the time. It's been a while (at least a couple years) since we did an entire system in copper, but I see copper pipe all the time. As far as I know, we are one of the very few companies that uses copper at all.
  13. R

    combustible concealed space sprinklers

    I see them quite often. They have been around at least 10 years, though the UL listings have been through some revisions. I think the justification behind the NFPA 13 section was that they are more effective at protecting those type of spaces, partly because they are closer to the fire (max...
  14. R

    Penetrations in Fire Walls

    What about the utilities that cross the wall? If a 6" steel pipe crosses the wall, and one side of the building comes down, that 6" pipe is going to do some significant damage on the other side of the wall. I don't think they make any pipe couplings that are made to melt in a fire.
  15. R

    Penetrations in Fire Walls

    It's a large scale apartment complex. Occupancy is mostly group R-2, with some A-3 & B for amenity areas and leasing office. I see quite a few of these, but most are on top of a subterranean parking garage so there isn't really a need to cross the fire walls with the large utilities. This one...
  16. R

    Penetrations in Fire Walls

    I think so. It's a pretty bid building. It's a type V-A, 4-story, with a total area somewhere around 280,000 sq. ft. I think there are 5 separate building areas in the current plan.
  17. R

    Penetrations in Fire Walls

    You will have to pardon my ignorance of building code, but isn't a fire wall different than a fire barrier? Can a fire barrier still be used to create separate buildings?
  18. R

    Penetrations in Fire Walls

    2009 IBC 706.2 Structural stability. Fire walls shall have sufficient structural stability under fire conditions to allow collapse of construction on either side without collapse of the wall for the duration of time indicated by the required fire-resistance rating. I have heard this described...
  19. R

    Give me a hand folks, help me out

    As a contractor, one of my pet peeves is an inspector or plan checker that won't provide a code reference for corrections. I don't mind for simple corrections, like a typo or something that was an honest mistake, either on the plans or in construction. But it seems that a large percentage of...
  20. R

    Modification to Municipal Code

    That's most of it. They also won't allow a pump bypass because if someone removed the check valve the pump would feed pressure back into the city main. During my discussion with public works, they feel that the code section should remain, but the director should have the ability to relax the...
  21. R

    Modification to Municipal Code

    Thanks for the info. I was hoping there was a simple/quick way to get the issue fixed. With building code modifications, like openings too close to a property line, I can submit a mod request to building or fire (whoever is repsonsible) and propose an alternate such as a water curtain/window...
  22. R

    Modification to Municipal Code

    Is it possible to get a modification for a section of a city's municipal code? I am familiar with modifications to the building code and fire code, but what about subjects that are outside of those that are just part of the city's municipal code? Here is the situation: I am working on a...
  23. R

    sprinkler riser question

    I think I misunderstood your earlier description of the system. I agree that having a valve shut off the entire building (over 52000) is not legal per NFPA. Though, realistically it is legal to have a PIV or OS&Y on the backflow that would accomplish the same thing, so I don't see a whole lot...
  24. R

    sprinkler riser question

    That would be my opinion. The system size limitation exists for 2 reasons: to limit the size of systems, and to limit the area left unprotected if the system is out of service. You have achieved the second goal, at least as much as practical, by dividing the building up with 3 systems. A...
  25. R

    sprinkler riser question

    It's all about what is downstream of the control valve. As soon as you have a control valve (and flow switch), you have a system riser. The system downstream of that can protect no more than 52000. If you take a bulk line off the floor control pipe, before the control valve (so before it is...
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