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406.3 Private Garages and car ports

T

Tim Mailloux

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Feb 12, 2018
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Hartford CT
Looking at a stand-alone covered parking structure for a utility company to shelter their service trucks, which will be approximately 17,000 square feet in size. Essentially, it's some steel columns and a roof, open on all sides. In my opinion, it closely resembles a carport, but I am getting hung up on the wording of 406.3.1.

406.3.1 Classification:
Private garages and carports shall be classified as Group U occupancies. Each private garage shall be not greater than 1,000 square feet (93 m2) in area. Multiple private garages are permitted in a building where each private garage is separated from the other private garages by 1-hour fire barriers in accordance with Section 707, or 1-hour horizontal assemblies in accordance with Section 711, or both.

Based on how Section 406.3 is structured, I believe that private garages and carports are considered distinct categories in the eyes of the code. The first sentence of Section 406.3.1 clearly states that private garages AND carports are both classified as Group U occupancies. However, the following sentence mentions that each private garage shall not be greater than 1,000 square feet, with no reference to carports. This leads me to believe that carports are not subject to the same 1,000 square foot limitation as private garages.

I am seeking clarification on whether my interpretation is correct or if there are any additional considerations I need to be aware of. Your insights and expertise on this matter would be greatly appreciated.
 
Don't forget this:

2018 IBC
[F] 903.2.10.1 Commercial parking garages. An
automatic sprinkler system shall be provided throughout
buildings used for storage of commercial motor
vehicles where the fire area exceeds 5,000 square feet
(464 m2).
 
Tim Mailloux said:
How to those large large PV array canopies that you see cropping up in large parking lots (such as at shopping malls ) get classified?
Click to expand...
The only one I'm familiar with isn't in a town I've ever worked in so I don't know how it was permitted. In that one, there are gaps between sections of solar panels, so it does not provide a weather-tight roof and in the event of a fire at an "interior" location, smoke would not be entrapped. If I had to permit it today, I think I would look at Group U.
 
Yankee Chronicler said:
The only one I'm familiar with isn't in a town I've ever worked in so I don't know how it was permitted. In that one, there are gaps between sections of solar panels, so it does not provide a weather-tight roof and in the event of a fire at an "interior" location, smoke would not be entrapped. If I had to permit it today, I think I would look at Group U.
Click to expand...
This is all a moot point now anyway, what was described to me by the project manager and what is actually being designed are two different things. Yesterday afternoon the project architect shared some 3D view and renderings of the design and its clearly an S-2 parking garage. We will need to file a code mod to 406.5.11 to allow for truck parking in a open parking garage.
 
I love it when they ask a question and only provide half the parameters. I left a moderately well-known architecture firm after the second time they sand-bagged me like that.
 
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