Frank said:
I think I see a code change coming. This can also be an issue with cable type guards and barbed wire fences where one stepping on as if to climb, opens it for the other to crawl through. How flexible are the pickets? Are we talking 5 pounds push on the ball or 500? Proposed new language305.2.2 Openings.
Openings in the barrier shall not allow passage of a 4 inch (102 mm) diameter sphere with not more than 50 pounds of force applied in any direction.
The 50 pounds being in consistent with the guard strength requirement in the IBC
1607.8.1.2 Intermediate rails.
Intermediate rails (all those except the handrail), balusters and panel fillers shall be designed to resist a concentrated load of 50 pounds (0.22 kN) in accordance with Section 4.5.1 of ASCE 7.
RB224–07/08
AG105.2; IBC 3109.4.1.1, 3109.3
Proponent: Bruce Dodge, Building Official City of Grand Haven, MI, representing himself
Openings in the barrier shall not allow passage of a 4-inch-diameter (102 mm) sphere. Where balusters or
individual components are used to create the barrier, the individual components shall not allow the passage of a
4 inch (102 mm) sphere except when a force greater than 50 pounds (0.22 kN) is applied to the sphere in any
direction.
Reason: (PART I and PART II) With fencing being made of plastic which can be very strong in one direction and weak in the other I have found
some fencings that can be spread with little effort allowing a four inch sphere or larger to go through with little or no effort. I do not find any
requirements for testing or the strength of components of fences. Section 1607.7.1.2 for guardrails require the12 inch square horizontal test showing
that the components will withstand the side pressure of 50 pounds.
What good is a fence if children can squeezes through? Therefore, I’m proposing a change to require that the fences / components of the fence be
test to show that it will take a minimum of 50 pound pressure to spread them apart to allow a 4 inch sphere to pass through. An inspector,
manufacture, or contractor can do a test very easily by getting a 4-inch sphere and a fish scale and pulling the 4 inch sphere through the railing
when an inspector thinks that it will not meet the 50 pound test.
I have inspected fences where a 4-inch sphere will come through the balusters with less than 10 pounds of pressure. Next time you see a
plastic fence try putting your knee thought the fences and see how much pressure it takes. Some I have tried are very strong but others will allow it
with very little pressure. I had one where you could separate them and have a 6-inch opening. The manufacture had to get aluminum extruded to fit
the interior of the plastic baluster and installed in each vertical baluster in order to get so the balusters would not flex to allow a 4-inch sphere to go
through.
Source:
Proposed Changes
DISAPPROVED
Source:
Final Results