Historic Remodel of Interiors

[Remington]

We are remodeling a historic home. The Planning Department has a say in the exterior of the building but not necessarily the interior space here in Los Angeles City.

Many of the interior doors are only 28" to 30" wide. We would prefer to reuse the historic doors because they are solid wood. However, the building code requires us to have 32" wide doors. Are we still able to reuse the small sized doors due to this house being Historic and not replace them with 32" wide doors?

 

[Joe.B]

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2019 California Historic Building Code

8-303.7 Alteration and Repair

The alteration and repair of qualified historical buildings or properties may permit the replacement, retention and extension of original materials and the continued use of original methods of construction, provided a life-safety hazard is not created or continued. Alterations and repairs shall be consistent with the CHBC.

 

[Remington]

Thanks for your reply. Really appreciate you posting this code. However, would 28" wide doors be considered a life-safety hazard? As long as nobody gets too fat, I think anybody can comfortably egress the rooms, but this cant be promised. Infact, fire egress windows only need to be 20" so could this be an argument to keep or reuse the doors?

 

[Joe.B]

Ultimately it will be up to the discretion of your local AHJ (building department staff) but if you're informed of the applicable codes it's generally easier to sway the decision your way. For example you may share this:

8-502.1 General

The enforcing agency shall grant reasonable exceptions to the specific provisions of applicable egress regulations where such exceptions will not adversely affect life safety.

8-502.2

Existing door openings and corridor widths of less than dimensions required by regular code shall be permitted where there is sufficient width and height for the occupants to pass through the opening or traverse the exit.

 

[Remington]

That's awesome. Thank you very much.

 

[my250r11]

You could also say that it will not be any less dangerous than it has been for the last 100+ yrs.

 

[north star]

& ~ &

" You could also say that it will not be any less dangerous than it has been for the last 100+ yrs. "

The insurance provider may have a different view.
You may want to discuss the matter with your insurance
carrier before continuing with this line of thought.

& ~ &

 

[ADAguy]

If your doors are reinstalled as surface mounted sliding doors they may be retained, allowing for a net 32" clear opening.
We did this on our 1905 bathroom and it looks original and functional for our disabled guests. Yes, I'm in Los Angeles too.

 

[lenorecutter]

Interesting, I didn’t know there were any regulations about the door width. I thought everyone could choose the size they liked. I will need to take it into consideration when building my house. And yes, I still hope to build a house for my future family.
That’s why I try to learn as much as possible about construction works and local laws about it. I hope to learn this here now and not have any issues with it in the future. I still will probably hire contractors to help me, but I need to know what’s going on myself, too, because it’s my house. Wish me luck

 

[Robert]

If your doors are reinstalled as surface mounted sliding doors they may be retained, allowing for a net 32" clear opening.
We did this on our 1905 bathroom and it looks original and functional for our disabled guests. Yes, I'm in Los Angeles too.

or use offset hinges to gain about 1 1/2" clearance