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Openings in Rated Corridor?

K

K Richardson

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Aug 3, 2020
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20745
I'm working on a single story dental office, Type VB Construction, non sprinklered.
The plan reviewer made a comment that the corridor walls need to be 1 hr rated. This wouldn't normally be a problem however each of the treatment rooms are located along the corridor. The entry to each treatment room is an opening with no door. So my question is is it possible to still have a rated corridor with "door opening" for the treatment rooms?
 
In order to get out of this requirement, you can either sprinkle the building ($$$$) or add additional exits so that the corridor serves less than 30 persons. Adding an exit or two to get the OL served by the corridor down to less than 30 is typically pretty doable for most dentist offices I've taken a look at.

upload_2020-8-3_15-2-48.png
 
K Richardson said:
I'm working on a single story dental office, Type VB Construction, non sprinklered.
The plan reviewer made a comment that the corridor walls need to be 1 hr rated. This wouldn't normally be a problem however each of the treatment rooms are located along the corridor. The entry to each treatment room is an opening with no door. So my question is is it possible to still have a rated corridor with "door opening" for the treatment rooms?
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Welcome

How many sq ft total

How many patient rooms
 
Ty J. said:
In order to get out of this requirement, you can either sprinkle the building ($$$$) or add additional exits so that the corridor serves less than 30 persons. Adding an exit or two to get the OL served by the corridor down to less than 30 is typically pretty doable for most dentist offices I've taken a look at.

View attachment 6819
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I hadn't thought to look at the code with that perspective. Thank you. This actually solves the immediate problem because the occupant load of the corridors is under 30. Thanks!
 
K Richardson said:
I hadn't thought to look at the code with that perspective. Thank you. This actually solves the immediate problem because the occupant load of the corridors is under 30. Thanks!
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K Richardson said:
20 Total Patient Rooms
Total Building Area 4,800 SF
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Are all 20 patient rooms off the same corridor? Is the total area of all 20 rooms and the corridor under 3000SF? Remember that those patient rooms and the corridor fall under a gross occupant load calculation (either Business Area 1 per 100 or Out Patient Treatment 1 per 100) meaning that the corridor(s) gets included in the area and will have occupants
 
Add in waiting room occupant load, if there are 20 patient rooms I would think a waiting room is present. If in 2018 code the factor has changed to 150, but still seems like it could be close given the number of rooms and a possible waiting area. Also, may want to explore the types of procedures and whether "sedation" occurs rendering anyone to be incapable of self-preservation just in case this could push it into an ambulatory care facility.
 
Sifu said:
Add in waiting room occupant load, if there are 20 patient rooms I would think a waiting room is present. If in 2018 code the factor has changed to 150, but still seems like it could be close given the number of rooms and a possible waiting area. Also, may want to explore the types of procedures and whether "sedation" occurs rendering anyone to be incapable of self-preservation just in case this could push it into an ambulatory care facility.
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The waiting room would not egress through the corridor, they would go out the entry door.

The lobby would not be included in the OL serving the corridor.
 
I think I misunderstand the question. I thought we were talking about a corridor as an exit access component. Sounds like maybe the question is about a hall (aisle) within the suite? A corridor, by definition is enclosed, so an interior exit access component that is not enclosed is not a corridor and 1020 wouldn't apply. If that is the case I would wonder about the comment.
 
The most restrictive interpretation would be 4,800 S.F. (total building) / O.L.F. 150 = 32 occupants. A narrow passage through the space would need to conform to the requirements of a rated corridor because the occupant load exceeds 30 people. My approach would be to apply for an equivalent level of safety by incorporating some type of safety feature that is not already prescribed by the model codes. More specifically, I would introduce smoke detectors along the corridor and lobby. If that is not enough, then I would add a second or third "extra" exit - making it extremely easy to escape the building.
 
Sifu said:
Also, may want to explore the types of procedures and whether "sedation" occurs rendering anyone to be incapable of self-preservation just in case this could push it into an ambulatory care facility.
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If there is any sedation and this falls under ambulatory care I'm fairly confident that sprinklers would be required per chapter 4.
 
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