rated corridor requirement clarification

[omahawildcat]

Is an internal hall(corridor) within a single tenant business occupancy considered a "corridor". I have seen many new small businesses such as banks that weren't sprinkled that were over 3000 sf to be over the 30 occupant load that had internal hallways that were not rated.

 

[cda]

Welcome ....

 

[cda]

I would say yes they possibly should be rated.

A few variables

Occupant load figured

Code used

Edition used

Any local admendments

Etc

Check this exercise we just went through::

http://www.thebuildingcodeforum.com/forum/commercial-building-codes/16339-existing-unrated-corridor.html

 

[Paul Sweet]

It's the number of people that have to use the corridor for exit access, not the total number of people in the space, that determines whether the corridor has to be rated. The people in a bank lobby would just exit directly through the main entrance, so they wouldn't be counted.

 

[omahawildcat]

It's the number of people that have to use the corridor for exit access, not the total number of people in the space, that determines whether the corridor has to be rated. The people in a bank lobby would just exit directly through the main entrance, so they wouldn't be counted.

I was told that this does not matter. Once you are over the occupancy count for needing only 1 exit, you cannot say this many people will exit this way and this many people will exit this way.

 

[cda]

I was told that this does not matter. Once you are over the occupancy count for needing only 1 exit, you cannot say this many people will exit this way and this many people will exit this way.

Depends, normally I would agree with you

Depends on the set up

Look at the link from above

http://www.thebuildingcodeforum.com/forum/commercial-building-codes/16339-existing-unrated-corridor.html

 

[jdfruit]

Omaha;

Here is the commentary on corridor occupant load from the 2012 IBC code commentary book:

"The total occupant load that the corridor serves is used to determine the requirement for a rated corridor enclosure. The number of occupants served is the total occupants that will move into the corridor for egress."

 

[cda]

Omaha;Here is the commentary on corridor occupant load from the 2012 IBC code commentary book:

"The total occupant load that the corridor serves is used to determine the requirement for a rated corridor enclosure. The number of occupants served is the total occupants that will move into the corridor for egress."

So the entire occupant load might just move towards one exit.

As in human nature

 

[jdfruit]

If you're thinking "sheep syndrome", maybe. Usually the occupant load concept of dividing "approximately equal" among the exits is used.