HomeMy WebLinkAboutO-218 (2)ORLIT1210E # 212
BE IT 0RL,J1"Ev by the City Council of the City of
rairhope.
1. That salaried employees of tre City of rairhope
who now have been, or shall hereafter have been, in the
continuous erploy-rent of th^ City of rairhope employed,as
a salaried employee for twelve rrontrs or longer shell be
entitled to two iyceks of vacation encr ye-r with pay, ind
they 'shall also be entitled to one v,c,ek of sick leave r•ith
pay e?cr year provides such cm-ployee is confines' to his
home and is unsp,r trpatrnent of a licenser physician. Such
vacation an(- s4c': leave shall not be pccurrulnted.
2. That the provi-ions of tris orcin-nce shell ro
into ffect January 11 1951, and shall be a part of tre
contract of en,lcynent of the salaried employees o`' the
City of '.'airrope whether or not sucr provi--ions is incorp-
orated in try: contract of emnloymcnt.
Approves this the 18th day of Lecember, 1950.
rNAME
.-rj . i � Miw,
7
0
FOREWORD
This recommended code has been drafted with special
consideration for brevity and simplicity. It is designed for
adoption by towns and small cities which have not yet
legislated, or have insufficient legislation upon the important
items covered. It is suggested that the code be enacted in
its entirety, previous legislation, if any, being annulled by
its adoption.
This code should not be interpreted as a warrantable
minimum standard by cities which by reason of their present
size or rapid growth obviously require more comprehensive
safeguards for public safety, such as contained in the larger
Fire Prevention Ordinance recommended by the National
Board of Fire Underwriters.
The Standards of the National Board of Fire Under-
writers, listed on the back pages, have been prepared after
thorough study by committees of technical men particularly
qualified on the subjects covered by the standards, and should
be consulted and observed to secure the safety to which the
owners and occupants of buildings are entitled. The National
Board of Fire Underwriters will be pleased to furnish any
town or city which adopts this Fire Prevention Code with
1 to 3 complete sets of the Standards and to place the appro-
priate official of such town or city on a mailing list to receive
future issues of the Standards.
It is recommended that the local enforcing authorities
take advantage of the service rendered by Underwriters'
Laboratories, Inc., and accept listed devices instead of requir-
ing definite tests by the manufacturer for each installation.
Details of construction of buildings used in connection
with any hazard or process, and specific installation require-
ments of heating appliances and protective equipment have
been omitted from this Code. These are subjects which should
be covered by the building code of the community. Where
no building code exists or the code was adopted some years
before, a modern building code should be adopted, based on
the requirements included in the National Building Code —
Abbreviated Edition, 1949, Recommended by the National
Board of Fire Underwriters.
Devices and materials which have been tested and found
to comply with the standards of construction and performance
established by Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc., and suitable
r .- r
I
for installation in accordance with the Standards of the Na-
tional Board of Fire Underwriters are listed by Underwriters'
Laboratories, Inc., in the following publications:
List of Inspected Fire Protection Equipment and Mate-
rials.
List of Inspected Gas, Oil and Miscellaneous Appliances.
List of Inspected Electrical Equipment.
List of Inspected Electrical Equipment for Hazardous
Locations.
List of Inspected Appliances Relating to Accident Haz-
ard, Automotive Equipment, and Burglary Protection.
Bi-Monthly Supplement to all Lists of Inspected Appli-
ances, Equipment and Materials.
Copies of Underwriters' Laboratories' Lists may be ob-
tained upon request from Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc.,
207 East Ohio Street, Chicago 11, Ill., 161 Sixth Avenue, New
York 13, N. Y., or 500 Sansome Street, San Francisco 11, Calif.
This recommended code may be adopted by title using
a short ordinance form such as the following:
An Ordinance Providing for Fire Prevention and
Protection in Connection with Hazardous Materials
and Processes.
Be it ordained by the --------------------------------------------------------
Section 1. Adoption of Fire Prevention Code.
There is hereby adopted by the ------------------------------------ for the
purpose of providing for fire prevention and protection in
connection with hazardous materials and processes, that cer-
tain code known as the Fire Prevention Code, Abbreviated
Edition, recommended by the National Board of Fire Under-
writers of New York, being particularly the 1950 edition
thereof and the whole thereof, save and except such portions
as are hereinafter deleted, modified or amended, of which not
less than three (3) copies have been and now are filed in the
office of the Clerk of the ------ ----------------------- ----------and the same
are hereby adopted and incorporated as fully as if set out at
length herein, and from the date on which this ordinance
shall take effect, the provisions thereof shall be controlling
within the limits of the -----------------------------------------
Section 2. Definitions. y
Wherever the word "Municipality" is used in said code,
it shall be held to mean the ---------------------------------------------------------
Section 3. Establishment of Limits in which Bulk Storage
of Flamable Liquids is Prohibited.
(1) The limits in Section 312 of said code in which
bulk storage of flammable liquids in outside aboveground
tanks is prohibited, are hereby established as follows:
z
7. ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT.
70. National Electrical Code-1947; Supplement-1949.
71. Central Station Protective Signaling Systems-1940.
72. Proprietary, Auxiliary and Local Signaling Systems-1949.
73. Municipal Fire Alarm Systems-1949.
S. CONSTRUCTION.
80. Protection of Openings in Walls and Partitions-1939.
81. Fur Storage-1949.
82. Incinerators-1938.
83. Electric Cars and Trolley Buses, including Houses and Yards-
1935 ; Supplement-1940.
84. Merchandise Vaults and Safes-1948.
85. Airplane Hangars-1943 ; Supplement-1945.
86. Ovens for Japan, Enamel and other Flammable Finishes-1931.
87. Piers and Wharves-1935.
88. Garages-1932 ; Supplement-1939.
90. Air Conditioning, Warm Air Heating, Air Cooling and Ventilating
Systems-1946 ; Supplement-1949.
91. Blower and Exhaust Systems for Dust, Stock and Vapor Removal
or Conveyinb 1949.
92. Waterproofing of Floors and Drainage, and Installation of Scup-
- pers-1937.
MISCELLANEOUS PUBLICATIONS.
Special Interest Bulletins for Those Interested in Preventing Loss of
Life and Property from Fire.
Hospitals, Fire Prevention and Protection as Applied to-1942.
Hotels, Fire Prevention and Protection as Applied to.
Schools, Fire Prevention and Protection as Applied to the Public and
Parochial-1939.
School Buildings, Construction of, and Improvement of Existing Struc-
tures-1937.
Damage to Fireproof Buildings, Illustrations of.
Damage to Reinforced Concrete Structures Attending the Southern
California Earthquake of March 10, 1933-1935.
Flood Problem in Fire Prevention and Protection-1939.
Hurricane Damage, Prevention of-1937.
Hurricane Damage, Suggestions to Building Occupants for Reducing
(A reprint of portions of "Prevention of Hurricane Damage")-1937.
Care and Maintenance of Sprinkler Systems-1940.
Internal Cleaning of Sprinkler Piping-1949.
Safeguarding Waterfront Properties-1942.
National Building Code-1949.
National Building Code -Abbreviated Edition-1949.
Building Codes, Their Scope and Aims-1940.
Fire Prevention Ordinance. Suggested-1947.
Building Code Standards for the Installation of Heat Producing Appli-
ances, Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning, Blower
and Exhaust Systems.
Fire Resistance Ratings of Walls and Partitions, etc. (A reprint of
Appendix "A" of the National Building Code)-1949.
Copies of the above publications may be obtained upon request from
the National Board of Fire Underwriters at 85 John Street, New York 7,
N. Y. ; 222 West Adams Street, Chicago 6, Ill., or 1014 Merchants Exchange
Building, San Francisco 4, Calif.
30
0.
Section 4. Amendments Made in Said Code.
The said code is amended and changed in the following
respects:
(2) Section-.-. -------- I paragraphs._... ----- and
------------ are amended as follows:
NOTE. -Amendments deemed necessary should be inserted.
Section 5. Validity.
The invalidity of any section or provision of this ordi-
nance or of the code hereby adopted shall not invalidate
other sections or provisions thereof.
Section 6. Inconsistent Ordinances Repealed.
Ordinances or parts thereof in force at the time that this
ordinance shall take effect and inconsistent herewith, are
hereby repealed.
NOTE. -It might be well, as is sometimes done to specify definitely
the ordinances or parts of ordinances which are intended to be repealed.
Section 7. Date of Effect.
This ordinance shall take effect and be in force from and
after its approval as required by law.
NATIONAL BOARD OF FIRE UNDERWRITERS
85 JOHN STREET
NEW YORK 7, N. Y.
Copies of the Fire Prevention Code -Abbreviated Edition may be
had on application at the offices of the National Board of Fire Underwriters
at 85 John Street, New York 7, N. Y. ; 222 West Adams Street, Chicago
6, Ill., and 1014 Merchants Exchange Building, San Francisco 4, Calif.
PUBLICATIONS
OF THE
National Board of Fire Underwriters
FIRE EXTINGUISHING APPLIANCES
10. First Aid Fire Appliances-1948.
11. Foam Extinguishing Systems-1946.
12. Carbon Dioxide Fire Extinguishing Systems, and Inert Gas for
Fire and Explosion Prevention-1946 ; Supplement-1949.
13. Sprinkler Equipments-1947.
14. Standpipe and Hose Systems-1938.
15. Water Spray Systems for Fire Protection-1947.
2.
FIRE EXTINGUISHING AUXILIARIES.
20.
Centrifugal Fire Pumps-1948.
22.
Tanks, Gravity and Pressure, Towers, etc.-1941.
23.
Fire Department Hose Connections-1939.
24.
Outside Protection (Private Water Piping Systems)-1931.
25.
Hose Houses for Mill Yards-1940.
26.
Valves Controlling Water Supplies-1931.
27.
Private Fire Brigades-1949.
3.
FLAMMABLE LIQUIDS.
30.
Containers for Flammable Liquids-1941.
31.
Oil Burning Equipments-1949.
32.
Dry Cleaning Plants-1944.
33.
Paint Spraying and Spray Booths-1946.
34.
Dip Tanks-1941.
37.
Internal Combustion Engines, also Coal Gas Producers-1934.
38.
Discharging Flammable Liquids from Tank Cars, and Petroleum
Pipe Lines-1932.
39.
Stove and Range Oil Burners-1932.
310.
Small Heating and Cooking Appliances (Kerosene and Fuel Oil)
-1937.
4.
COMBUSTIBLE
SOLIDS.
40.
Nitrocellulose Motion Picture Film-1939.
41.
Photographic and X-Ray Nitrocellulose Film-1930.
42.
Pyroxylin Plastic in Factories-1940.
43.
Pyroxylin Plastic in Warehouses and Stores-1940.
44.
Combustible Fibres-1947.
5.
HAZARDOUS
GASES.
t,
50.
Acetylene Equipment-1930.
51.
Gas Systems for Welding and Cutting-1947.
53.
Gasoline Vapor Gas Machines-1926.
54.
City Gas Piping and Fittings-1943.
'
57.
Coloring of Fruits and Vegetables-1938.
58.
Liquefied Petroleum Gases-1949.
59.
Liquefied Petroleum Gas Systems at Gas Utility Plants-1949.
6.
EXPLOSIVE
DUST.
60A.
Pulverized Fuel Systems-1945.
61.
Starch Factories, Terminal Grain Elevators, Flour and Feed Mills
-1940.
63.
Dust Explosions in Industrial Plants, Prevention of-1938.
64.
Dust Ignitions in Country Grain Elevators-1942.
29
protection where necessary to make tests, repairs, alterations
or additions. The Chief of the Fire Department shall be
notified before such tests, repairs, alterations or additions are
started unless the work is to be continuous until completion.
ARTICLE 10.
VIOLATIONS.
Section 1001. Penalties for Violation. A person who shall
violate a provision of this code or fail to comply therewith,
or who shall violate or fail to comply with any order
or regulation made thereunder, or who shall build in viola-
tion of a detailed statement or plan submitted and approved
thereunder, or of a permit issued thereunder, shall severally
for each and every such violation and non-compliance, forfeit
and pay a penalty not to exceed the sum of twenty-five
dollars. The imposition of a penalty for a violation of this
code shall not excuse the violation, or permit it to continue;
such violation shall be remedied within a reasonable time,
and each ten days that such violation is permitted to exist
shall constitute a separate offense.
The application of the above penalty shall not be held to
prevent the enforced removal of prohibited conditions.
9
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CONTENTS
Article Page
1. General Provisions---------------------------------------------------- 7
2. Garages ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 9
3. Flammable Liquids ---------------------------------------------------- 10
4. Liquefied Petroleum Gases ------------------------------------ 17
5. Dry Cleaning and Dry Dyeing Plants ---------------- 20
6. Nitrocellulose Motion Picture Film -------------------- 23
7. Explosives------------------_---------------------------------------------- 25
8. Fireworks-------------------------------------------------------------------- 26
9. Miscellaneous Provisions for Fire Prevention.--. 27
10. Violations-------------------------------------------------------------------- 28
4
ARTICLE 9.
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS FOR
FIRE PREVENTION.
Section 901. Bonfires. Burning of trash, lumber, leaves
or other combustible material where deemed a hazard by the
Chief of the Fire Department is prohibited except under such
safeguards as he may specify.
Section 902. Hot Ashes and Other Dangerous Materials.
Ashes, smouldering coals or embers, greasy or oily substances
liable to spontaneous ignition shall not be deposited or allowed
to remain within 10 feet of any combustible materials except
in metal or other noncombustible receptacles.
Section 903. Accumulations of Combustible Materials.
(a) No person shall permit to remain upon any roof or in any
court, yard, vacant lot or open space, any accumulation of
waste paper, hay, grass, straw, weeds, litter or combustible
or flammable waste or rubbish of any kind.
(b) Every person making, using, storing or having charge
or control of any shavings, excelsior, rubbish, sacks, bags,
litter, hay, straw or combustible trash, waste or fragments
shall at the close of each day cause all such material which is
not compactly baled and stacked in an orderly manner to be
removed from the premises or stored in suitable vaults or in
metal or metal -lined and covered receptacles or bins. Suitable
baling presses shall be installed in stores, apartment buildings,
factories and similar places where accumulations of paper and
waste materials are not removed at least every second day.
Section 904. Flammable Decorations. (a) Cotton batting,
straw, dry vines, leaves, trees, celluloid or other highly flam-
mable materials shall not be used for decorative purposes in
show windows or in stores without a permit from the Chief
of the Fire Department.
(b) Paper and other readily flammable materials shall
not be used for decorative purposes in any place of assembly,
unless such materials have first been treated to render them
flameproof to the satisfaction of the Chief of the Fire Depart-
ment.
Section 905. Maintenance of Protective and Extinguish-
ing Systems. Sprinkler systems, standpipe systems, alarm
systems, and other protective or extinguishing systems which
have been installed in compliance with any permit or order,
or because of any law or ordinance, shall be maintained in
operative condition at all times, and it shall be unlawful for
any owner or occupant to reduce the effectiveness of the pro-
tection furnished. Provided this shall not prohibit the owner
or occupant from temporarily reducing or discontinuing the
27
containing explosives, any exploders, detonators, blasting
caps, or other similar explosive material.
Section 704. Storage. (a) Explosives shall be stored only
in magazines made of fireproof material or of wood covered
with sheet iron and conspicuously marked "MAGAZINE —
EXPLOSIVES — DANGEROUS."
(b) Magazines containing explosives shall be located at
distances from neighboring buildings, highways and railroads
in conformity with the American Quantity and Distance table;
provided that one portable magazine containing not more than
50 pounds of explosives may be allowed in a building not
occupied as a dwelling or place of assembly if placed on
wheels and located not more than 10 feet from, on the same
floor with and directly opposite to the entrance on the floor
nearest the street level, and one magazine containing not more
than 5,000 blasting caps, may be allowed if placed on wheels
and located on the floor nearest the street level.
(c) Blasting caps or detonators of any kind shall not be
placed or kept in the same magazine with other explosives.
(d) Magazines shall be kept locked except when being
inspected or when explosives are being placed therein or being
removed therefrom.
(e) Magazines shall be kept clean and free from grit,
rubbish and empty packages.
ARTICLE 8.
FIREWORKS.
Section 801. Definition. The term "fireworks" as used
in this article refers to firecrackers, rockets, torpedoes, roman
candles, toy pistols, toy cannons, detonating canes, blank cart-
ridges and other devices designed and intended for pyrotech-
nic display.
Section 802. Manufacture and Sale. The manufacture of
fireworks and the possession or display of fireworks for sale
is prohibited.
Section 803. Discharge. The use or discharge of fire-
works is prohibited except that pyrotechnical displays may
be authorized by resolution of the governing body of the
municipality when under the control of qualified individuals
and the time, place and manner of such display is approved
by the Chief of the Fire Department.
26
FIRE PREVENTION CODE
ARTICLE I.
GENERAL PROVISIONS.
Section 101. Enforcement. It shall be the duty of the
Chief of the Fire Department to enforce the provisions of this
code.
Section 102. Authority to Enter Premises. The Chief of
the Fire Department or any member of the fire department
designated by him as an inspector may, at all reasonable
hours, enter any building or premises for the purpose of mak-
ing any inspection, which under the provision of this code
he or they deem necessary to be made.
-Section 103. Inspection of Premises. It shall be the duty
of the Chief of the Fire Department to inspect or cause to be
inspected by fire department officers or members, as often as
may be necessary, but not less than twice a year in outlying
districts and four times a year in the closely built portions of
the city, all buildings, premises and public thoroughfares,
except the interiors of private dwellings, for the purpose of
ascertaining and causing to be corrected any conditions liable
to cause fire, or any violations of the provisions or intent of
any ordinance affecting the fire hazard.
Section 104. Correction of Hazardous Conditions. When-
ever any such officer or member shall find in any building or
upon any premises or other place, combustible or explosive
matter or dangerous accumulation of rubbish or unnecessary
accumulation of waste paper, boxes, shavings, or any highly
flammable materials, and so situated as to endanger property,
or shall find obstructions to or on fire escapes, stairs, corridors
or doors, liable to interfere with the operation of the fire
department, or egress of occupants, in case of fire, he shall
order the same to be removed or the conditions remedied.
Section 105. Compliance with Orders of the Fire De-
partment. Such order shall forthwith be complied with by the
owner or occupant of such premises or buildings, subject to
appeal within twenty-four hours to the governing body of
the municipality, who shall within ten days review such order
and 61e his decision thereon, and unless the order is revoked
or modified it shall remain in full force and be obeyed by such
owner or occupant. Any owner or occupant failing to comply
with such order within ten days after said appeal shall have
been determined, or if no appeal is taken, then within ten days
after the service of the said order, shall be liable to a penalty
as hereinafter stated.
Section 106. Service of Orders. The service of any such
order shall be made upon the occupant of the premises to
whom it is directed by either delivering a true copy of same
to such occupant personally or by delivering the same to and
leaving it with any person in charge of the premises, or in
case no such person is found upon the premises by affixing
a copy thereof in a conspicuous place on the door to the
entrance of the said premises. Whenever it may be necessary
to serve such an order upon the owner of premises, such
order may be served either by delivering to and leaving with
the said person a true copy of said order, or, if such owner
is absent from the jurisdiction of the officer making the order,
by mailing such copy to the owner's last known post -office
address.
Section 107. Permits. Permits required by the provisions
of this code shall be obtained in writing from the Chief of
the Fire Department. Permits shall be for such period as
the Chief of the Fire Department may specify but not exceed-
ing one year. They shall be kept on the premises designated
therein and shall be subject to inspection by any officer of
the fire or police departments.
Section 108. Other Permits. In addition to the permits
elsewhere required in this code a permit shall be obtained
from the Chief of the Fire Department for:
a. Storage of calcium carbide in excess of one hundred
pounds.
b. Storage of hay, straw, excelsior and other combustible
fibers in excess of one ton, provided that no permit will be
required for storage on farm property.
c. Storage of corrosive acids in excess of ten gallons of
each kind.
d. Storage of chlorates or other oxidizing chemicals in
excess of ten pounds.
e. Storage or handling of pyroxylin plastic in excess of
twenty pounds unless wrapped or packed for sale.
f. Use of stationary acetylene generators.
g. Use of compressed gas from cylinders in excess of four
hundred cubic feet aggregate capacity.
h. A finishing shop where paint, varnish or lacquer is
applied by spraying or dipping in quantity in excess of one
gallon on any working day.
i. Use of refrigeration systems containing twenty pounds
or more of refrigerant other than air or water. •
Section 109. Inspections and Tests Before Issuance of
Permits. Before permits are issued the Chief of the Fire
Department shall make or cause to be made such inspections
or tests as are necessary to assure that the provisions of this
code are complied with.
4
All film not in a projection machine or being rewound shall
be kept in the cabinet, provided that film in transit and film
for only one day's showing and not exceeding 200 pounds
total may be kept in Interstate Commerce Commission ship-
ping containers, but not more than one such container may
be open at any time.
Section 604. Film Cabinets. Cabinets having a capacity
of over 50 pounds of film shall be provided with a vent from
each compartment to the outside of the building. The vent
shall have a minimum effective sectional area of 14 square
inches per 100 pounds of film capacity.
Section 605. Smoking Prohibited. Smoking in projec-
tion rooms is prohibited and "No Smoking" signs shall be
posted.
ARTICLE 7.
EXPLOSIVES.
Section 701. Application. This article applies to all
explosives, except small arms ammunition, and pyrotechnic
devices covered by Article 8.
Section 702. Permits. The manufacture of explosives is
prohibited. A permit shall be obtained from the Chief of the
Fire Department to have, keep, use, store or transport any
explosives.
Section 703. Transportation. (a) Explosives shall not
be transported or carried on or in any conveyance carrying
passengers for hire.
(b) Every vehicle while carrying explosives shall have
painted on its front, sides and back, in easily legible letters
at least 4 inches high, in contrasting colors, the word
"EXPLOSIVES," or in lieu thereof shall display, in such
manner that it will be visible from all directions, a red flag
with the word "DANGER" printed, stamped or sewn thereon
in white letters. Such flag shall be at least 24 inches square,
and the letters thereof shall be at least 6 inches high.
(c) It shall be unlawful for any person in charge of a
vehicle containing explosives to smoke in, upon or near such
vehicle, to drive, load or unload the vehicle while intoxicated,
to drive the vehicle in a careless or reckless manner, or to load
or unload such vehicle in a careless or reckless manner.
(d) It shall be unlawful for any person to place or carry,
or cause to be placed or carried in the bed or body of a vehicle
containing explosives, any metal tool or other piece of metal,
or any matches.
(e) It shall be unlawful for any person to place or carry,
or cause to be placed or carried, in the bed or body of a vehicle
8 25
(b) The enclosure shall be constructed with sides and
roof the equivalent of not less than /-inch hard asbestos board
or No. 20 gage sheet metal on a rigid metal frame properly
braced, with all joints sufficiently tight to prevent discharge
of smoke. For new construction the enclosure shall have sides
and roof of not less than 1-hour fire resistance.
(c) The entrance door into the enclosure shall be at least
2 feet by 5 feet, of construction equivalent to the sheath-
ing permitted above for rigid frame construction, and shall
be so arranged as to close automatically, and shall be kept
closed at all times when not used for egress or ingress.
(d) Two orifices or openings for each picture machine
may be provided; one for the operator's view shall be not
larger than 200 square inches, and the other through which
the picture is projected shall be not larger than 120 square
inches. Where separate stereopticon, spot or flood light
machines are installed in the same enclosure with picture
machines, not more than one opening for_ each such machine
shall be provided for both the operator's view and for the
projection of the light, but 2 or more machines may be oper-
ated through the same opening; such openings shall be as
small as practicable and shall be capable of being protected
by approved automatic shutters.
(e) Each opening shall be provided with a gravity
shutter of approved fireproof material. Each shutter shall
have a fusible link above it, and there shall also be one located
over each upper projector magazine which, upon operating,
will close all the shutters. There shall also be provided suit-
able means for manually closing all shutters simultaneously
from a point near the door. Shutters on openings not in use
shall be kept closed.
(f) All shelves, furniture and fixtures within the enclo-
sure shall be constructed of noncombustible material, and no
combustible material of any sort whatever shall be permitted
or allowed to be within such enclosure, except the films used
in the operation of the machine, and film cement.
(g) Ventilation shall be provided by one or more mech-
anical exhaust systems which shall draw air from each arc
lamp housing and from one or more points near the ceiling.
Systems shall exhaust to outdoors either directly or through
a noncombustible flue used for no other purpose. Exhaust
capacity shall be not less than 15 cubic feet per minute for
each arc lamp housing plus a minimum of 200 cubic feet per
minute for the room itself. Exhaust ducts shall be of non-
combustible material, and shall either be kept one inch from
combustible material or covered with one-half inch of non-
combustible heat insulating material.
(h) Approved film cabinets of capacity equal to the nor-
mal daily use of film shall be provided in projection booths.
r
Section 110. Revoking of Permits. The Chief of the Fire
Department is hereby authorized to revoke any permit when-
ever in his judgment any violation of this code warrants
such revocation, but only after a fair and impartial hearing
shall have been accorded the holder of the permit. Appeal
from any decision of the Chief of the Fire Department in
refusing to grant or in revoking any permit, may be made
as outlined in Section 105.
Section ill. Modifications. The Chief of the Fire De-
partment shall have power to modify any of the provisions
of this code upon application in writing by the owner or
lessee, or his duly authorized agent, when there are practical
difficulties in the way of carrying out the strict letter of this
code, provided that the spirit of this code shall be observed,
public safety secured, and substantial justice done. The
particulars of such modification when granted or allowed
and the decision of the Chief of the Fire Department thereon
shall be entered upon the records of the department and a
signed copy shall be furnished the applicant.
Section 112. Approved Devices and Materials. As used
in this code, the word "approved" as applied to devices or
materials means acceptable to the Chief of the Fire Depart-
ment by reason of having been tested and examined by him
or by some recognized testing laboratory and found to be
proper.
Section 113. Supplementary Requirements. The 1947
Edition of the Suggested Fire Prevention Ordinance recom-
mended by the National Board of Fire Underwriters shall be
deemed to be the generally accepted good practice for all
matters not covered by this code.
ARTICLE 2.
GARAGES.
Section 201. Permit Required. No person shall use any
building, shed or enclosure for the business of servicing or
repairing any motor vehicle therein without a permit.
Section 202. Repair Work. No motor vehicle repairs of
any kind shall be made in any basement.
Section 203. Cleaning with Flammable Liquids. No
flammable liquid with a flashpoint below 100' F. shall be used
in any garage for washing parts or removing grease or dirt.
Section 204. Handling of Gasoline and Oils. The fuel
tanks of motor vehicles shall be filled only through hose from
pumps attached to approved portable tanks or drawing from
underground storage tanks. There shall be no facilities for
gasoline handling or filling in any basement.
24 9
Section 205. Garage Floor Drains. No garage floor
drain shall connect to any sewer unless provided with an oil
separator or trap.
ARTICLE 3.
FLAMMABLE LIQUIDS.
Section 301. Definition. The term "flammable liquid"
as used in this article shall mean and include all liquids
(other than liquefied petroleum gases as defined and regulated
under Article 4 of this code) that have flash points below 200
degrees Fahrenheit as determined by a closed cup tester.
Section 302. Classification. For the purpose of this code
flammable liquids are classified as .follows:
Class I. Liquids having a flash point below 25' F. closed
cup tester. Examples, acetone, ether, gasoline, naphtha, and
benzol.
Class II. Liquids having a flash point above that for
Class I and below 70' F. closed cup tester. Examples, alcohol,
amyl acetate and toluol.
Class III. Liquids having a flash point above that for
Class II and below 200' F. closed cup tester. Examples,
kerosene, stoddard solvent, fuel oil, and turpentine.
Section 303. Permits. A permit shall be obtained from
the Chief of the Fire Department for the storage or handling
of flammable liquids in excess of one gallon where such stor-
age or handling is for the purpose of sale, or for use in some
business or industry; or for the storage of flammable liquids
in excess of fifty-five gallons in connection with oil burning
equipments.
Section 304. Approvals. Before any flammable liquid
tank or piping is covered from sight, the installation shall be
inspected, tested and approved by the Chief of the Fire De-
partment.
The Chief of the Fire Department may prohibit the sale
or use of any heating or lighting appliance using flammable
liquids, which has not been tested by Underwriters' Labora-
tories, Inc., or by other nationally recognized laboratories,
and found to be properly safeguarded against fire hazard.
Section 305. Class I and II Liquids. No Class I nor
Class II liquids shall be kept or stored in any schoolhouse,
religious, amusement or other building used as a place of
assembly, except in laboratories for experimental purposes.
In establishments where Class I or II liquids are used in
manufacturing, cleaning or other process the Chief of the Fire
Department shall require such preventive and protective
measures as will reasonably safeguard life and property
against fire.
4
10
with the requirements of the National Electrical Code for
Class I, Group D hazardous locations. Where Class II sys-
tems are used all electrical equipment within 8 feet of the
floor in dry cleaning rooms or other sections subject to flam-
mable vapors shall conform to the National Electrical Code
for Class I, Group D hazardous locations. Where Class III
systems are used, lighting shall be by electricity and wiring
installed in accordance with the National Electrical Code.
Section 513. Fire Extinguishing Equipment. Adequate
first aid fire appliances of a type suitable for fighting fires
involving flammable liquids, shall be provided in all plants
utilizing Class I, Class II and Class III systems; at least one
extinguisher shall be provided at each entrance to every room
or area where flammable liquids are stored or used. Each dry
cleaning room and drying room of Class I systems shall be
protected by an automatic sprinkler system or a steam
smothering system or a carbon -dioxide flooding system.
Washing machines and drying tumblers in Class I and Class
11 systems shall be protected by a steam smothering system
or a carbon -dioxide flooding system. Drying cabinets in
Class III systems shall be protected by a steam smothering
system or a carbon -dioxide flooding system. Smoking in
plants employing Class I, Class II or Class III systems shall
be strictly prohibited and "No Smoking" signs shall be posted.
ARTICLE 6.
NITROCELLULOSE MOTION PICTURE FILM.
Section 601. Application. This article applies to motion
picture film having a cellulose nitrate base. The word "film"
wherever used in this article refers to such film. Cellulose
acetate film, marked safety film, is exempt from these pro-
visions.
Section 602. Permits. No person shall store, keep or
have on hand more than twenty-five pounds (for 35 mm. film
about five thousand feet) of nitrocellulose motion picture film
without a permit from the Chief of the Fire Department.
No person shall sell, lease or otherwise dispose of any
nitrocellulose motion picture film to any person not having
a permit to handle, use or display such film.
*Section 603; Enclosures for Motion Picture Projectors.
(a) Motion picture projectors using nitrocellulose film shall
be operated or set up for operation only within an approved
enclosure, not less than 48 square feet in size and 7 feet high.
If more than one machine is to be operated an additional 24
square feet shall be provided for each additional machine.
* This section may be omitted where there is a State law or other
regulations adequately covering the construction of enclosures.
23
Section 507. Class IV Systems. Systems utilizing sol-
vents classified as nonflammable, or as nonflammable at ordi-
nary temperatures and only slightly flammable at high tem-
peratures shall be subject to the requirements for permits in
Section 503, but shall be exempt from all other provisions of
this article.
Section 508. Location of Boilers. Boilers for plants em-
ploying Class I, Class II or Class III systems shall be located
in a detached building or in a boiler room cut off from the
dry cleaning room by a partition having a fire resistance
rating of not less than two hours with openings protected by
approved self -closing fire doors and having noncombustible
sills raised at least 6 inches above the dry cleaning room
floor, provided that where a Class I system is used such
separating partition shall be an unpierced brick wall at least
12 inches thick or equivalent construction.
Section 509. Ventilation. A mechanical system of ven-
tilation shall be provided in the dry cleaning rooms of plants
employing Class I or Class II systems, shall be of sufficient
capacity to insure complete and continuous change of air once
every three minutes for Class I systems, once every 6
minutes for Class II systems, and shall be provided with
means of remote control. For Class III systems satisfactory
ventilation shall consist of fans, pipes and ducts properly
arranged so as to vent the drying tumblers and drying cabi-
nets to the outside air.
Section 510. Storage and Handling of Cleaning Solvents.
Aboveground containers comprising purifiers, clarifiers, filter,
etc., in Class I and Class II systems shall not exceed 350
gallons individual capacity. Solvent storage tanks for Class I
systems shall be underground and installed in accordance
with Article 3 of this code. Solvent storage tanks for
Class II and Class III systems may be aboveground if indi-
vidual capacity of tanks does not exceed 275 gallons and the
aggregate capacity of storage tanks does not exceed 550
gallons. Quantities of solvents for Class II and Class III
systems in excess of the above small be in buried tanks. The
handling of solvents from storage tanks through the various
machines and back to the settling and clear solvent tanks
shall be through a closed circuit of piping.
Section 511. Grounding of Equipment. The cylinders
and shells of all washing machines, drying tumblers, walls of
drying cabinets, outside shell of extractors and all above-
ground containers shall be permanently and effectively
grounded.
Section 512. Electrical Equipment. Where Class I sys-
tems are used all electrical equipment in dry cleaning rooms
or other sections subject to flammable vapors shall conform
22
Section 306. Storage and Handling of Class I Liquids in
Buildings. Class I liquids shall not be kept inside of buildings
except in sealed containers or approved safety cans of not
more than one gallon capacity each, provided that in rooms
conforming to Section 308, closed containers up to 60 gallons
in size, and safety cans up to 10 gallons in size may be used,
and in garages and manufacturing plants the Chief of the Fire
Department may. permit the use of approved portable wheeled
tanks where the nature of the business requires such storage.
Storage systems with arrangements for discharging Class
I liquids inside of buildings shall have discharge outlets
located only in rooms conforming to Section 308.
Section 307. Storage and Handling of Class II Liquids
in Buildings. Class II liquids shall not be kept inside of
buildings except in sealed containers or approved safety cans
of not over 5 gallons capacity each or in closed drums, bar-
rels or tanks. Containers of Class II liquids of over 5 gal-
lons capacity shall not be. used to fill other containers, inside
of buildings, unless in a room conforming to Section 308.
Section 308. Storage Rooms. Rooms for the storage and
handling of flammable liquids shall be constructed with walls,
floors and ceilings having a fire resistance rating of not less
than one hour, provided that where in the opinion of the Chief
of the Fire Department the hazard is more than moderate,
based upon a consideration of the quantity and nature of the
liquids involved and the extent of mixing operations together
with the construction of the building and its exposures, con-
struction having a fire resistance rating of not less than 2
hours shall be required.
Door openings to the room shall be protected by approved
automatic or self -closing fire doors and shall have noncom-
bustible sills raised at least 6 inches above the room floor.
Section 309. Storage of Fuel Oil in Buildings. The stor-
age of Class III liquids in buildings, in connection with oil
burning equipments shall be in accordance with the follow-
ing. Oil supply tanks larger than 60 gallons capacity shall
not be located in buildings above the lowest story or base-
ment. Tanks of not over 275 gallons individual capacity and
having an aggregate capacity not in excess of 550 gallons
may be installed without enclosures. Other tanks shall be
installed in an enclosure or casing construced as follows:
The walls of the enclosure shall be constructed of rein-
forced concrete at least 6 inches thick or of brick at least 8
inches thick. Such enclosures shall be installed only on con-
crete or other fire -resistive floors and shall be bonded to the
floors. Enclosures shall have tops of reinforced concrete at
least 5 inches thick or equivalent fire -resistive construction,
except that where floor or roof construction above the en-
closure is concrete or other fire -resistive construction the
' 11
a
walls may be extended to and bonded to the underside of the
construction above in lieu of the provision of a separate top.
Any openings to such enclosures shall be provided with fire
doors or other approved closures. Provision shall be made
for adequate ventilation of such enclosures prior to entering
for inspection or repair on tanks.
Instead of an enclosure as above described the tank may
be encased in reinforced concrete not less than 6 inches in
thickness, applied directly to the tank so as to completely
eliminate any air space.
Section 310. Drawing Liquids from Containers. Flam-
mable liquids shall not be drawn or handled in the presence
of any open flame or fire. Except as permitted below, flam-
mable liquids shall be drawn from tanks, at points inside
buildings only by pumps or other method approved by the
Chief of the Fire Department. Draw -off pipes terminating
inside buildings shall have a valve at the discharge end; when
delivery is by gravity, the shut-off valve should preferbaly be
of the automatically closing type and in addition an emer-
gency valve shall be provided. Draw -off devices for Class I
and II liquids shall not be located on floors below grade.
Approved oil burners, arranged to prevent abnormal dis-
charge of oil at the burner by automatic means specificallly
approved for the burner with which it is used, may be supplied
by gravity. Gravity supply tanks shall not exceed 275 gallons
individual capacity nor exceed 550 gallons aggregate capacity.
Approved stoves and'ranges designed for burning oil may
be supplied with barometric (vacuum) type feed from tanks
not exceeding 5 gallons individual capacity or 10 gallons
aggregate capacity.
Approved conversion type oil burners installed in stoves
and ranges may be supplied with barometric (vacuum) type
feed from tanks not exceeding 3 gallons individual capacity
or 6 gallons aggregate capacity.
The Chief of the Fire Department may permit gravity
flow of flammable liquids in manufacturing and jobbing plants
where the nature of the process requires it.
Section 311. Smoking Prohibited. Smoking or the car-
rying of matches or other smoking material in rooms where
flammable liquids are handled is prohibited. Suitable "NO
SMOKING" signs shall be posted.
Section 312. Aboveground Storage Restrictions. The bulk
storage of flammable liquids in outside aboveground tanks is
hereafter prohibited within the following limits: (Note:
These limits to be specified; they should include the closely
built-up mercantile, and residential districts.)
Section 313. Capacity and Location of Aboveground
Tanks. (a) Outside aboveground tanks shall be so located
12
without pits, wells, pockets or basements. Buildings with
brick walls not less than 12-inches thick or equivalent con-
struction, and without openings, may be located on property
lines; otherwise buildings shall not be closer than 10 feet
to a property line. Wired glass, metal frame skylights and
wired glass, metal frame windows shall be provided, with all
sash arranged to swing outward in case of an explosion.
Drying rooms, if under the same roof, shall be separated from
the dry cleaning room by partitions having a fire resistance
rating of not less than 2 hours. Entrances to dry rooms shall
be protected by approved, self -closing fire doors. There shall
be at least two doors leading to outside of the building from
all sections and doors shall swing in the direction of exit
travel. Buildings employing Class I systems shall not be used
for any other purpose.
Section 505. Construction of Buildings Employing Class
II Systems. Class II systems shall be located in buildings
having walls of masonry or noncombustible construction and
wall finish shall be plain or plastered without furring or con-
cealed spaces. Floors shall be of fire -resistive construction
and without pits, wells or pockets; and where located over
a basement, floor shall be vapor- and liquid -tight. Roof and
floors above grade floor, if of combustible construction, shall
have the ceilings over the dry cleaning areas protected by
cement or gypsum plaster on metal lath or equivalent con-
struction having a one -hour fire resistance rating. Dry clean-
ing buildings shall not be closer than 10 feet to the line of
adjoining property, except that if exposing walls are without
openings the building may be located on the property line.
Dry cleaning operations shall not be located on any floor
below grade, nor in the same building with other occupancies.
Operations incidental to the business as laundering, pressing,
ironing, etc. may be in a communicating building or located
on the same floor with the dry cleaning plant, provided the
dry cleaning operations are separated therefrom by fire par-
titions capable of providing one hour's resistance to fire and
the communicating openings protected by fire doors approved
for such openings.
Section 506. Construction of Buildings Employing Class
III Systems. Class III systems may be located in buildings
of any class of construction but in no case shall they be located
in a basement nor in a building also used as a place of assem-
bly. Dry cleaning systems of this class if located in the same
building with other occupancies, shall be cut-off from the
remainder of the building vertically and horizontally by con-
struction providing one hour's resistance to fire. All openings
in interior fire partitions shall be protected by fire doors
approved for such openings.
21
gas shall comply with the provisions of Section 404 of this
article.
ARTICLE 5.
DRY CLEANING AND DRY DYEING PLANTS.
Section 501. Dry Cleaning Defined. Dry cleaning shall
be considered as the process of removing dirt, grease, paints
and other stains from wearing apparel, textiles, fabrics, rugs,
etc., by the use of nonaqueous liquid solvents. Dry dyeing
shall be considered as the process of dyeing clothes or other
fabrics or textiles in a solution of dye colors and. flammable
liquids.
Section 502. Classification of Dry Cleaning Systems. For
the purpose of this code, dry cleaning installations shall be
classified as follows:
(a) Class I Systems shall be those utilizing a solvent
having a flash point below 100 degrees Fahrenheit, closed
cup tester.
(b) Class II Systems shall be those utilizing a solvent
having a flash point of 100 degrees Fahrenheit (closed cup
tester) or higher but not meeting the requirements as further
outlined for Class III or Class IV systems.
(c) Class III systems shall be those employing equip-
ment which has been approved by Underwriters' Laboratories,
Inc., and utilizing solvents having a flash point of 138 degrees
Fahrenheit (closed cup tester) or higher and listed by Under-
writers' Laboratories, Inc., as suitable for use with such listed
equipment.
(d) Class IV Systems shall be those utilizing solvents
classified as nonflammable, or as nonflammable at ordinary
temperature and only slightly flammable at high temperatures.
Section 503. Permit Required. No person shall engage
in the business of dry cleaning or dry dyeing unless he shall
first obtain from the Chief of the Fire Department a permit
setting forth the location, class of system, flash point of sol-
vent and type of equipment to be used. All provisions of this
article must be complied with and no change shall be made in
class of solvent nor in equipment unless permission for such
change shall first have been obtained from the Chief of the
Fire Department. No solvent shall be used in any equipment
other than the class of solvent for which it was designed.
Section 504. Construction of Buildings. Employing
Class I Systems. Class I systems shall be located only in one
story, flat roof, fireproof type buildings, without attic or con-
cealed roof space, having window openings in at least two
sides and with concrete or equivalent floors above grade and
20
that the distance between shell of tank and property line or
nearest building is not less than one and one-half times the
greatest dimension of the tank (diameter, length or height),
provided that for tanks equipped with either an approved
permanently attached extinguishing system or an approved
floating roof such distance may be reduced to not less than
the greatest dimension of the tank.
(b) The minimum distance between shells of any two
tanks shall be not less than one-half the greatest dimension
(diameter, length or height) of smaller tank except that such
distance shall not be less than three feet, and for tanks of
18,000 gallons or less the distance need not exceed 3 feet.
(c) The requirements as outlined in Article I, Section
113 of this code shall be applicable for tanks to be used for
40
the storage of crude petroleum or other flammable liquid
subject to boil -over and for large tanks of oil refineries.
Section 314. Underground Storage Limited. Under-
ground tanks shall have the top of the tank not less than 2
feet below the surface of the ground, except that, in lieu of
the 2-foot cover, tanks may be buried under 12 inches of
earth and a cover of reinforced concrete at least 4 inches
in thickness provided, which shall extend at least one foot
beyond the outline of the tank in all directions; concrete cover
to be placed on a firm, well tamped earth foundation. Where
necessary to prevent floating, tanks shall be securely anchored
or weighted.
Where a tank cannot be entirely buried, it shall be cov-
ered over with earth to a depth of at least 2 feet with a slope
on all sides not steeper than l/ feet horizontal to one foot
vertical.
For liquids with a flashpoint below 100' F., underground
tanks having a capacity in excess of 550 gallons shall be at
least 10 feet, and tanks having a capacity in excess of 2,000
gallons shall be at least 20 feet, from every building the lowest
floor, basement or pit of which is below the top of the tank.
Section 315. Construction of Tanks. The design, and
construction of tanks shall conform to generally accepted
t good practice and shall be approved by the Chief of the Fire
Department. Tanks labeled by Underwriters' Laboratories,
r Inc. and tanks conforming to the standards of the National
Board of Fire Underwriters or of the American Petroleum
Institute shall be deemed to conform to generally accepted
good practice.
Section 316. Setting of Tanks. (a) Tanks shall be set
on firm foundations. Tanks located inside buildings and ex-
ceeding 2,500 gallons capacity shall be supported indepen-
dently of the floor construction. Outside aboveground tanks
more than one foot above the ground shall have foundations
13
and supports of masonry or protected steel, except that
wooden cushions may be used.
(b) No combustible material shall be permitted under or
within 10 feet of any outside aboveground storage tank. Elec-
tric motors, unless of approved explosion -proof type, and
internal combustion engines shall not be placed beneath tanks
or elsewhere within the line of vapor travel.
Section 317. Venting of Tanks. (a) An open galvan-
ized iron vent pipe arranged for proper draining, or an auto-
matically operated vent, shall be provided for every tank
which may contain flammable vapor. The lower end of the
vent pipe shall not extend through the top into the tank for
a distance of more than one inch.
(b) Vent openings, except those on underground tanks
for Class III liquids, shall be provided with approved flame
arresters which shall be accessible for examination and clean-
ing. Vent openings and vent pipes shall be of sufficient size
to prevent abnormal pressure in the tank during filling and
except automatically operated vents, shall be not smaller than
1% inch pipe size. Vent pipes shall be provided with weather-
proof hoods and terminate outside of buildings not less than
2 feet, measured horizontally and vertically, from any window
or other building opening. For Class I liquids, if tight con-
nection is made in filling line and filling is by gravity, the
vent pipe shall extend to a point at least one foot above the
level of the top of the highest reservoir from which the tank
may be filled, otherwise it shall be not less than 12 feet above
the top of the fill pipe. For other than Class I liquids the vent
pipe shall extend sufficiently above ground to prevent obstruc-
tion by snow or ice. Where a power pump is used in filling
storage tanks and a tight connection is made to the fill pipe,
the vent pipe shall be not smaller than the fill pipe.
Section 318. Emergency Pressure Reliefs. With the
exception of vertical, cone -roof tanks having a roof slope less
than 2/ inches in 12 inches and in which the strength of the
joint between roof and shell is no greater than that of the
weakest vertical joint in the shell, all aboveground tanks shall
have some form of relief for preventing the development of
excessive internal pressure in case of exposure fire surround-
ing the tank. The method of relief shall be acceptable to the
Chief of the Fire Department.
NOTE —For size of emergency pressure reliefs see table contained in the
1947 Edition of the Suggested Fire Prevention Ordinance recommended by
the National Board of Fire Underwriters.
Section 319. Dikes. (a) Tanks containing crude oil or
other liquids which have a tendency to boil over, and all tanks
exceeding 50,000 gallons capacity shall be surrounded with a
dike having a capacity not less than that of the tank or tanks
surrounded; minimum height of earth dikes shall be 3 feet
and of masonry dikes 30 inches.
14
Section 406. Installations to be Reported. Every person
installing liquefied petroleum gas equipment, other than gas
burning appliances and replacing of portable cylinders, shall
report in writing to the Chief of the Fire Department not
later than the tenth day of each month the location and
character of each installation made during the previous month.
Section 407. Inspection of Installations. It shall be the
duty of the Chief of the Fire Department to regularly inspect
a number of such liquefied petroleum gas installations suffi-
cient to determine if the provisions of this article are being
complied with.
Section 408. Gas Manufacturing, Filling and Distribut-
ing Plants. (a) In no case shall any plant storage tank be
located closer than 50 feet to any building that is not used
for such gas manufacturing, container filling or distributing
purposes, or to any line of adjoining property which may be
built upon.
(b) In the case of buildings used for such gas manu-
facturing, container filling or distributing purposes, the dis-
tances specified in Pamphlet No. 58 of the National Board of
Fire Underwriters and as referred to in Section 404 of this
article may be reduced, provided that in no case shall con-
tainers of capacity exceeding 500 gallons be located closer
than 10 feet to such gas manufacturing, container filling and
distributing buildings.
(c) In addition to the foregoing, plants used for gas
manufacturing, filling and distributing purposes shall comply
with the following requirements:
1. Plant buildings shall be of light, noncombustible con-
struction.
2. In buildings or portions of buildings containing
liquefied petroleum gas manufacturing processes or
storage containers, and in buildings or portions of
buildings where cylinders or tank trucks are filled,
all electrical equipment for light and power shall be
in compliance with the requirements of the National
Electrical Code for Class I, Group D hazardous
locations.
3. Heating shall be by steam, hot water, or hot air with
4 heating units located in a separate building provided
for this purpose, or in a separate room cut off from
all other portions of the building by vapor -tight, non-
combustible walls and with entrance from the outside.
Section 409. Limitation of Container Capacity. Indi-
vidual storage containers shall be limited to 30,000 gallons
water capacity.
Section 410. Tank Trucks. Tank trucks, semi -trailers
and trailers used in the distribution of liquefied petroleum
19
certificate only when satisfied as to the applicant's fitness
and ability.
Section 404. Standards for Liquefied Petroleum Gas
Equipment and its Installation. All installations of liquefied
petroleum gas equipment and including such equipment in-
stalled at utility gas plants, shall be in conformity with the
provisions of this article, with the statutes of the State of
......................... and with any orders, rules or regulations issued
by authority thereof and with generally recognized standards
for safety to persons and property. Where no specific stand-
ards are prescribed by this article or by the statutes of_____________
or by any order, rules or regulations issued by authority
thereof, conformity with the standards of the National Board
of Fire Underwriters for the Design, Installation, and Con-
struction of Containers and Pertinent Equipment for the Stor-
age and Handling of Liquefied Petroleum Gases as recom-
mended by the National Fire Protection Association (Pam-
phlet No. 58, edition of March, 1949), and in the case of lique-
fied petroleum gases at utility gas plants, conformity with the
standards of the National Board of Fire Underwriters for the
Design, Installation and Construction of Containers and Per-
tinent Equipment for the Storage and Handling of Liquefied
Petroleum Gases at Utility Gas Plants, as recommended by
the National Fire Protection Association (Pamphlet No. 59,
edition of March, 1949) shall be prima facie evidence of con-
formity with generally recognized standards for safety to
persons and property.
Section 405. Location of Gas Appliances. (a) Gas
appliances burning liquefied petroleum gas shall not be in-
stalled in a basement or other below ground level location
unless the following requirements are complied with.
1. Sufficient air shall be provided to insure complete
combustion.
2. Appliances shall be so vented or flue connected so as
to permit the disposal of the products of combustion.
3. The space or compartment in which the appliance is
located shall be provided with windows or doors
opening to the outside, so that any escaping unburned
gas will be carried off by natural ventilation.
4. Such appliances shall be provided with a thermostatic
pilot light, so constructed and installed that no gas
can flow through the main burner unless the pilot
light is burning, or some other similar type of ap-
proved safety device serving the same purpose.
(b) Upon completion of every installation, the installer
shall provide and post in a conspicuous place near or on the
appliance the manufacturer's written instructions in the
proper operation of the gas burning appliance.
W.
(b) Tanks of less than 50,000 gallons capacity shall,
when deemed necessary by the Chief of the Fire Department
on account of proximity to streams, character of topography,
or nearness to buildings of high value, be diked or the entire
yard provided with a curb or retaining wall or other suitable
means taken to prevent the discharge of liquids on to other
property in case of a rupture in tank or piping; the impound-
ing basin shall have a capacity equal to that of the largest
tank plus 10 per cent of the aggregate capacity of all other
tanks so protected.
(c) Dikes or walls required by the preceding paragraphs
shall be of earth or masonry so constructed as to afford ade-
quate protection. When dikes surround tanks containing
crude oil, they shall have a suitable coping or deflector pro-
jecting inward properly constructed to minimize the effect of
a "boil over" wave. Dikes surrounding crude oil tanks shall
40 be not less than 50 feet from the shell of the tank or tanks
surrounded.
Section 320. Distinctive Markings. (a) Portable con-
tainers for Class I liquids shall be painted red (entire con-
tainer or conspicuous band or stripe) and be conspicuously
lettered in black, "DANGEROUS —KEEP LIGHTS AND
FIRE AWAY."
Section 321. Piping. (a) Piping used for flammable
liquids shall be standard full weight wrought iron, steel or
brass pipe or approved seamless brass or copper tubing; for
working pressures in excess of 100 pounds per square inch
extra heavy fittings shall be used. No pipe or tubing less than
inch internal diameter shall be used. Outside piping shall
be protected against mechanical injury. Sweated connections
shall not be used for Class I liquids.
(b) Piping carrying Class I and II liquids, unless with-
out joints or connections, shall not extend through any room
which contains any open light or fire.
Section 322. Valves at Tanks and Pumps. (a) Where
tanks are aboveground there shall be a valve located near the
tank in each pipe. In case 2 or more tanks are cross -con-
nected there shall be a valve near each tank in each cross -
connection.
(b) Pumps delivering to or taking supply from above-
ground storage tanks shall be provided with valves on both
suction and discharge of pump, and in delivering to tanks a
check valve to prevent flow of liquid from tank to pump.
(c) In systems using pumps to supply auxiliary tanks or
headers, which feed internal combustion engines or fuel oil
burners, provision shall be made to return surplus oil to the
supply tank; any valve installed in the line shall be of pres-
sure relief type,
15
Section 323. Tank Filling, and Filling Connections.
(a) Deliveries of flammable liquids of Class I and II shall
be made directly to the storage tank through the filling pipe
by means of a hose or pipe between the filling pipe and bar-
rel, tank wagon or tank car from which such liquid is being
drawn.
(b) The end of the filling pipe for underground storage
tanks for Class I and II liquids shall be carried to a location
outside of any building, but not within five feet of any en-
trance dpor, or basement opening; this filling pipe shall be
closed by a screw cap.
Section 324. Storage of Barrels and Drums Outside of
Buildings. Within the limits given in Section 312, barrels and
drums containing Class I, II or III liquids stored outside any
building shall not be piled upon each other nor stored in a
passageway or beneath any window and no open lights shall
be permitted in any such storage yard.
Section 325. Fire Extinguishing Equipment. Where
flammable liquids are kept, used or handled a quantity of loose
noncombustible absorbents, such as dry sand or ashes, to-
gether with pails or scoops, and fire extinguishers or other
extinguishing devices or materials shall be provided in such
quantities as may be directed by the Chief of the Fire De-
partment.
Section 326. Transportation of Flammable Liquids by
Tank Trucks and Trailers. (a) All trucks used for the trans-
portation of flammable liquids in bulk quantity exceeding 100
gallons shall be inspected by the Chief of the Fire Depart-
ment, and unless certified by him as to their compliance with
this code they shall not be operated within the municipality;
provided that this certification shall not be required for trucks
bearing the license or approval of the Interstate Commerce
Commission; or the license or approval of the State Highway
Department; or to trucks transporting flammable liquids in
drums, cans and other containers of less than 60 gallons indi-
vidual capacity.
(b) No truck transporting flammable liquids in bulk
shall be left unattended on any street, highway, avenue or
alley. Provided that this will not prevent a driver from the
necessary absence from the truck in connection with the
delivery of his load, except during actual discharge of the
liquid when some responsible person must be present at the
vehicle; nor shall it include stops for meals during the day or
at night if the street is well lighted at point of parking.
(c) Trucks containing flammable liquids shall not be
parked or garaged in buildings other than those specifically
approved for such storage by the Chief of the Fire Depart
ment.
16
(d) Every tank truck shall be provided with properly
attached rear steel bumpers. The rear bumpers or chassis
extension shall be so arranged as to adequately protect the
draw -off valve or faucets in case of collision.
(e) During the filling operation metallic contact shall
be maintained between the fill pipe and the tank truck.
(f) All trailers and semi -trailers shall be firmly and
securely attached to the towing vehicle by means of suitable
draw -bars, supplemented by safety chains.
(g) Every trailer shall be equipped with a reliable sys-
tem of brakes with reliable provisions for operation from the
driver's seat of the vehicle drawing it.
(h) Every tank truck and trailer shall be equipped with
at least one approved hand fire extinguisher of a type suitable
for extinguishing flammable liquid fires.
ARTICLE 4.
LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GASES.
Section 401. Definitions. (a) The term "liquefied petroleum
gases" shall mean and include any material which is composed
predominantly of any of the following hydrocarbons, or mix-
tures of them: propane, propylene, butane (normal butane or
iso-butane) and butylene.
(b) The term "liquefied petroleum gas equipment" as
herein employed shall mean and include all apparatus, piping
and equipment pertinent to the uses described in Paragraph
(a) of this section.
(c) The term "appliances" as herein employed shall
mean and include all gas burning appliances intended for use
with liquefied petroleum gas.
Section 402. Application. The provisions of this article
shall apply to all uses of liquefied petroleum gas and the
installation of all apparatus, piping and equipment pertinent
to systems for such uses.
Section 403. Certificate of Fitness to Install Liquefied
Petroleum Gas Equipment. (a) It shall be unlawful for any
person to install any liquefied petroleum gas equipment with-
out a certificate of fitness.
(b) No such certificate of fitness shall be issued until
the applicant has furnished satisfactory evidence of his knowl-
edge of the hazards and properties of liquefied petroleum gas
and his competency to install liquefied petroleum gas equip-
ment in compliance with the requirements hereinafter pro-
vided.
(c) Application for certificate of fitness shall be made
to the Chief 9f the Fire Department who shall grant the
17
0
NATIONAL
BUILDING CODE
ABBREVIATED EDITION
RECOMMENDED BY
THE NATIONAL BOARD
OF '
FIRE UNDERWRITERS
AN ORDINANCE PROVIDING FOR
FIRE LIMITS, AND REGULATIONS
GOVERNING THE CONSTRUC-
TION, ALTERATION, EQUIPMENT,
OR REMOVAL OF BUILDINGS OR
STRUCTURES
1949
NATIONAL BOARD OF FIRE UNDERWRITERS
85 JOHN STREET, NEW YORK 38, N. Y.
48
. 01
•jvA�
v?f -
8. CONSTRUCTION.
80. Protection of Openings in Walls and Partitions-1§39.
81. Fur Storage-1947.
82. Incinerators-1938.
83. Electric Cars and Trolley Buses, including Houses and Yards-1935.
Supplement-1940.
84. Merchandise Vaults and Safes-1948.
85. Airplane Hangars-1943 ; Supplement-1945.
86. Ovens for Japan, Enamel and other Flammable Finishes-1931.
87. Piers and Wharves-1935.
88. Garages-1932 ; Supplement-1939.
90. Air Conditioning, Warm Air Heating, Air Cooling and Ventilating
Systems-1946; Supplement-1948.
91. Blower and Exhaust Systems for Dust, Stock and Vapor Removal-1947.
92. Waterproofing of Floors and Drainage, and Installation of Scuppers-
1937.
MISCELLANEOUS PUBLICATIONS.
Special Interest Bulletins for Those Interested in Preventing Loss of Life
and Property from Fire.
Hospitals, Fire Prevention and Protection as Applied to-1942.
Hotels, Fire Prevention and Protection as Applied to.
Schools, Fire Prevention and Protection as Applied to the Public and
Parochial-1939.
School Buildings, Construction of, and Improvement of Existing Structures-
1937.
Damage to Fireproof Buildings, Illustrations of.
Damage to Reinforced Concrete Structures Attending the Southern California
Earthquake of March 10, 1933-1935.
Flood Problem in Fire Prevention and Protection-1939.
Hurricane Damage, Prevention of-1937.
Hurricane Damage, Suggestions to Building Occupants for Reducing
(A reprint of portions of "Prevention of Hurricane Damage")-1937.
Care and Maintenance of Sprinkler Systems-1940.
Internal Cleaning of Sprinkler Piping-1941.
Safeguarding Waterfront Properties-1942.
National Building Code-1949.
Building Codes, Their Scope and Aims-1940.
Fire Prevention Ordinance. Suggested-1947.
Safety to Life in Places of Assembly, Ordinance Providing for-1943.
Building Code Standards for the Installation of Heat Producing Appliances,
Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning, Blower and Exhaust Systems.
45
PUBLICATIONS
OF THE
National Board of Fire Underwriters
�j
Foreword
1. FIRE EXTINGUISHING APPLIANCES.
10.
First Aid Fire Appliances-1948.
11.
Foam Extinguishing Systems-1946.
12.
Carbon Dioxide Fire Extinguishing Systems, and Inert Gas for Fire and
`HIS Building Code has been drafted for adoption by communities
Explosion Prevention-1946.
13.
Sprinkler Equipments-1947.
1 which feel that their needs can be cared for by a briefer code than
14.
Standpipe and Hose Systems-1938.
the National Building Code. It is suggested that the code be enacted
15.
Water Spray Nozzles and Extinguishing Systems-1947.
in its entirety, previous legislation, if any, being annulled by its
2. FIRE EXTINGUISHING AUXILIARIES.
adoption.
20.
Centrifugal Fire Pumps-1948.
22.
Tanks, Gravity and Pressure, Towers, etc.-1941.
23.
Fire Department Hose Connections-1939.
The requirements as set forth in this code are an abbreviation
24.
Outside Protection (Private.Water Piping Systems)-1931.
of modern requirements respecting best practice in building con-
25.
Hose Houses for,Mill Yards-1940.
26.
Valves Controlling Water Supplies-1931.
struction, for the fuller details of which, the National Building
27.
Private Fire Brigades-1937.
Code recommended by the National Board of Fire Underwriters
3. FLAMMABLE LIQUIDS.
1949 Edition should be consulted.
30.
Containers for Flammable Liquids-1941.
31.
Oil Burning Equipments-1947.
This code should. -not be interpreted as a warrantable minimum
32.
Dry Cleaning Plants-1944.
33.
Paint Spraying and Spray Booths-1946.
standard b cities which b reason of their resent size or rapid
y y P P
34.
Dip Tanks-1941.
-Coal
growth obviously require more comprehensive safeguards for public
37.
Internal Combustion Engines, also Gas Producers-1934.
38.
Discharging Flammable Liquids from Tank Cars, and Petroleum Pipe
safety.
y•
Lines-1932.
39.
310.
Stove and Range Oil Burners-1932.
Small Heating and Cooking Appliances (Kerosene and Fuel Oil)-1937.
The standards of the National Board of Fire Underwriters,
listed on the back page, have been prepared after thorough study
4. COMBUSTIBLE
SOLIDS.
by committees of technical men particularly qualified on the sub-
40.
41.
Nitrocellulose Motion Picture Film
Photographic and X-Ray Nitrocellulose Film-1930.
ects covered b the standards, and should be consulted and observed
l Y
42.
Pyroxylin Plastic in Factories-1940.
_ to -secure the safety to which the owners and occupants of buildings
43.
Pyroxylin Plastic in Warehouses and Stores-1940.
are entitled.
44.
Combustible Fibres-1947.
5. HAZARDOUS
GASES.
50.
Acetylene Equipment-1930.
51.
Gas Systems for Welding and Cutting-1947.
53.
Gasoline Vapor Gas Machines-1926.
54.
City Gas Piping and Fittings-1943.
i
57.
Coloring of Fruits and Vegetables-1938.
58.
59.
Liquefied Petroleum Gases-1949.
Liquefied Petroleum Gas Syystemsstems at Gas Utility Plants-1949.
r NATIONAL BOARD OF FIRE UNDERWRITERS
6. EXPLOSIVE
DUST.
85 JOHN STREET
60A.
Pulverized Fuel Systems-1945.
NEW YORK 38, N. Y.
61.
Starch Factories, Terminal Grain Elevators, Flour and Feed Mills-1940.
63.
Dust Explosions in Industrial Plants, Prevention of-1938.
64.
Dust Ignitions in Country Grain Elevators-1942. ,
7. ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT.
Copies of the Code may be had on application at the offices of the
70.
National Electrical Code-1947.
National Board of Fire Underwriters at 85 John Street, New York 38, N. Y.;
71.
72.
Central Station Protective Signaling Systems-1940.
Proprietary. Auxiliary and Local Signaling Systems-1941.
222 West Adams Street, Chicago 6, Ill., and 1014 Merchants Exchange
73.
Municipal Fire Alarm Systems-1941.
Building, San Francisco 4, Calif.
44
III
AL
T
permit for the same has been issued by the building official. No
permit for a display sign shall be issued until the required bond
has been filed.
(b). The owner or persons in control of a display sign sus-
pended over a street or extending into a street more than 15 inches
beyond the building line shall execute a bond in a sum to be fixed
by the official having control over streets, with sureties approved by
such official, indemnifying the municipality against all loss, cost,
damage or expense incurred or sustained by or recovered against
the municipality by reason of the construction or maintenance of
such display sign.
(c). The provisions of this section, except as to safety, shall
not apply to a sign not more than 10 square feet in area, announcing,
. J without display or elaboration, only the name of the proprietor and
the nature of his business; nor to a wall sign not exceeding one
square foot of display surface, on a residence building stating merely
the name and profession of an occupant; nor to a sign, not exceed-
ing 10 square feet of display surface, on a public building giving
the name and nature of the occupancy and information as to the
conditions of use or admission; no"r to a wall sign not exceeding
2/ square feet of display surface, nor a ground sign, advertising
in either case the sale or rental of the premises upon which it is
maintained; nor to street signs erected by the municipality; nor to
temporary signs or banners legally authorized.
APPENDIX
Wood Shingles.
Where it is desired to permit wooden shingles in certain
areas of the municipality, Section 31 may be amended to provide
for a restricted use of shingles of good grade as follows:
Outside the fire limits, dwellings, private garages and barns,
separated by at'�least twelve feet from other buildings may be roofed
with approved vertical grain or edgegrain wooden shingles. The
combined thickness of each five shingles measured at the butts
shall be not less than two inches. The exposure of such wooden
shingles to the weather shall not exceed, on roofs greater than one-
third pitch, five inches for sixteen -inch shingles, five and one-half
inches for eighteen -inch shingles, and seven and one-half inches for
twenty -four -inch shingles; nor, on roofs with less than one-third
pitch but not less than one -quarter pitch, four inches for sixteen -
inch shingles, four and one-half inches for eighteen -inch shingles,
and six and one-half inches for twenty -four -inch shingles. Such
shingles shall be firmly nailed to the roof deck with noncorrodible
and rust -resistive nails according to accepted good practice. Unless
otherwise specified by ordinance or duly promulgated rules, the Com-
mercial Standard for Wood Shingles, CS 31-38 of the U. S. Depart-
ment of Commerce, shall be accepted as means of establishing the
grade of shingles.
43
including garages) and exceeding in area 10,000 square feet when
of fireproof construction or semifireproof construction.
(b). Buildings over 2 stories in height used for the manu-
facture, sale or storage of combustible goods or merchandise (not in-
cluding garages) and exceeding in area 7,500 square feet when of
types of construction other than fireproof construction and semi -
fireproof construction.
(c). Buildings exceeding 2 stories in height or in excess of
2,000 square feet in area on any floor above the first or ground floor,
hereafter erected or altered, so that suitable access, as defined below,
to each story above the basement is not provided on at least one
side of the building. Suitable access shall be deemed as requiring
a usable opening through the wall at each story at least 32 inches
wide, 48 inches high and with the sill not more than 32 inches above
the floor; the openings shall be so spaced that there will be one
opening for each 50 feet of frontage.
(d). Garages exceeding 6 stories in height.
(e). Garages for storage of loaded commercial trucks, exceed-
ing 2,000 square feet in area and of other than fireproof construction.
(f). Bus garages exceeding 2 stories in height.
(g). Basement garages housing more than 3 motor vehicles.
(h). Garages located in buildings in which one or more stories
or parts thereof above such garages are occupied for other purposes
when such garages have a capacity of 20 or more passenger auto-
mobiles, or are used as bus terminals for 3 or more buses, or are used
for the storage and loading of 2 or more trucks.
(i) Basements having an area exceeding 3500 square feet,
when used for the manufacture, sale or storage of combustible
goods or merchandise, except that in public buildings, institutional
buildings and residence buildings, the automatic sprinkler equip-
ments will be required only in such portions as are used for storage
purposes or as work shops.
(j). In buildings occupied as a place of assembly and having
a stage arranged for theatrical, operatic or similar purposes, ap-
proved automatic sprinkler equipments shall -be- provided under the
roof of the stage, under the gridiron, the rigging loft and fly and tie
galleries, under the stage, in dressing rooms, scene docks, workshops
and storage rooms.
(k). When adequate heat is not provided and in the opinion
of the building official the hazard is not severe, such sprinkler
system may be replaced by a system having approved automatic
sprinklers, but with supply only from a fire department connection
on the building front, or with an approved protective device with
fire department connection on the building front, by which water
can be applied to or directed at the fire by suitable control equip-
ment from outside the building; there being in each case an approved
automatic fire alarm system connected to an outside gong or to
the central station of a supervising company.
SECTION 44. SIGNS AND OUTDOOR DISPLAY
STRUCTURES.
(a). No display sign shall hereafter be erected, or attached
to, suspended from or supported on a building or structure until a
t- -
PREFACE
Many cities have passed ordinances adopting the Recommended
Building Code of the National Board of Fire Underwriters by title.
This power to adopt by title is sometimes given through a general
enabling act of the legislature, in other cases by specific enactment
applying only to one city, and in other cases it is assumed by the
city to be its right.
The form in which ordinances, by an enabling act or otherwise,
are introduced into local legislative bodies is generally prescribed
either by a general state statute or by the municipality's charter.
The language to be used in the enacting clause is usually included in
such statute or charter.
It is the policy of the National Board of Fire Underwriters to
provide any city adopting the National Building Code —Abbreviated
Edition —with 50 copies without cost, and as many other copies of
the Code as may be desired at a nominal price per copy, which is less
than cost of publication.
42 V
2. Water Supply.
(a). Every building in which people live, work or congregate
shall be provided with ample water supply installed and maintained
in a satisfactory working condition.
(b). In every multifamily house there shall be in each apart-
ment at least one kitchen sink with running water and waste con-
nection. The space underneath such sink shall be accessible.
3. Toilet facilities.
(a). Except as otherwise prescribed by law or ordinance, in
every existing building not already supplied and in every building
hereafter erected, where there is continuous human occupancy or
employment, there shall be a sufficient number of suitable and con-
venient water closets, properly connected with the drainage system.
(b). In dwellings and multifamily Houses there shall be at least
one separate water closet within each apartment.
4. Separate toilets. In buildings where more than one water
closet is required, except in dwellings and multifamily houses, sepa-
rate water closets and toilet rooms shall be provided for the sexes.
5. Toilet rooms.
(a). Water closets and urinals shall be placed in rooms or com-
partments which are devoted exclusively to toilet facilities.
(b). In every water closet or urinal compartment hereafter
constructed or installed, except in dwellings and multifamily houses,
the entire floor and the side walls to a height of not less than 6
inches shall be made waterproof with asphalt, cement, tile, marble,
slate or other approved material impervious to water.
(c). The partitions enclosing toilet rooms shall be solid, except
for the entrance door, and shall extend from the floor to the ceiling.
Partitions separating water closets or urinals within a toilet room
shall not extend to the ceiling but shall be so constructed as to per-
mit circulation of air throughout the toilet room.
SECTION 42. ELECTRICAL INSTALLATIONS.
All electrical wiring, apparatus, or appliances for furnishing
light, heat, or power shall be in strict conformity with approved
methods and practices for safety to life and property. Compliance
with the National Electrical Code, as published by the National
Board of Fire Underwriters, shall be prima facie evidence of such
approved methods and practices.
• SECTION 43. SPRINKLER EQUIPMENTS.
1. Sprinklers required. In buildings hereafter erected, or al-
tered to increase the area or height, approved automatic sprinkler
equipments shall be installed and maintained as specified in the
following paragraphs. The areas specified shall be the area en-
closed by exterior walls or fire walls or a combination thereof, except
that in buildings of fireproof construction or semifireproof construc-
tion the area shall be that enclosed by exterior walls, fire walls or
fire partitions or a combination thereof.
(a). Buildings over 2 stories in height used for the manu-
facture, sale or storage of combustible goods or merchandise (not
41
(b). Where gasoline dispensing equipment is located within a
travel distance of 25 feet from the entrance to the heater room, the
floor of the heater room shall not be below grade level.
SECTION 38. DISPOSAL OF WASTE DURING CON-
STRUCTION OPERATIONS.
Waste material and rubbish shall not be stored nor allowed to
accumulate within the building or in the immediate vicinity, but
shall be removed from the premises as rapidly as practicable. Com-
bustible waste and rubbish shall be removed at least daily. No
material shall be disposed of by burning on the premises or in the
immediate vicinity. Dry material or rubbish shall be wetted down, t
if necessary, to lay dust or prevent being blown about.
-
SECTION 39. ELEVATORS, MOVING STAIRWAYS
AND AMUSEMENT DEVICES.
(a). Elevators, moving stairways and amusement devices,
hereafter erected, or installed, or hereafter altered shall be con-
structed, installed and maintained in accordance with rules duly
promulgated by the building official, or, in the absence of such
rules, with "The American Standard Safety Code for Elevators,
Dumbwaiters and Escalators" approved by the American Standards
Association.
(b). It shall be unlawful for the owner to operate or permit
the operation or use of a passenger elevator, freight elevator, mov-
ing stairway or amusement device, hereafter installed or con-
structed, until a certificate shall have been obtained from the
building official.
(c). The building official shall make or cause to be made an
inspection of every passenger elevator at least once in every
three months, and of every freight elevator, moving stairway and
every amusement device at least once in every six months.
SECTION 40. GAS PIPING.
Piping for any and all types of gas used for lighting or fuel
purposes in buildings and structures shall be installed to conform
with generally accepted good practice. The "Recommended Good
Practice Requirements for the Installation, Maintenance and Use
of Piping and Fittings for City Gas" and "Gas Systems for Welding
and Cutting" and "Liquefied Petroleum Gases" of the National
Board of Fire Underwriters shall be deemed to be the generally
accepted good practices.
SECTION 41. PLUMBING.
1. General. Except as may be otherwise provided by law or
ordinance, or rules duly promulgated by the building official, the
plumbing and drainage system of a building or structure shall be
installed in conformity with the "Recommended Minimum Re-
quirements for Plumbing," of the Bureau of Standards, United
States Department of Commerce.
AN ORDINANCE PROVIDING FOR FIRE LIMITS, AND REGU-
LATIONS GOVERNING THE CONSTRUCTION, ALTERATION,
EQUIPMENT, OR REMOVAL OF BUILDINGS OR STRUCTURES.
Be it ordained by the
Section 1. Adoption of Building Code.
There is hereby adopted by the----------------- =-----------------.....------------......------.....---
for the purpose of establishing rules and regulations for the construction,
alteration, removal, demolition, equipment, use and occupancy, location and
maintenance of buildings and structures, including permits and penalties,
that certain building code known as the National Building Code, Abbreviated
Edition, recommended by the National Board of Fire Underwriters of New
York, being particularly the 1949 edition thereof and the whole thereof, save
and except such portions as are hereinafter deleted, modified or amended, of
which not less than three (3) copies have been and now are filed in the office
of the Clerk of the ....................... _....................................... and the same are hereby
adopted and incorporated as fully as if set out at length herein, and from
the date on which this ordinance shall take effect, the provisions thereof
shall be controlling in the construction of all buildings and other structures
therein contained within the corporate limits of th
Section 2. Definitions.
(a) Wherever the word "Municipality" is used in said code, it shall be
held to mean
(b) Wherever the term "Corporation Counsel" is used in said code,
it shall be held to mean the Attorney for the ---------.
Section 3. Fire Limits Established.
The fire limits of the-----------------
are hereby established as follows:
Beginning at
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------to the point of beginning.
Note. —The fire limits should include all closely built mercantile
and adjoining manufacturing districts and surrounding blocks on all
sides which constitute an exposure to the district or within which new
construction of a mercantile or manufacturing character is developing.
Section 4. Saving Clause.
Nothing in this ordinance or in the code hereby adopted shall be con-
strued to affect any suit or proceeding now pending in any court, or any
rights acquired, or liability incurred, nor any cause or causes of action accrued
or existing, under any act or ordinance repealed hereby. Nor shall any
right or remedy of any character be lost, impaired or affected by this ordi-
nance.
Section 5. Validity.
The invalidity of any section or provision of this ordinance or of the
code hereby adopted shall not invalidate other sections or provisions thereof.
Section 6. Inconsistent Ordinances Repealed
Ordinances or parts thereof in force at the time that this ordinance
shall take effect and inconsistent herewith, are hereby repealed.
Note. —It might be well, as is sometimes done, to specify definitely
the ordinances or parts of ordinances which are intended to be repealed.
40 V I I
Section 7. Amendments Made in Said Code.
The said code is amended and changed in the following respects:
(1) Section ------------- paragraphs .........-- .-..--------I ------------ and ------------ are
amended as follows:
Note. —Amendments deemed necessary should be inserted.
Section 8. Date of Effect.
This ordinance shall take effect sixty days after its approval as required
by law.
Note. —Only in unusual circumstances should a building code,
which affects so many interests, and these so extensively, be made to
take effect immediately upon enactment. A fair allowance would seem
to be sixty days. This should give ample time to complete the develop-
ment of plans, the preparation of which was begun before the adoption
of the code, and on which considerable money had already been
expended.
(b). Openings from the building into garage shall be re-
stricted to a single doorway; such opening shall be provided with a
metal, metal covered or solid wooden door of not less than 1 / inches
nominal thickness equipped with an approved self -closing device.
(c). Floors shall be without pits or depressions.
3. Garages not exceeding 3,000 square feet in area. A garage
not exceeding 3,000 square feet in area may be attached to or form
a part of any building provided separation from other occupancies
shall be by walls and floor and ceiling constructions of at least one -
hour fire resistance, and with all connecting openings provided with
self -closing fire doors. Floors shall be without pits or depressions.
1 4. Garages exceeding 3,000 square feet in area.
s' (a) A garage exceeding 3,000 square feet in area may be lo-
cated within or attached to a building occupied for any other pur-
pose provided it is separated from such other occupancy by masonry
walls having a fire resistance rating of not less than 3 hours and
by floors and ceilings of fireproof construction or semifireproof
construction.
(b). Walls, floors and ceilings which effect such separation
shall be continuous and unpierced by openings of any kind; pro-
vided that door openings equipped with self -closing fire doors lead-
ing to salesrooms or offices that are operated in connection with
such garages shall not be prohibited; and provided also that the
use of elevators and stairways to other stories accessible only by
vestibules or balconies, constructed and arranged as required for
fire towers, shall be permitted.
5. Truck loading or unloading area. A truck loading or un-
loading area within a building occupied as a store shall be sepa-
rated from other parts of the building by construction having a fire
resistance rating of not less than one hour, and any load bearing
part of the building within the loading area shall also have a fire
resistance rating of not less than one hour.
6. Ramps. Ramps connecting floors of garages, which are not
considered as required exit ways under section 15, need not be en-
closed in sprinklered garages, nor in open air parking garages.
7. Floors. Garage floors of other than earth construction
which drain to sewers or storm drains shall be provided with an
oil separator or trap. Where floor areas are extensive, a series of
.y such drains shall be provided. The contents of oil separators or
1 traps shall be collected at frequent intervals and removed from the
premises. Floors in repair sections shall be concrete or other ma-
"' terials that may be readily cleaned.
8. Heating.
(a). In garages exceeding 600 square feet in area, direct fired
heating appliances, other than unit heaters located at least 8 feet
above the floor, shall be located in a room used for no other purpose
and cut off from the garage by noncombustible construction having
a fire resistance rating of not less than 3 hours. Openings in the
above mentioned cut-offs shall be restricted to those necessary for
heating pipes and ducts.
VIII 39
7. Interconnection of vents. No vent pipe from a gas appli-
CONTENTS
ance shall be inter -connected with any other vent pipe, smoke pipe,
or flue, unless such gas appliance is equipped with an automatic
device to prevent the escape of unburned gas at the main burner or
SECTION PAGE
burners. Where a gas appliance vent pipe is joined with a smoke
1.
Scope..................................................................................................................
1
pipe from an appliance burning some other type of fuel, for connec-
2.
Building Official..............................................................................................
1
tion into a single flue opening, they shall be joined by a Y fitting
3.
Permits, Inspections, and Posting of Live Loads ----------------------------------
2
located as close as practicable to the chimney. With liquefied
4.
Supplementary Requirements......................................................................
2
petroleum gases the automatic device to prevent the escape of un-
5.
Unsafe Buildings ................................................... ............. ......... .-_..................
2
burned gas shall shut off the pilot light as well as the main burner
6.
Penalty for Violations........................................................_----_--_---..._..--
3
orburners.
7.
Definitions ............................................. .................... --...............................
3
8.
Classification of Occupancies........................................................................
6
SECTION 36. HEAT PRODUCING APPLIANCES, HEAT-
9.
Classification of Construction......................................................................
7
ING, VENTILATING, AIR CONDITIONING, BLOWER AND
10.
Restrictions on Construction Within the Fire Limits ............................
8
EXHAUST SYSTEMS.
11.
Special Occupancy Requirements...............................................................
9
1. Installation Standards. Heat producing appliances and
12.
13.
Height Restrictions---------------•---•--------------------------------------------------------------------
Area Restrictions
10
11
systems (including incinerators) hereafter installed shall be installed
15.
� .. .
Light and Ventilation............................................................................... ....
13
in accordance with standard practices for safe installation and use
15.
Means of Egress..............................................................................................
13
without danger of overheating combustible material or construc-
16.
Fireproof, semifireproof and heavy timber construction ........................
17
tion. Ventilating, air conditioning, blower and exhaust systems
17.
Ordinary Construction .. .
17
hereafter installed shall be installed in accordance with standard
18.
Noncombustible Construction
19
practices for safe installation and use with all features presenting
19.
........................................................................
Wood Frame Construction
20
a osstbilit of starting or readin afire safeguarded to a reason-
possibility g spreading g
20.
Unprotected Metal Construction
21
able degree. Except as otherwise provided in rules duly promul-
21.
Workmanship and Materials........................................................................
22
gated by the building official, installation of such appliances and
22.
Design Loads, Stresses and Wind Pressure ............................................
22
systems in accordance with the "Building Code Standards of the
23.
Foundations
National Board of Fire Underwriters for the Installation of Heat
24.
Masonry ..___.--
22
Producing Appliances, Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning,
25.
Reinforced Concrete
28
Blower and Exhaust Systems" shall be deemed to be the standard
26.
Fire Walls and Party Walls............................................................. .........
28
practice for safe installation and use.
27.
Parapets
30
2. Boiler and Furnace Rooms.
28.
Fire Partitions..................................................................................................
30
(a). Heating boiler and furnace rooms in public buildings, in-
29.
Protection of Exterior Openings................................................................
31
stitutional buildings, places of assembly, hotels, and multifamily
31.
31.
Shafts..................................................................................................................
Roofing ...-- -----------
31
32
houses shall be separated from other parts of the building by con-
32.
------------------------••-•----•------- ...... ------------------------------------••-•--------
Skylights
33
struction having a fire resistance rating of not less than one hour.
33.
Basement Ceilings
33
(b). Boiler rooms housing one or more steam boilers carrying
34.
Chimneys, Flues and Vents.........................................................................
34
more than 15 pounds pressure with a rating of more than 10 boiler
35.
Flues and Vents for Gas Appliances..........................................................
35
horsepower, in other than factories, shall be separated from the
36.
Heat Producing Appliances, Heating, Ventilating, Air
rest of the building by noncombustible construction having a fire re-
Conditioning, Blower and Exhaust Systems ....................................
38
sistance rating of not less than 2 hours, with door openings pro-
37.
Garages..............................................................................................................
38
tected by approved fire doors.
38.
Disposal of Waste During Construction Operations ............................
40
39.
Elevators, Moving Stairways and Amusement Devices ......................
40
SECTION37. GARAGES.
40.
Gas Piping--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
40
1. Garages combined with other occupancies. No garage shall
41.
42.
Plumbing---------------------------------------------------•--•-----------------------------------------------------
Electrical Installations -------_ -------------------------------------------------------------------------
40
41
e attached to or form a part of a building of other occupancy except
43.
Sprinkler Equipments....................................................................................
41
as provided in this section.
44.
Signs and Outdoor Display Structures....................................................
42
2. Garages not exceeding 600 square feet in area.
Appendix -Wood Shingles....................................................................................
43
(a). A garage not exceeding 600 square feet in area inay be
Publications of the National Board of Fire Underwriters __________________________
44
attached to or form a part of a residence building or a business
building if separated from other occupancies by walls, partitions and
ceilings of materials to restrict the passage of gases, smoke and
odor from the garage to other parts of the building.
38
Ix
from combustible material and passage through wall or roof shall
comply with the provisions of subsection 4 of this section.
3. Installation of type B gas vents.
(a). Type B gas vents shall be made up with tight joints.
(b). Type B gas vents shall be installed with a clearance to
combustible material or construction whether plastered or unplas-
tered, of not less than one inch, provided that for vents of floor
furnaces such clearance shall be not less than 3 inches for a distance
of not less than 3 feet from the outlet of the draft hood, measured
along the center line of the vent piping.
(c). Suitable provision shall be made to prevent mechanical
injury to type B gas vents where they extend through walls, floors
or roofs.
(d). Type B gas vents shall not be used with solid or liquid
fuel burning appliances.
4. Installation of gas vents other than type B.
(a). Gas appliance vent piping other than approved type B
gas vents shall not pass through any attic or concealed space
nor through any combustible floor, and shall not pass through any
combustible roof except as specified in subsection 2(c). Where
passing through combustible roofs in accordance with subsection
2 (c) they shall be guarded at the point of passage as specified for
passage through combustible walls or partitions in paragraph (b)
below. Vent piping may extend through any existing chimney
whether the chimney is lined or not.
(b). Gas appliance vent piping other than approved type B
gas vents shall not pass through combustible walls or partitions
unless they are guarded at the point of passage (1) by metal venti-
lated thimbles not less than 6 inches larger in diameter than the
pipe, or (2) by metal thimbles not less than 4 inches larger in
diameter than the pipe with the annular space filled with mineral
wool or other approved noncombustible insulating material; or in
lieu of such protection all combustible material in the wall or par-
tition shall be cut away from the vent pipe a sufficient distance to
provide the clearance required from such vent pipe to combustible
material —any material used to close up such opening shall be non-
combustible.
(c). Clearances from combustible material to gas appliance
vent piping other than approved type B gas vents shall be in ac-
cordance with standard practice for safe installation and use as
required by section 36.
5. Flue mortar. All flue mortar for flues or vent pipes from
gas -burning appliances shall be acid resisting.
6. Draft hoods. Every flue connected appliance except an
incinerator, unless its construction serves the same purpose, shall be
equipped with an effective draft hood which either (1) has been
approved as part of the appliance or (2) complies with nationally
recognized standards for draft hoods. The draft hood shall be at-
tached to the flue collar of the appliance or as near to the appliance
as conditions permit and in a position for which it is designed with
reference to horizontal and vertical planes. The draft hood shall
be so located that the relief opening is not obstructed by any part
of the appliance or adjacent construction.
37
(a). Domestic appliances with input rating in excess of 50,000
Btu per hour, except domestic gas ranges.
(b). Automatically controlled appliances with input rating in
excess of 5,000 Btu per hour, except automatic instantaneous water
heaters of the single faucet type, where the single faucet is attached
to and made a part of the appliance.
(c). Automatically controlled appliances with input rating less
than 5,000 Btu per hour, unless equipped with an automatic device
to prevent the escape of unburned gas at the main burAr or burners.
The term "automatically controlled appliances" used in para-
graphs (b) and (c) refers to appliances to which the gas supply is
automatically turned on and off in accordance with the demand for
heat, but does not include appliances equipped with devices or con-
trols governing the supply of gas to the main burner or burners
which cannot automatically reduce the gas supply below 30 per cent
of the input rating.
(d). Appliances installed in the same room, which if not vented
would make the total input rating of unvented gas appliances, not
including domestic gas ranges, as great as 30 Btu per hour per
cubic foot of room content.
(e). Water heaters installed in bath rooms, bed rooms, or any
occupied room normally kept closed.
(f). Space heaters in sleeping quarters for use of transients.
(g). All house heating steam and hot water boilers and warm
air furnaces including floor furnaces.
2. Types of flues.
(a). Type A flues: Chimneys or metal smokestacks. Type A
flues are required for: (1) all incinerators; (2) all appliances which
may be converted readily to the use of solid or liquid fuel; (3) all
boilers and furnaces, other than attic furnaces, except where specific
approval is obtained from the building official for the use of type B
gas vents; (4) all other appliances except approved appliances which
produce flue gas temperatures not in excess of 5500 F. at the outlet
of the draft hood when burning gas at the manufacturer's input
rating.
(b). Type B gas vents: Approved vent piping of noncombusti-
ble, corrosion -resistant material of adequate strength and heat insu-
lating value, and having bell and spigot -or other acceptable joints.
Type B gas vents shall be used only with approved gas appliances
which are not required by paragraph (a) above to be vented to type
A flues, except that they may be used when extended through an
existing non -used chimney, whether the chimney is lined or not
lined.
(c) Type C gas vents: Vent pipes of sheet copper of not less
than 24 U. S. gauge or of galvanized iron of not less than 20 U. S.
gauge or of other approved corrosion -resistant material, may be
used for runs directly from the space in which the appliance is
located through a roof or exterior wall to the outer air. Such vent
pipes shall not pass through any attic or concealed space nor through
any floor. This shall not be construed as prohibiting the use of
such vent pipes to vent attic furnaces installed in accordance with
the provisions of this code. Installation with reference to clearance
36
BUILDING CODE
SECTION 1. SCOPE.
No building or structure shall hereafter be constructed, altered,
or removed, nor shall the equipment for the operation of a building,
structure or premises be constructed, installed, altered or removed,
except in conformity with generally accepted good practice and the
provisions of this code.
SECTION 2. BUILDING OFFICIAL.
1. Appointment.
(a). The office of building official is hereby created and the
executive official in charge shall be known as the building official.
(b). The building official shall be appointed as required by law.
His appointment shall continue during good behavior and satisfac-
tory service. He -shall not be removed from office except for cause
after full opportunity has been given him to be heard on specific
charges.
(c). During temporary absence or disability of the building
official the appointing authority shall designate an acting building
official.
2. Duties. It shall be the duty of the building official to en-
force all laws relating to the construction, alteration, removal, and
demolition of buildings and structures.
3. Rules.
(a). The building official shall promulgate rules as prescribed
in this code and consistent therewith, it being the intent of this
requirement that the standards of federal or state bureaus, national
technical organizations or fire underwriters, as the same may be
amended from time to time, shall serve as a guide in fixing the
minimum rules of practice under this code.
(b). For the purpose of securing for the public the benefits
of new developments in the building industry and yet insuring
public safety, the building official shall make or cause to be made
investigations, or may accept duly authenticated reports from rec-
ognized sources, of new materials or modes of construction, in-
tended for use in the construction of buildings or structures in the
municipality which are not provided for in this code, and shall
promulgate rules setting forth the conditions under which such ma-
terials or modes of construction may be used.
(c). No rule of the building official shall become effective
until four weeks after notice of intention to enforce it shall have
been given through the publication in a newspaper in general circu-
lation in the municipality and until a public hearing on the same
shall have been held; provided that said public hearing shall not
be necessary unless a request shall have been made for such hear-
ing during the said period of publication. Such rule shall be drawn
in its proposed form and open to public inspection at the time the
notice to enforce is published.
(d). Rules promulgated as herein provided shall have the
same force and effect as provisions of this code.
(e). Any rule may be amended or repealed by the same pro-
cedure prescribed for the adoption of new rules.
SECTION 3. PERMITS, INSPECTIONS, AND POSTING
OF LIVE LOADS.
(a). No building or structure shall hereafter be built, en-
larged, altered or moved without a permit from the building official,
who may require a plan of the proposed work, together with a state-
ment of the materials to be used.
(b). The building official shall inspect all buildings or struc-
tures during construction to see that the provisions of law are com-
plied with and that construction is prosecuted safely. Whenever
in his opinion, by reason of defective or illegal work in violation
of a provision of this code the continuance of a building opera-
tion is contrary to public welfare, he may order all further work
to be stopped and may require suspension of work until the condi-
tion in violation has been remedied.
(c). The live load for which each floor, or part of a floor, of a
business building or storage building is designed and approved shall
be conspicuously posted in that part of the story to which it applies.
SECTION 4. SUPPLEMENTARY REQUIREMENTS.
. The 1949 Edition of the National Building Code recommended
by the National Board of Fire Underwriters shall be deemed to be
the generally accepted good practice for all matters not covered by
this code.
SECTION 5. UNSAFE BUILDINGS.
(a). A building or structure that may be or shall be found
upon inspection to have become dangerous or unsafe, shall, unless
made safe and so certified by the building official, be taken down
and removed.
(b). A building or structure declared unsafe by duly consti-
tuted authority set up by the municipality may be restored to safe
condition; provided that if the damage or cost of reconstruction or
restoration is in excess of 50% of the value of the building or struc-
ture, exclusive of foundations, such building or structure, if recon-
structed or restored, shall be made to conform with respect to ma-
terials and type of construction, to the requirements for buildings
and structures hereafter erected; but no change of use or occupancy
shall be compelled by reason of such reconstruction or restoration.
The term unsafe building shall include buildings structurally un-
safe, unstable or unsanitary; inadequately provided with exit fa-
cilities; constituting a fire hazard; unsuitable or improper for the
use or occupancy to which they are put; constituting a hazard to
health or safety because of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation,
obsolescence or abandonment; or otherwise dangerous to life or
property.
in type A, type B or fire clay mortar with close fitting joints left
smooth on the inside.
(f). Flue linings shall start from a point not less than 8 inches
below the intake, or, in the case of fireplaces, from the throat of
the fireplace. They shall extend, as nearly vertically as possible,
for the entire height of the chimney and be extended 4 inches above
the top or cap of the chimney.
(g). Cleanouts for flues or fireplaces shall be equipped with
cast iron doors and frames arranged to remain tightly closed when
not in use.
(h). When two or more flues are contained in the same chim-
ney, at least every third flue shall be separated by masonry at least
4 inches thick bonded into the masonry wall of the chimney.
Where flue linings are not so separated, the joints of adjacent flue
linings shall be staggered at least 7 inches.
5. Use of flues. Chimneys or flues installed for the use of gas
appliances but which are not suitable for solid or liquid fuels, shall
be plainly and permanently labeled, "THIS FLUE_ IS FOR THE
USE OF GAS BURNING APPLIANCES ONLY." The label
shall be attached at a point near where the vent pipe enters the
chimney, or with a type B gas vent used in place of a chimney, at a
point near where the type B gas vent enters a wall, floor or ceiling.
6. Fireplaces.
(a). The back and sides of fireplaces hereafter erected shall
be of solid masonry or reinforced concrete, not less than 8 inches
in thickness. A lining of fire brick at least 2 inches thick or other
approved material shall be provided unless the thickness is 12 inches.
(b). Fireplaces shall have hearths of, brick, stone, tile or other
approved noncombustible material supported on a fireproof slab or
on brick trimmer arches. Such hearths shall extend at least 20
inches outside of the chimney breast and not less than 12 inches
beyond each side of the fireplace opening along the chimney breast.
The combined thickness of hearth and supporting construction
shall be not less than 6 inches at any point.
(c). Wooden forms or centers used in the construction of
that part of the supporting construction which is below the hearth
of the fireplace shall be removed when the supporting construction
of the hearth is completed.
(d). Spaces between the chimney and joists, beams or girders
and any combustible materials shall be firestopped by filling with
noncombustible material.
SECTION 35. FLUES AND VENTS FOR GAS APPLI-
ANCES.
1. Flue connections required. Every gas appliance shall be
connected to an effective flue extending to the outer air and con-
forming to the provisions of subsection 2 of this section, if it is in-
cluded in any of the following classifications, provided that such
connections shall not be required for industrial appliances of such
size or character that the absence of a connection does not consti-
tute a hazard to the occupants:
35
SECTION 34. CHIMNEYS, FLUES AND VENTS. SECTION 6. PENALTY FOR VIOLATIONS.
1. Flue connections required. Every heating apparatus or
heat producing appliance requiring a flue connection shall be con-
nected with a flue conforming to the provisions of this section or of
section 35. This shall not include electric appliances; gas appli-
ances, except as specifically required in section 35, nor oil fired
appliances especially designed for use without flue connection.
2. Use of nonconforming flues. Flues not conforming to the
requirements of this section for chimneys, nor with generally ac-
cepted good practice for metal smokestacks, nor with section 35,
vents for gas appliances, shall not be used unless listed by Under-
writers' Laboratories, Inc., and installed in full compliance with the
listing and the manufacturer's instructions, and such use is approved
by the building official.
3. Construction.
(a). Chimneys shall extend at least 3 feet above the highest
point where they pass through the roof of the building and at least
2 feet higher than any ridge within 10 feet of such chimney.
(b). No chimney shall be corbeled from a wall more than 6
inches; nor shall a chimney be corbeled from a wall which is less
than 12 inches in thickness unless it projects equally on each side
of the wall; provided that in the second story of 2-story dwellings
corbelling of chimneys on the exterior of the enclosing walls may
equal the wall thickness. In every case the corbeling shall not
exceed one inch projection for each course of brick projected.
(c). No change in the size or shape of a chimney, where the
chimney passes through the roof, shall be made within a distance of
6 inches above or below the roof joists or rafters.
4. Chimneys for heating appliances, low heat industrial ap-
pliances and pgrtable type incinerators.
(a). Chimneys for stoves, cooking ranges, warm air, hot water
and low pressure steam heating furnaces, fireplaces, and low heat
industrial appliances, other than chimneys for incinerators of non -
portable type, shall be constructed of solid masonry units or of
reinforced concrete. The walls shall be properly bonded or tied
with corrosion resistant metal anchors. In dwellings and buildings
of like heating requirements the thickness of the chimney walls
shall be not less than 4 inches. In other buildings the thickness shall
be not less than 8 inches, except that rubble stone masonry shall be
not less than 12 inches thick.
(b). Every such chimney hereafter erected or altered shall be
lined with a flue lining conforming to the requirements below.
(c). Flue linings shall be made of fire clay or other refractory
clay which will withstand the action of,flue gases and resist without
softening or cracking, the temperatures to which they will be sub-
jected, but not less than 2,000' Fahrenheit, or of cast iron of ap-
proved quality, form and construction.
(d). Required clay flue linings shall be not less than % of an
inch thick for the smaller flues and increasing in thickness for the
larger flues.
(e). Flue linings shall be installed ahead of the construction
of the chimney as it is carried up, carefully bedded one on the other
(a). A person who shall violate a provision of this code or
fail to comply therewith or with any of the requirements thereof,
or who shall erect, construct, alter or repair, or has erected, con-
structed, altered or repaired a building or structure, in violation of
a detailed statement or plan submitted and approved thereunder,
or of a permit or certificate issued thereunder, shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than ten dollars nor
more than one hundred dollars, or by imprisonment not exceeding
six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
(b). The owner of a building, structure or premises, where
anything in violation of this code shall be placed or shall exist, and
an architect, builder, contractor, agent, person or corporation em-
ployed in connection therewith and who may have assisted in the
commission of such violation shall each be guilty of a separate of-
fense and upon conviction thereof shall be fined as therein provided.
(c). The imposition of the penalties herein prescribed shall
not preclude the corporation counsel from instituting an appropriate
action or proceeding to prevent an unlawful erection, construction,
reconstruction, alteration, repair, conversion, maintenance or use,
or to restrain, correct or abate a violation, or to prevent the occu-
pancy of a building, structure or premises, or to prevent an illegal
act, conduct, business or use in or about any premises.
SECTION 7. DEFINITIONS.
Alteration, as applied to a building or structure, means a change
or rearrangement in the structural parts or in the exit facilities;
or an enlargement, whether by extending on a side or by increasing
in height; or the moving from one location or position to another;
the term "alter" in its various moods and tenses and its participial
forms, refers to the making of an alteration.
Amusement device means a mechanically operated device which
is used to convey persons in any direction as a form of amusement.
Apartment means a room, or a suite of two or more rooms, in
a residence building occupied as the home or residence of an indi-
vidual, family or household.
Approved, as applied to a material, device or mode of construc-
tion, means approved by the building official under the provisions
of this code, or by other authority designated by law to give ap-
proval in the matter in question.
Area, as applied to the dimensions of a building, means the
maximum horizontal projected area of the building at grade.
Automatic fire alarm system means a system which automati-
cally detects a fire condition and actuates a fire alarm signal device.
Basement means a story with floor level 2 feet or more below
finished grade.
Brick means a solid masonry unit having a sfiape approximating
a rectangular prism, not larger than 12 by 4 by 4 inches. A brick
may be made of burned clay or shale, of lime and sand, of cement
and suitable aggregates, or of fire clay or other approved materials.
34 1 3
Building means a combination of materials to form a construc-
tion that is safe and stable, and adapted to permanent or continuous
occupancy for public, institutional, residence, business or storage
purposes; the term "building" shall be construed as if followed by
the words "or part thereof." For the purposes of this code, each
portion of a building separated from other portions by a fire wall
shall be considered as a separate building.
Building official means the officer or other designated authority
charged with the administration and enforcement of this code, or
his duly authorized representative.
Dwelling means a building occupied exclusively for residence
purposes and having not more than two apartments, or as a board-
ing or rooming house serving not more than 15 persons with meals
or sleeping accommodations or both.
Fire resistance rating means the time in hours that the material
or construction will withstand the standard fire exposure as deter-
mined by a fire test made in conformity with the "Standard Methods
of Fire Tests of Building Construction and Materials," ASTM
E 119-47.
Fire retardant ceiling means a ceiling construction which has
been proved by test as satisfactory for use as ceiling protection
for a floor or roof construction which has a fire resistance rating of
not less than one hour.
Fire retardant treated lumber means lumber which has been
treated by a pressure impregnation process to give a flame spread
classification of 50 or less according to the method for the "Fire
Hazard Classification of Building Materials" of Underwriters' Lab-
oratories, Inc., and which is shown to be so classified by a certificate
or label issued by Underwriters' Laboratories.
Garage means a building, shed or enclosure, or a part thereof,
in which a motor vehicle containing a flammable fluid in its fuel
storage tank, is stored, housed, kept or repaired.
Grade, with reference to a building, means, when the curb level
has been established, the mean elevation of the curb level opposite
those walls that are located on, or parallel with and within 15
feet of, street lines; or, when the curb level has not been established,
or all the walls of the building are more than 15 feet from street
lines, "grade" means the mean elevation of the ground adjoining the
building on all sides.
Habitable room means a room occupied by one or more per-
sons for living, eating or sleeping; and includes kitchens serving
apartments or individual households, but does not include bath-
rooms, toilet compartments, laundries, serving and storage pantries,
corridors, basement and other spaces that are not used frequently
or during extended periods.
Height as applied to a building, means the vertical distance
from grade to the highest finished roof surface in the case of flat
roofs, or to a point at the average height of roofs having a pitch
of more than one foot in 4/ feet; "height" of a building in stories
does not include basements, except that in school buildings of ordi-
nary, noncombustible or wood frame construction, the basement
(b). Except where roofing is of a character permitting attach-
ment direct to frame work, it shall be applied to a solid or closely
fitted deck.
(c). Roofings which are listed as Class A or B roof covering
materials by Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc., shall be accepted as
meeting the requirements of this section.
(d). Roofings which are listed as Class C roof covering ma-
terials by Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc., shall be accepted as
meeting the requirements of this section on buildings as follows:
(1) Dwellings.
(2) Buildings of wood frame construction.
(3) Buildings located outside the fire limits which do not exceed
2 stories or 30 feet in height, nor 2500 sq. ft in area, and are
not occupied as stores, factories or warehouses.
(4) Buildings which under this code could be of wood frame
construction.
See Appendix re wood shingles.
(e). The use of cork, fiber board or other approved insula-
tion is permitted on top of the roof deck provided such insulation
is covered with an approved type of fire resistive roof covering ap-
plied directly thereto.
(f). No roofing on an existing roof shall be renewed or re-
paired to a greater extent than one -tenth of the roof surface, except
in conformity with the requirements of this section.
SECTION 32. SKYLIGHTS.
(a). Skylights placed over shafts, vent shafts and stair en-
closures shall be glazed with plain glass not more than / of an
inch in thickness.
(b). Skylights other than as specified above, which are in-
clined less than 60' from the horizontal, hereafter placed on a build-
ing shall have the sashes and frames thereof constructed of metal
and glazed with wired glass; except that skylights in foundries or
buildings where acid fumes are present, may be of wood by special
permission of the building official.
(c). Every skylight in which plain glass is used shall be pro-
tected by a substantial wire screen with wire not lighter than num-
ber 12 gauge and having a mesh not less than % of an inch nor
larger than 1 inch, placed not less than 4 inches nor more than 10
inches above the glazed portion of the skylight at all points. Such
screen shall extend beyond the glazing on all sides a distance not
less than the height of the screen above the glazing.
(d). When a skylight is located over a stairway, public hall-
way or a place of assembly, a similar screen shall also be placed
below the skylight, unless there is an intermediate ceiling light.
SECTION 33. BASEMENT CEILINGS.
In buildings except dwellings and one-story buildings outside
of the fire limits, the ceilings over basements shall be fire retardant
ceilings unless such basements are sprinklered.
33
story from communicating to any other story; provided that in
buildings of heavy timber construction there shall be no floor open-
ing that is not protected as prescribed in this section or in some
other approved manner.
(b). The provisions of this section shall apply to all shafts
used for ventilation, light, elevator, pipes, or other purpose, except
stairways, air ducts, incinerator chutes, flues, shafts in buildings of
wood frame construction, shafts in dwellings, and ramps in garages
exempted by section 37-6.
2. Shaft enclosures. The enclosing walls of shafts in residence
buildings of ordinary construction or noncombustible construction
or unprotected metal construction shall have a fire resistance rating
of not less than 1 hour. The enclosing walls of shafts in other
buildings shall be of noncombustible construction having a fire re-
sistance rating of not less than 2 hours.
3. Openings. Shaft enclosures shall have no openings other
than those necessary for the purpose of the shaft; provided that in
elevator shafts there shall be at least one door in every 30 feet of
the height of such shaft. Such openings shall be protected with
approved fire doors, approved fire shutters or approved fire windows.
4. Enclosure at top.
(a). Shaft enclosures extending through the roof which are to
be enclosed at the top, shall be provided with a skylight of at least
10 per cent of the area of the shaft in the top story and glazed with
plam'glass /-inch in thickness; provided that the skylight may be
replaced by a window of plain glass of equivalent area in the side
of the shaft if the sill of such window is not less than 2 feet above
the roof and the window does not face a lot line within 10 feet, or
may be replaced by approved means of ventilation.
(b). A shaft that does not extend through the roof shall have
the top enclosed with a form of construction having a fire resistance
rating equal to that of the walls of the shaft.
S. Enclosure at bottom. A shaft that does not extend to the
bottom of the building shall be enclosed at its lowest point with a
floor construction of the same type as that required for the lowest
floor to or through which it passes, but such shaft floor construction
shall have a fire resistance rating of not less than one hour.
6. Elevator machinery compartment. Compartments contain-
ing machinery for operating elevators shall be separated from the
elevator shafts by noncombustible construction having a fire re-
sistance rating of not less than 2 hours, with door openings equipped
with approved fire doors.
9. Number of elevators in shaft. Not more than 3 'elevators
shall be placed hereafter in one shaft.
SECTION 31. ROOFING.
shall be deemed a story when used for purposes other than storage
or heating.
Height, as applied to a wall, means the vertical distance to the
top measured from the foundation wall, or from a girder or other
immediate support of such wall.
Hollow masonry unit means a masonry unit whose net cross -
sectional area in any plane parallel to the bearing surface is less
than 75 per cent of its gross cross -sectional area measured in the
same plane.
Lot means a portion or parcel of land considered as a unit,
devoted to a certain use or occupied by a building or a group
of buildings that are united by a common interest or use, and the
customary accessories and open spaces belonging to the same.
Lot line means a line dividing one lot from another, or from a
street or other public space.
Masonry means brick, stone, plain concrete, hollow block, solid
block or other similar building units or materials, or combinations
of them, bonded together with mortar. Reinforced concrete is not
classed as masonry.
Multifamily house means a building occupied as the home or
residence of individuals, families or households living independently
of each other, of which three or more are doing cooking within
their apartments; including tenement house, apartment house, flat.
Municipality means the governmental unit which has adopted
this code under due legislative authority.
Place of assembly means a room or space in which provision
is made for the seating of one hundred or more persons for religious,
recreational, educational, political, social or amusdment purposes or
for the consumption of food or drink. Such room or space shall
include any occupied connecting room or space in the same story,
or in a story or stories above or below, where entrance is common
to the rooms or spaces.
Prefabricated means composed of sections or panels fabricated
prior to erection on the building foundation.
Shaft means a vertical opening or passage through two or more
floors of a building or through floors and roof.
Solid masonry means masonry consisting of solid masonry units
laid contiguously with the joints between the units filled with mor-
tar, or consisting of plain concrete.
Solid masonry unit means a masonry unit whose net cross -
sectional area in every plane parallel to the bearing surface is 75
per cent or more of its gross cross -sectional area measured in the
same plane.
(a). Every roof hereafter placed on a building shall be cov- Sprinklered means equipped with an approved automatic sprink-
ered with an approved roofing of brick, concrete, tile, slate, metal, ler system properly maintained.
asbestos, prepared asphalt asbestos -felt shingles, or of built-up Street means any public thoroughfare, street, avenue, boulevard,
roofing finished with asphalt, slag or gravel, or other approved park, lane, terrace, concourse or space 20 feet or more in width which
material. has been dedicated or deeded to the public for public use.
32 c
Walls:
bearing wall means a wall which supports any vertical load
in addition to its own weight;
cavity wall means a wall built of masonry units or of plain
concrete, or a combination of these materials, so arranged as to pro-
vide an air space within the wall, and in which the inner and outer
parts of the wall are tied together with metal ties;
faced wall means a wall in which the masonry facing and back-
ing are so bonded as to exert common action under load;
fire partition means a partition constructed in accordance with
section 28, for the purpose of restricting the spread of fire or to
provide an area of refuge, but not necessarily continuous through
all stories nor extended through the roof.
fire wall means a wall constructed in accordance with section
26, for the purpose of subdividing a building' or separating buildings
to restrict the spread of fire and which starts at the foundation and
extends continuously through all stories to and above the roof,
except where the roof is fireproof or semifireproof and the wall
is carried up tightly against the under side of the roof slab.
foundation wall means a wall below the first floor extending
below the adjacent ground level and serving as support for a wall,
pier, column or other structural part of a building;
hollow wall of masonry means a wall built of masonry units
so arranged as to provide an air space vvtihin the wall, and in which
the inner and outer parts of the wall are bonded together with
masonry units;
non -bearing wall means a wall which supports no load other
than its own weight;
panel wall means a non -bearing wall built between columns or
piers and wholly supported at each story;
party wall means a wall used or adapted for joint service be-
tween two buildings;
veneered wall means a wall having a facing which is not at-
tached and bonded to the backing so as to form an integral part of
the wall for purposes of load bearing and stability.
SECTION 8. CLASSIFICATION OF OCCUPANCIES.
1. Classes designated. For the purposes -of this code, build-
ings are classified, with respect to occupancy and use, as public
buildings, institutional buildings, residence buildings, business
buildings and storage buildings.
(a). Public building means a building in which persons con-
gregate for civic, political, educational, religious, social or recrea-
tional purposes; including among others, armories, assembly halls,
auditoriums, bath houses, bowling alleys, churches, city halls, club
rooms, colleges, court houses, dance halls, exhibition buildings,
grandstands, gymnasiums, lecture halls, libraries, lodge rooms,
motion picture theaters, museums, passenger stations, recreation
piers, restaurants, schools, skating rinks, stadiums and theaters.
the requirements for bearing walls in sections 24 and 25, in addition
to meeting the requirements of this section.
(b). Fire partitions shall be supported in each story on con-
struction having a fire resistance rating of not less than 2 hours;
provided that when they also are load bearing, the supporting con-
struction shall have a fire resistance rating of not less than 4 hours
in case the building is of fireproof construction or semifireproof
construction, and not less than 3 hours in case of other construction.
(c). The maximum unsupported height of a fire partition shall
not exceed 18 times its total thickness unless suitably reinforced
and anchored at floor and ceiling or unless substantially secured to
vertical supports at intervals of not over 18 times the thickness.
(d). Fire partitions shall be deemed continuous, even though
the several parts are not directly over one another in successive
stories if the intervening parts of the floors at the levels where off-
sets occur, are unpierced and of fireproof construction or semifire-
proof construction and all parts not supported directly on the
foundations are carried on fireproof construction.
2. Openings.
(a). Required fire partitions shall have no openings other than
required door openings, or properly protected duct openings.
(b). Each opening in a required fire partition shall be equipped
with an approved fire door set in an approved door frame.
(c). Each opening in afire partition serving as a horizontal
exit shall be protected by an approved self -closing fire door.
SECTION 29. PROTECTION OF EXTERIOR OPEN-
INGS.
Every building, except dwellings, churches, buildings of wood
frame construction and of unprotected metal construction, and open
air parking garages shall have approved fire windows or other ap-
proved protectives, in every opening in the exterior walls when such
opening faces on a street and is less than 30 feet from the opposite
building line, or when such opening is less than 30 feet distant in a
direct unobstructed line from an opening in another building, or
when such opening is above and not more than 30 feet distant from
any part of a neighboring roof of combustible construction, or any
roof having openings within this distance; provided that such pro-
tection shall not be required for show windows facing on a street
which do not extend above the first full story above grade; and pro-
vided further that such protection shall not be required when the
opening to be protected and the opening against which it is to be
protected are situated in walls in the same plane or in parallel planes
and are facing in the same direction.
SECTION 30. SHAFTS.
1. Protection required.
(a). Every series of openings above one another in two or
more successive floors, or floors and roof, hereafter placed or con-
structed in a building or hereafter enlarged or altered to change
the use of the shaft, shall be so protected as to prevent fire in any
6 31
12 feet, and the aggregate width of all openings at any level shall
not exceed 25 per cent of the length of the wall.
(b). Every opening in a required fire wall shall be protected
on each side of the wall with an approved automatic or self -closing
fire door; provided that when a fire wall serves also as a horizontal
exit it shall have no openings other than door openings not exceed-
ing 48 square feet in area, and one of the fire doors at each opening
shall be a self -closing fire door.
SECTION 27. PARAPETS.
(a). Except as listed below, parapets shall be provided on all
fire walls, party walls, and exteribr walls of masonry or reinforced
concrete. Parapets are not required on:
(1) Walls connecting with roofs of fireproof construction or
semifireproof construction;
(2) A wall of a building the roof of which is at least three feet
lower than the roof of, or any opening in, an adjacent build-
ing wall;
(3) Walls facing on a street having a width of 30 feet or more;
(4) Walls of a building which is 30 feet or more distant in all
directions from property lines and from other buildings on
the same property;
(5) Walls of a building which is 30 feet or more distant in all
directions from property lines but less than 30 feet distant
to one or more buildings on the same property, where the
total area of the buildings within 30 feet of each other does
not exceed 1/ times the allowable area for any one of the
buildings considered;
(6) Walls of a detached dwelling, or of a building not exceeding
1,000 square feet in area;
(7) Walls of a building where the roof has an angle of more
than 20' with the horizontal.
(b). In dwellings and in buildings in which 8-inch walls are
permitted, such parapets shall be not less than 8 inches thick and
carried at least two feet above the roof.
(c). In all other buildings such parapets shall be not less than
12 inches thick, and carried not less than 3 feet above the roof.
(d). Parapets shall be properly coped with noncombustible,
weatherproof material and flashed with the flashing extending
through the parapet wall under the coping. All corners of all para-
pet walls shall be reinforced with at least one /-inch round bar in
every third joint, continuous around the corner and extending into
the masonry at least 3 feet from the corner.
SECTION 28. FIRE PARTITIONS.
1. Construction.
(a). Fire partitions shall have fire resistance ratings of at least
two hours. They shall be constructed of masonry or reinforced
concrete, or other approved form of construction of noncombustible
materials. Fire partitions used for load bearing shall conform to
30
(b). Institutional building means a building in which persons
are harbored to receive medical, charitable or other care or treat-
ment, or in which persons are held or detained by reason of public
or civic duty, or for correctional purposes; including among others,
asylums, homes for the aged, hospitals, houses of correction, in-
firmaries, jails, nurseries, orphanages, penal institutions, reforma-
tories and sanitariums.
(c). Residence building, except when classed as an institu-
tional building, means a building in which sleeping accommodations
are provided; including among others, apartments, club houses, con-
vents, dormitories, dwellings, hotels, lodging houses, multifamily
houses, studios and tenements.
(d). Business building means a building occupied for the trans-
action of business, for the rendering of professional services, for
the display or sale of goods, wares or merchandise, or for the per-
formance of work or labor; including among others, bakeries, banks,
barber shops, chemical laboratories, creameries, electric substa-
tions, factories, gasoline service stations, ice plants, laboratories,
laundries, markets, office buildings, open air stores, power plants,
radio stations, smoke houses, stores, telephone exchanges, tele-
vision stations and work shops.
(e). Storage building means a building for the housing, except
for purely display purposes, of airplanes, automobiles, railway cars
or other vehicles of transportation, for the sheltering of horses, live
stock or other animals, or exclusively for the storage of goods, wares
or merchandise, not excluding in any case offices incidental to such
uses; including among others, barns, cold storage, freight depots,
garages, gasoline bulk stations, grain elevators, hangars and storage
warehouses.
2. Mixed Occupancy. Where a minor portion of a building
is used for office, study, studio or other similar purpose, the build-
ing shall be classified as to occupancy on the basis of the major use.
In other cases where a building is occupied for two or more pur-
poses not included in one class, the provisions of this code applying
to each class of occupancy shall apply to such parts of the building
as come within that class; and if there should be conflicting provi-
sions, the requirements securing the greater safety shall apply.
3. Doubtful classification. In case a building is not specifi-
cally provided for, or where there is any uncertainty as to its classi-
fication, its status shall be fixed by a duly promulgated rule giving
due regard to safety.
SECTION 9. CLASSIFICATION OF CONSTRUCTION.
1. Types designated. For the purposes of this code, con-
struction as used in buildings shall be classified as follows:
(a). Fireproof Construction.
(b). Semifireproof Construction.
(c). Heavy Timber Construction.
(d). Ordinary Construction.
(e). Noncombustible Construction.
(f). Wood Frame Construction.
(g). Unprotected Metal Construction.
7
SECTION 10. RESTRICTIONS ON CONSTRUCTION
WITHIN THE FIRE LIMITS.
1. General restrictions. Except as otherwise provided in sub-
section 5 of this section, no building or structure of wood frame con-
struction or of unprotected metal construction shall be erected
within the limits established by law as the Fire Limits.
2. Alterations.
(a). Within the fire limits no building or structure of wood
frame construction or of unprotected metal construction shall be
hereafter increased in height.
(b). Within the fire limits no building or structure of wood
frame construction or of unprotected metal construction shall be
hereafter extended on any side; unless the construction of such
extension conforms to the requirements of this code for new con-
struction; and provided that the total area of the building including
extension shall not exceed. the allowable area for wood frame
construction.
(c). Within the fire limits no other building or structure shall
be hereafter extended on any side by wood frame construction or
unprotected metal construction.
(d). Nothing in this section shall prohibit other alterations
within the fire limits; provided there is no change of occupancy
to a class of occupancy otherwise prohibited.
3. Moving buildings. No building of wood frame construc-
tion or unprotected metal construction shall hereafter be moved
from without to within the fire limits or within the fire limits.
4. Doubtful location. A building or structure shall be deemed
to be within the fire limits if one-third or more of the area of such
building or structure is located therein.
5. Exceptions. Nothing iri this section shall prohibit within
the fire limits and subject to the specified limitations, the erection
of new buildings or structures, nor the extension or enlargement
of heretofore erected buildings or structures, of wood frame con-
struction or unprotected metal construction, as follows:
(a). Frame dwellings not exceeding two stories in height and
separated by at least 5 feet from lot line of adjoining property.
(b). Gasoline service stations, parking lot offices, real estate
offices or similar business structures, of unprotected metal construc-
tion, not exceeding 2,500 square feet in area, nor more than one
story in height, and located at least 10 feet from lot lines. If erected
less than 10 feet from the adjoining lot line, the walls facing such
lot lines shall have a fire resistance of not less than one hour.
(c). A building of wood frame construction or of unprotected
metal construction occupied exclusively as a private garage or
stable, not more than one story in height nor more than 750 square
feet in area, located on the same lot with a dwelling; provided that
such building shall be placed at least 3 feet from the lot lines of
adjoining property.
(b). Fire walls and party walls shall be constructed of solid
masonry units, or of hollow masonry units faced on each side with
brick, or of reinforced concrete.
(c). Where structural members project into hollow masonry
units the hollow space shall be filled with noncombustible material
the full thickness of the wall and 4 inches or more above, between
and below such members.
2. Thickness of solid masonry walls except panel walls.
(a). For business buildings and storage buildings, fire walls
and party walls of solid masonry units shall be not less than 16
inches thick for the uppermost 50 feet and increase 4 inches in thick-
ness for each additional 35 feet or fraction thereof measured down-
ward from the top of .the wall; except that where the walls are
non -bearing, or where beams or girders are supported on the wall
by approved metal hangers and do not enter the wall the minimum
thickness may be 16 inches for the uppermost 70 feet.
(b). For other buildings, fire walls and party walls of solid
masonry units shall be not less than 12 inches thick for the upper-
most 35 feet and increase 4 inches in thickness for each additional
35 feet or fraction thereof measured downward from the top of
the wall.
3. Thickness of brick -faced hollow masonry walls. Fire walls
and party walls of hollow masonry units faced on each side with
at least 4 inches of brick shall have a total thickness including the
facing not less than 4 inches greater than specified in subsection 2
above for solid masonry walls.
4. Thickness of reinforced concrete walls except panel walls.
(a). For business buildings and storage-, buildings, fire walls,
and party walls of reinforced concrete shall be not less than 11
inches thick for the uppermost 35 feet and increase 2 inches in thick-
ness for each successive 35 feet or fraction thereof measured down-
ward from the top of the wall.
(b). For other buildings, fire walls and party walls of rein-
forced concrete shall be not less than 9 inches thick for the upper-
most 35 feet and increase 2 inches in thickness for each successive 35
feet or fraction thereof measured downward from the top of the
wall.
5. Exception to thickness requirements for panel walls.
Where fire walls or party walls are constructed, as panel walls in
a framework of columns and girders protected as required for fire-
proof construction and no panel has a height between supports
greater than 12 feet, they may be of solid masonry not less than 12
inches thick or of reinforced concrete not less than 8 inches thick.
6. To be carried to or above the roof. Fire walls and party
walls shall extend at least 3 feet above the roof; except where the
roof is of fireproof or semifireproof construction in which case the
fire walls and party walls shall be carried up tightly against the
underside of the roof slabs.
7. Size and protection of openings.
(a). Except in sprinklered buildings, no opening in a fire wall
shall exceed 120 square feet in area with no dimension greater than
8 29
a bond stone shall be securely anchored to the backing with corro-
sion resistant metal anchors with a cross section of not less than 0.2
square inch. There shall be at least 1 anchor to each stone and not
less than 2 anchors for each stone more than 2 feet in length and 3
square feet in superficial area. Facing stones not over 12 square feet
in area shall have at least 1 anchor to each 4 square feet of super-
ficial face area.
9. Solid walls of plain concrete.
(a). Thickness. The minimum thickness of walls of plain con-
crete may be 2 inches less than that required for solid masonry walls,
but not less than 8 inches, except that 6-inch walls may be used
where specifically permitted by subsection 3 (a) (3) of this section.
(b). Lateral support. Solid walls of plain concrete shall be
supported at right angles to the wall face at intervals not exceeding
20 times the nominal wall thickness. Such lateral support shall
conform to subsection 10 of this section.
(c). Reinforcement around openings. Reinforcement sym-
metrically disposed in the thickness of the wall shall be placed not
less than 1 inch above and 2 inches below openings and extend not
less than 24 inches each side of such openings or be of equivalent
length with hooks. The reinforcement both above and below shall
consist of one %-inch round rod for each 6 inches in wall thickness
or fraction thereof.
10. Lateral support. The lateral support required by subsec-
tions 3, 4, 5, 6 and 9 of this section shall be either vertical or hori-
zontal. It may be obtained by cross walls, piers, or buttresses, when
the limiting distance is measured horizontally, or by floors and roofs
when the limiting distance is measured vertically. Sufficient bond-
ing or anchorage shall be provided between the walls and the sup-
ports to resist the assumed wind force, acting either inward or out-
ward. Piers or buttresses relied upon for lateral support shall have
sufficient strength and stability to transfer the wind force, acting in
either direction to the ground. When walls are dependent upon
floors or roofs for their lateral support, provision shall be made in
the building to transfer the lateral forces to the ground.
SECTION 25. REINFORCED CONCRETE.
(a). Average concrete for reinforced concrete shall consist of
1 part portland cement and not more than 6 parts aggregate, by
volume measured dry, and not more than %/ gallons of water per
sack, 94 pounds, of cement. The aggregate shall be mixed in an
approximate ratio of 2% parts fine aggregate and 3/ parts coarse
aggregate.
(b). The National Building Code, 1949 Edition, Recommended
by the National Board of Fire Underwriters, shall be deemed to be
the generally accepted good practice in reinforced concrete con-
struction.
SECTION 26. FIRE WALLS AND PARTY WALLS.
1. Construction.
(a). Fire walls and party walls of masonry shall be laid in
Type A or Type B mortar.
(d). Outhouses not more than 8 feet in height nor more than
100 square feet in area.
(e). Greenhouses not more than 15 feet in height erected on
the same lot with and accessory to a dwelling or a store.
(f). Sheds open on the long side, not more than 15 feet in
height nor more than 500 square feet in area, located at least 5 feet
from buildings and from adjoining lot lines.
(g). Builders' shanties for use only in connection with a duly
authorized building operation and located on the same lot with
such building operation, on a lot immediately adjoining, on an
upper floor of the building under construction, or on a sidewalk
shed.
(h). Piazzas or balconies on dwellings, not exceeding 10 feet
in width nor extending more than 3 feet above the second story
floor beams; provided that no such structure shall be located nearer
than 3 feet to an adjoining lot line or be joined to a similar struc-
ture of another building.
(i). Coal tipples, ice houses, material bins, trestles and water
tanks, when built of planking and timbers of the dimensions specified
for heavy timber construction.
(j). Fences not exceeding 10 feet in height.
(k). Display signs as provided in section 12-8(a) and section
44.
(1). Roofs over parking lots, of unprotected metal construc-
tion, where roof is at least 10 feet above the floor, and every 40 feet
there is an open ventilation area 6 feet wide extending either the full
length or the full width of the roof.
SECTION 11. SPECIAL OCCUPANCY REQUIRE-
MENTS.
1. Institutional buildings.
(a). Institutional buildings for occupants involuntarily de-
tained or bedridden shall be of fireproof construction or semi -
fireproof construction.
(b). Institutional buildings for occupants which are not invol-
untarily detained'or bedridden, when of other than fireproof construc-
tion or semifireproof construction, shall not exceed 2 stories in
height and shall have floors and partitions with fire resistance ratings
of not less than one hour and with fire retardant ceilings under
roofs, and if of wood frame construction shall not exceed 1 story in
height nor 2500 square feet in area; provided that buildings con-
verted from another occupancy to such occupancy shall be exempt
from these restrictions if sprinklered.
2. Theatres and motion picture theatres.
(a). Theatres and motion picture theatres shall be of fireproof
construction or semifireproof construction, except that portions of
such buildings not over 1 story or over 45 feet in height may have
combustible roof construction if protected by fire retardant ceilings.
(b). No theatre or motion picture theatre shall be located with-
in or attached to a building of other occupancy unless it is sepa-
rated from such other occupancies by walls and floors of non-
combustible construction having fire resistance ratings of not less
than 3 hours.
3. Schools, colleges, assembly halls, dance halls, bowling alleys,
and auditoriums, over one story in height, shall have floors of not
less than one -hour fire resistance.
4. Wall and ceiling finish. In public buildings and institu-
tional buildings, and in all places of assembly and exit ways there-
from, no combustible material shall be used as interior wall or ceil-
ing finish which is of such a nature that flame will spread over its
surface more rapidly than over one -inch (nominal) wood boards
covered with ordinary paint or varnish.
5. Business and residence separation. In buildings of other
than fireproof or semifireproof construction portions classified as of
business occupancy shall be separated from portions classified as of
residence occupancy by partitions having a fire resistance rating of
not less than one hour and by fire retardant ceilings, unless the
business portion is sprinklered.
6. Separation of dwellings. Walls or partitions separating 2
or more dwellings of other than fireproof or semifireproof construc-
tion shall consist of a form of construction having a fire resistance
rating of not less than 1 hour.
7. Partitions in multifamily houses. In multifamily houses
partitions separating apartments or apartments from hallways or
apartments from other occupancies and partitions separating stores
from hallways or other occupancies shall have a fire resistance rating
of not less than one hour, with openings equipped with approved
fire doors or with substantial metal or metal covered doors or solid
wooden doors of the flush type of nominal thickness not less than
1/-inch.
SECTION 12. HEIGHT RESTRICTIONS.
1. New buildings. Except as may be otherwise provided in
subsection 8 of this section, no building hereafter erected shall
exceed in height the limits fixed in this section.
2. Alterations. No building shall hereafter be altered so as
to exceed the limits of height fixed by this section.
3. Public buildings. For public buildings semifireproof con-
struction shall not exceed 75 feet, except that public buildings which
have an occupancy of less than 100 persons above the 75-foot level
may be unlimited in height; heavy timber construction, 4 stories
nor 55 feet; ordinary construction and non-combustible construction
3 stories nor 35 feet, except that churches of such construction may
be 45 feet but not more than 2 stories, and that schools of such
construction shall be not more than 2 stories high; and wood frame
construction and unprotected metal construction shall not exceed
2 stories nor 35 feet.
4. Institutional buildings. For institutional buildings semi -
fireproof construction shall not exceed 75 feet; ordinary construc-
tion, heavy timber construction and noncombustible construction
shall not exceed 2 stories nor 35 feet; wood frame construction and
10
(2) In cavity walls the facing and backing shall be securely
tied together with suitable bonding ties of adequate strength. A
3/16-inch diameter steel rod or metal tie of equivalent stiffness
coated with a noncorroding metal or other approved protective coat-
ing shall be used for each 3 square feet of wall surface. Where hol-
low masonry units are laid with the cells vertical, rectangular ties
shall be used; in other walls the ends of ties shall be bent to 90
degree angles to provide hooks not less than 2 inches long. Ties
shall be embedded in horizontal joints of facing and backing. Addi-
tional bonding ties shall be provided at all openings, spaced not
more than 3 feet apart around the perimeter and within 12 inches
of the opening. Cavity walls of plain concrete shall be reinforced
as provided for solid walls of plain concrete in subsection 9 of this
section.
(d). Bearing.
(1) In hollow walls or cavity walls suitable provision shall be
made at each line of floor beams and wherever load concentrations
occur, to insure proper bearing.
(2) When cavity walls or hollow walls, in which the cells of
hollow units are laid vertical, are decreased in thickness, the units
in the top course of the thicker wall shall be filled solidly with
mortar or masonry or the exposed openings in such top course shall
be covered with slabs of hard burned tile or concrete at least one
inch in thickness or the openings may be stopped in some other
approved manner.
(e). Drainage. In cavity walls the cavity shall be kept clear
of mortar droppings during construction. Approved flashing shall
be installed and adequate drainage provided to keep dampness away
from the backing.
7. Faced walls.
(a). Material. Materials used for facing shall be not less than
2% inches thick, and in no case less in thickness than / the height
of the unit.
(b). Allowable stresses. Where bonded to the backing as pre-
scribed below, the full cross section of both the facing and the back-
ing may be considered in computing the stresses.
(c). Thickness. Faced walls shall be not less in thickness than
is required for masonry walls of either of the types forming the
facing and the backing. Where bonded to the backing as prescribed
below, the facing may be considered a part of the wall thickness.
(d). Bond.
(1) Brick facing shall be bonded to the backing as prescribed
for solid masonry walls in subsection 3 (d) of this section.
(2) Ashlar facing of either natural or cast stone shall have at
least 20 per cent of the superficial area extending not less than 4
inches into the backing to form bond stones, which shall be uni-
formly distributed throughout the wall.
(3) When walls of hollow masonry units are faced with hollow
units, the facing units shall be bonded to the backing as required
for walls of hollow masonry units in subsection 5 (c) of this section.
8. Attachment of stone facing. Every projecting stone, and,
except when alternate courses are full b. and courses, every stone not
27
5. Walls of hollow masonry units.
(a). Thickness and height.
(1) The minimum thickness of walls of hollow masonry units
shall be not less than that required for solid masonry walls in sub-
section 3 of this section.
(2) Walls of hollow masonry units shall not exceed 50 feet in
height.
(b). Lateral support. Walls of hollow masonry units shall
be supported at right angles to the wall face at intervals not ex-
ceeding 18 times the nominal wall thickness. Such lateral support
shall conform to subsection 10 of this section.
(c). Bond.
(1) Hollow masonry units shall have full mortar coverage of
the face shells in both the horizontal and vertical joints.
(2) Where two or more hollow units are used to make up the
thickness of a wall, the inner and outer courses shall ,be bonded
at vertical intervals, not exceeding 3 feet, by lapping at least 4 inches
over the unit below or by lapping with units at least 50 per cent
greater in thickness than the unit below at vertical intervals not
exceeding 17 inches.
(3) Brick facing or lining (which does not include veneering)
when used in hollow block walls shall be bonded to the backing
in accordance with paragraph (d) of subsection 3 of this section.
(4) Where walls of hollow masonry units are decreased in
thickness, a course of solid masonry shall be interposed between
the wall below and the thinner wall above, or the hollow units in
the top course of the thicker wall shall be filled solidly with mortar
or masonry.
(d). Bearing: In walls and piers of hollow masonry units,
suitable provision shall be made for proper bearing at the ends of
all beams and at points of load concentration.
6. Cavity walls and hollow walls.
(a). Height and thickness.
(1) Cavity walls and hollow walls shall not exceed 35 feet in
height. Cavity walls, exclusive of the cavity, and hollow walls
shall be not less in thickness than required for solid masonry walls
in subsection 3 of this section.
(2) In cavity walls, neither the facing nor backing shall be less
than 3/ inches in nominal thickness and the cavity shall be not less
than 2 inches nor more than 3 inches in width.
(b). Lateral support. Cavity walls shall be supported at right
angles to the wall face at intervals not exceeding 14 times, and hol-
low walls at intervals not exceeding 18 times the nominal wall
thickness. Such lateral support shall conform to subsection 10 of
this section.
(c). Bond.
(1) In hollow walls the parts of same shall be connected by
bonds of brick, stone or the material of the wall, placed not more
than 24 inches apart in either direction; but the parts shall not be
deemed to act together in the support of loads unless such bonds
are of a size and design to fully develop the strength of either part.
unprotected metal construction shall not exceed one story nor 35
feet.
5. Residence buildings. For residence buildings, heavy timber
construction shall not exceed 75 feet; ordinary construction and non-
combustible construction shall not exceed 3 stories nor 45 feet;
provided that when the floors immediately over basements are of
noncombustible construction having a fire resistance rating of not
less than 2 hours, ordinary construction may exceed these heights
but shall not exceed 4 stories nor 55 feet; and when in addition, in
multifamily houses which are subdivided by fire partitions into floor
areas not exceeding 3,500 square feet, all other floors have a fire re-
sistance rating of not less than one hour, ordinary construction may
be, but shall not exceed, 5 stories nor 65 feet. Wood frame con-
struction and unprotected metal construction shall not exceed 2
j stories nor 35 feet; except that dwellings other than prefabricated
dwellings shall not exceed 3 stories.
6. Business buildings. For business buildings semifireproof
construction and heavy timber construction shall not exceed 75
feet except that for office buildings semifireproof construction shall
be unlimited; ordinary construction and noncombustible construc-
tion shall not exceed 4 stories nor 50 feet; and wood frame construc-
tion and unprotected metal construction shall not exceed 2 stories
nor 35 feet.
7. Storage buildings. For storage buildings semifireproof
construction shall not exceed 50 feet; ordinary construction, heavy
timber construction and noncombustible construction shall not ex-
ceed 35 feet; provided that in buildings which are sprinklered, semi -
fireproof and heavy timber construction shall not exceed 75 feet
and ordinary construction and noncombustible construction shall
not exceed 50 feet; and wood frame construction and unprotected
metal construction shall not exceed one story nor 35 feet.
8. Exceptions.
(a). For the purpose of this section, the following appurte-
nances shall not be deemed parts of buildings: Church spires, tanks
and their supports, roof structures, chimneys, signs attached to
the building, radio masts, water cooling towers for air condition-
ing or other apparatus, and parapets that do not extend more than 4
feet above the roof surface at their point of contact.
(b). Outside the fire limits, public buildings, business build-
ings, or storage buildings may, in the discretion of the governing
body of the municipality, be erected to greater heights than fixed by
this section.
SECTION 13. AREA RESTRICTIONS.
1. New buildings. Except as otherwise provided in subsec-
tion 4 of this section, the building area permitted without suitable
subdivisions by fire walls shall be limited as follows:
(a). For fireproof construction and semifireproof construction,
unlimited.
(b). For heavy timber construction, the area of buildings shall
not exceed 6,500 square feet if fronting on one street, nor 8,000
26 11
square feet if fronting on two streets, nor 10,000 square feet if
fronting on three or more streets.
(c). For ordinary construction, and for noncombustible con-
struction, the area of one-story buildings shall not exceed 6,000
square feet if fronting on one street, 7,500 square feet if fronting
on 2 streets, 9,000 square feet if fronting on 3 streets and 10,500
square feet if fronting on 4 streets; provided that outside the fire
limits the area of one-story buildings of noncombustible construc-
tion shall not be restricted. The permitted areas for buildings ex-
ceeding one story shall not exceed 5,000, 6,000, 7,500, and 9,000
square feet, when fronting on one, 2, 3 and 4 streets, respectively.
(d). For wood frame construction the area of buildings shall
not exceed 5,000 square feet.
(e). For unprotected metal construction the area of one-story
buildings is not restricted; buildings exceeding one story shall not
exceed the area limits specified for noncombustible construction.
2. Street. Under this section a street shall be deemed to in-
clude any avenue, boulevard, street, alley or lane, 20 feet or greater
in width, or any court, parking space or yard, with direct connection
to a street, and not less than 20 feet wide. Such court, parking space
or yard shall be the property of the owner of the building and shall
not be enclosed or roofed over.
3. Alteration. No building shall be hereafter altered so as
to exceed in area in any story the limits fixed in this section.
4. Area modification.
(a). The limiting areas fixed in this section may be increased
by 100 per cent when the building is sprinklered, and by 200 per
cent when the building is sprinklered and does not exceed one story
nor an average of 25Jeet in height to the roof, or to a fire retardant
ceiling through which there shall be no openings except openings
into shafts or ducts, the enclosing walls of which are of construction
equivalent to the ceiling.
(b). Outside the fire limits the area of one-story buildings of
heavy timber construction, ordinary construction and wood frame
construction may be increased 33/ per cent above the areas other-
wise fixed in this section, when all wood structural members, in-
cluding columns, wall and partition studs and sheathing, and floor
and roof construction, are of approved fire retardant treated lumber
as defined in section 7.
(c). Outside the congested areas of the municipality, when a
hazardous condition is not created thereby, the area of a public
building, a business building or a storage building, not over two
stories high, may be increased in excess of the areas fixed by this
section, in the discretion of the governing body of the municipality;
provided that a building of combustible occupancy, or involving con-
siderable combustible material in its structural parts, shall be
sprinklered, and also curtain boards or draft stops shall be installed
as required by the building official.
(d). Bond. The facing and backing of solid masonry bearing
walls shall be bonded so that not less than 4 per cent of the wall sur-
face is composed of full length headers. The distance between adja-
cent full length headers shall not exceed 24 inches either vertically
or horizontally. In solid brick walls more than 12 inches thick the
inner joints of header courses shall be covered with another header
course which shall break joints with the course below. The facing
and backing of solid masonry non -bearing walls shall be bonded as
required above for bearing walls or shall be bonded with corrosion -
resistant metal ties spaced not farther apart than 16 inches vertically
and 24 inches horizontally.
(e). Other Requirements.
(1) Under -burned clay bricks shall not be used in any part of
A. a building or structure where exposed to the weather, nor in isolated
piers, nor in such part of a bearing wall above which the wall extends
more than 40 feet.
(2) Clay or shale brick laid in Type A or Type B mortar shall
be wet immediately before being laid, except that very hard or
vitrified brick need not be wetted.
(3) Horizontal and vertical joints in brick masonry _shall be
filled with mortar.
(4) Except in dwellings interior bearing walls that are less than
12 inches in thickness and support wooden floor or roof joists, shall
be corbeled not less than 3 inches to receive such joists, unless ap-
proved metal joist hangers are used.
4. Stone Walls.
(a). Thickness.
(1) The minimum thickness of walls of stone ashlar shall be
not less than that required for solid masonry walls in subsection 3
of this section.
(2) Rubble stone walls shall be 4 inches thicker than is re-
quired for solid masonry walls in subsection 3 of this section, but
shall not be less than 16 inches thick, and shall not exceed 40 feet
in height.
(b). Lateral support. Stone walls shall conform to the re-
quirements for lateral support of other solid masonry walls in sub-
section 3 of this section.
(c). Bond.
(1) In ashlar masonry, bond stones uniformly distributed shall
be provided to the extent of not less than 10 per cent of the area
and having not less than 4 inches of bond into the backing masonry.
(2) Rubble stone masonry 24 inches or less in thickness shall
have bond stones with a maximum spacing of 3 feet vertically and
horizontally, and if the masonry is of greater thickness than 24
inches shall have one bond stone for each 6 square feet of wall surface
on both sides and no header stone shall be less than 12 inches long
measured at right angles to the face of the masonry.
(d). Natural Beds. All stones showing pronounced cleavage
shall be laid on their natural bed, except for cornices and other pro-
jecting members which shall have the grain or bedding planes verti-
cal and at right angles to the face of the masonry.
12 - 25
soil and not less than 12 inches thick nor more than 35 feet in height,
provided the walls are laterally supported at intervals not exceed-
ing 12 times the wall thickness.
Gypsum partition tile and block shall be laid in gypsum mor-
tar. Non -bearing partitions and fireproofing of structural clay
tile may be laid in gypsum mortar. Fire brick shall be laid in fire
clay mortar.
3. Solid masonry walls, except stone walls.
(a). Thickness of Bearing Walls.
(1) Except as otherwise provided in paragraphs (2) to (6)
below, the minimum thickness of solid masonry bearing walls other
than fire walls and party walls shall be not less than 12 inches for
the uppermost 35 feet of their height, and shall be increased 4 inches
for each successive 35 feet or fraction thereof measured downward
from the top of the wall.
(2) Where solid masonry bearing walls are stiffened at dis-
tances not greater than 12 feet apart by cross walls, or by internal
or external offsets or returns at least 2 feet deep, or 12 feet vertically
by reinforced concrete floors or roof, they may be 12 inches thick
for the uppermost 70 feet, measured downward from the top of the
wall, and shall be increased 4 inches in thickness for each successive
70 feet or fraction thereof.
(3) In residential buildings not more than 3 stories in height,
solid masonry bearing walls may be 8 inches thick when not over
35 feet in height. Walls in one-story dwellings and one-story private
garages may be 6 inches thick when not over 9 feet in height, except
that the height to the peak of a gable may be 15 feet.
(4) Solid masonry bearing walls of business buildings and stor-
age buildings not more than one story high, may be 8 inches thick;
provided they are reinforced at intervals, not exceeding 20 feet, by
cross walls, piers or buttresses.
(5) Outside of the fire limits solid masonry bearing walls, 8
inches thick, may be used for buildings not exceeding 30 feet nor 2
stories in height, the walls of which, under this code, could be of
wood frame construction; provided they do not exceed 50 feet in
length between cross walls, piers, or buttresses.
(6) Solid masonry bearing walls above roof level, 12 feet or less
in height, enclosing penthouses or roof structures may be 8 inches
thick and may be considered as neither increasing the height nor
requiring any increase in the thickness of the wall below, provided
the requirements for allowable stresses are met.
(b). Thickness of Non -bearing Exterior walls. The thickness
of non -bearing exterior walls, except fire walls and party walls,
shall be not less than 8 inches for the uppermost 15 feet, and shall
increase 4 inches in thickness for each successive 35 feet or fraction
thereof measured downward from the top of the wall.
(c). Lateral Support. Solid masonry walls shall be supported
at right angles to the wall face at intervals not exceeding 20 times
the nominal wall thickness if laid in Type A, B, or C mortar, and not
exceeding 12 times the nominal wall thickness if laid in Type D
mortar. Such lateral support shall conform to subsection 10 of
this section.
SECTION 14. LIGHT AND VENTILATION.
1. Habitable rooms.
(a). Every habitable room shall be provided with natural light
and ventilation by one or more windows, opening directly on a street
or on a court conforming to subsection 5 of this section.
(b). Such rooms shall be not less than 7 feet wide in any part,
and shall contain not less than 70 square feet of gross floor area.
Such rooms shall have a clear height of not less than 7 feet 6 inches
for at least 60 square feet of floor area.
2. Other rooms. Every room, other than a habitable room,
used or occupied by persons, except storage rooms with infrequent
occupancy, shall be provided with one or more windows or venti-
lating skylights opening directly on a street or on a court conform-
ing to subsection 5 of this section; or such rooms shall be provided
with an approved means of mechanical ventilation.
3. Access to rooms and waterclosets.
(a). In multifamily houses hereafter erected or altered access
shall be had to living roms, kitchens and bedrooms without pass-
ing through a bedroom.
(b). Access without passing through a bedroom shall also be
provided to at least one water closet, unless every bedroom has
direct connection with a water closet or a bathroom having water
closet accommodation.
4. Windows.
(a). The aggregate glass area of windows required by this
section shall be not less than 1/10 of the floor area of the room served
by them; provided that in habitable rooms such glass area shall be
not less than 10 square feet, and in bathrooms it shall be not less
than 3 square feet.
(b). Windows or other openings required for ventilation shall
have an aggregate openable area of at least 50 percent of the glass
area required for lighting.
5. Courts. Every court or yard if light and ventilation are
dependent on such, required by this section to serve habitable rooms,
shall have a width, at any given level, of not less than 1/3 of the
height of such court, but not less than 6 feet.
SECTION 15. MEANS OF EGRESS.
1. Application of section. Buildings hereafter erected, except
dwellings, shall be provided with exit facilities in accordance with
the requirements of this section. No building shall be altered so
as to reduce the number or capacity of exits to less than required
for new buildings.
2. Exit way defined.
(a). "Exit way" means the exit doorway or doorways, or
such doorways together with connecting hallways or stairways,
either interior or exterior, or fire escapes, by means of which per-
sons may proceed safely from a room or space to a street or to an
24 13
,
open space which provides safe access to a street. Exit ways
from any room may lead through other rooms of the same tenancy.
(b). Two or more separate exit ways may use the same corri-
dor or hallway; provided that such corridor or hallway is enclosed
by and separated from exit stairways and other parts of the building
by partitions having a fire resistance rating of not less than one hour.
3. Number of occupants.
(a). The dimensions and capacity of exit ways shall be pro-
portioned to the number of persons to be accommodated.
(b). When the number of persons to be accommodated by the
exit way is not stated in the application for a permit or is not other-
wise fixed, it shall be decided on the basis of the gross area of the
space devoted to a particular purpose and shall be assumed to be as
follows:
GROSS AREA
OCCUPANCY PER PERSON
solidly filled with concrete or Type A mortar in which case the
allowable load may be increased 25 per cent.
(f). Door and window openings in walls shall be spanned by
well buttressed arches, or by lintels having bearings proportioned
to their loads but not less than 4 inches.
(g). No masonry, except for interior partitions, shall be sup-
ported on wooden girders or other form of wood construction.
(h). No timber, other than nailing blocks not exceeding 2 by 4
by 8 inches in size, shall be placed in masonry walls; except that in
buildings of ordinary construction, timber lintels may be placed
over openings, on the inside of the wall, resting at each end not more
than two inches on the wall, and chamfered or cut to serve as
centres for masonry arches; and with the further exception that
timber members used for decorative purposes may be set against
the masonry, or may be set into the masonry where the wall exceeds
8 inches in thickness.
(i). During erection walls shall be adequately braced and
Dance hall, lodge room, or place of assembly...... 15 Sq. Ft. arches temporarily supported.
Store —street floor and sales basement ............. 30 " "
other floors .................................. 60 " 2. Mortar.
Space used for occupancies not listed above:
Public....................................... 40
Institutional..................................150
Residence....................................125
Business.....................................100
Storage......................................300
(a). Mortar used in masonry construction shall be propor-
(f ittioned in accordance with the following table:
cc is Mortar Proportions
CC
it
« Proportions by Volume
4. Number of Exits. Mortar
type
(a). From rooms. Every room having an area exceeding 1,000
square feet or occupied by more than 100 persons shall have at least
two exit ways.
(b). From stories. Every story shall have at least one exit A
Cement
Hydrated
Lime or
Lime
Putty
Aggregate,
measured in a
damp and loose
condition
1 (Portland)
0 to /
Not over 3 parts
way and every story that exceeds 2,500 square feet in area shall have B
1 (Portland)
1 to 1%
Not over 6 parts
at least two separate exit ways.
B
(c). Apartments. In multifamily houses exceeding two
1 (Masonry
Type II*)
0
Not over 3 parts
stories above the basement, and in every two-story multifamily house C
1 (Portland)
2 to 2/
Not over 9 parts
having more than 6 apartments using a common exit way, every
apartment that has not direct exit to a street or to a court opening on C
1 (Masonry
0
Not over 3 parts
a street, shall have access to at least one additional exit way sepa-
Type I*)
rated from and independent of the primary interior stairway or fire AL D
0 to / (Port-
land)
1 to 1%
Not over 3 parts
tower.
5. Location of exit doorways. Exit doorways shall be so lo-
cated that no point in a floor area, room or space served by them is
more than 100 feet distant from an exit doorway, measured along
the line of travel; except that when a floor area is subdivided into
smaller areas, such as rooms in hotels, multifamily houses, and
office buildings, the distance from the door of any room, along an
unobstructed hallway, to an exit doorway, shall be not more than
125 feet, except that hallways above the first story shall not extend
beyond an exit as a dead end more than 50 feet. Where the build-
ing is of fireproof construction or semifireproof construction, or the
building is sprinklered, the above distances may be increased 50
per cent.
* As defined in Federal Specification SS-C-181 b, Masonry Cement.
(b). Type of mortar required. Masonry shall be laid in Type
A, Type B or Type C mortar, except as follows:
Type A mortar shall be used in foundation walls of hollow
masonry units, and in nominal 10-inch cavity walls.
Type A or Type B mortar shall be used in footings, foundation
walls of solid masonry units, isolated piers, load bearing or exterior
walls of hollow masonry units, hollow walls and cavity walls ex-
ceeding 10-inch nominal thickness.
Type D mortar may be used in solid masonry walls, other
than parapet walls or rubble stone walls, not in contact with the
14 23
SECTION 21. WORKMANSHIP AND MATERIALS.
All building materials shall be of good quality. Workmanship
in the fabrication, preparation' and installation of materials shall
conform to generally accepted good practice.
SECTION 22. DESIGN LOADS, STRESSES AND WIND
PRESSURE.
Buildings or structures, including tanks, towers and signs, here-
after erected and all new construction in the alteration of heretofore
erected buildings or structures shall be designed and constructed for . -
live and dead loads and wind pressures in accordance with the Na-
tional Building Code, 1949 Edition, recommended by the National
Board of Fire Underwriters, and with resulting stresses not in ex-
cess of those permitted by said code.
SECTION 23. FOUNDATIONS.
Except when erected upon hardpan or solid rock or upon walls
or piers on the water front, foundation walls or other permanent
supports shall be carried not less than one foot below frost line
and shall rest on solid ground or on leveled rock, or on piles or
ranging timbers when solid earth or rock is not found; provided
that when one-story buildings of wood frame construction, ordinary
construction, noncombustible construction or unprotected metal
construction do not exceed 750 square feet in area, such foundation
walls or other permanent supports shall not be required.
SECTION 24. MASONRY.
1. Construction.
(a). All masonry shall be protected against freezing for at
least 48 hours after being placed. Unless adequate precautions
against freezing are taken, no masonry shall be built when the
temperature is below 320 Fahrenheit on a rising temperature or
below 40' on a falling temperature, at the point where the work is
in progress. No frozen materials shall be built upon.
(b). Except when carried independently by girders at each
floor, no wall shall be built up more than 25 feet in height in advance
of other walls of the building.
(c). Masonry walls that meet or intersect shall be adequately
bonded or anchored. Piers having less than 4 square feet of cross -
sectional area when located at an intersection with a wall shall be
bonded into and built as part of that wall.
(d). Except for window -paneled backs and permissible chases
and recesses, walls shall not vary in thickness between their lateral
supports. When a change in thickness, due to minimum thickness
requirements, occurs between floor levels, the greater thickness shall
be carried tip to the higher floor level.
(e). Isolated piers or posts on the interior of buildings shall
not be built of stone. The unsupported height of piers shall not
exceed 10 times their least dimension. Hollow masonry units shall
not be used for isolated piers to support beams and girders unless
6. Enclosures of interior stairways.
(a). All interior stairways in buildings connecting two or
more stories, whether required as exits or not, shall be enclosed,
except as otherwise provided in paragraph (d).
(b). In unsprinklered buildings which exceed 30 feet to the
floor of the topmost story, or are occupied by more than 75 persons
above, c.-40 persons below, the first story above grade, not counting
those in the first story, and in multifamily houses 4 stories or more
in height, interior required stairways shall be enclosed with fire
partitions.
(c). In other buildings interior stairways shall be enclosed in
partitions having a fire resistance rating of not less than one hour.
In buildings of fireproof construction and semifireproof construc-
tion such partitions shall be noncombustible.
(d). An enclosure shall not be required for:
(1). A flight of stairs from the main entrance floor to the
floor next above when such stairs are not a part of a required
stairway.
(2). A flight of stairs in a building of fireproof construc-
tion, semifireproof construction, or a sprinklered building of
heavy timber construction or ordinary construction or non-
combustible construction, when such stairs connect only one
story with one other story immediately above or below it. In
such case the upper end of the stairway shall not connect to a
hallway serving as an exit except through a fire door.
(3). A flight of stairs from a balcony or mezzanine having
an area not exceeding 25 per cent of that of the floor immedi-
ately below.
(e). Openings. No openings except the necessary doorways,
and windows opening to the exterior of the building, shall be per-
mitted in a stair enclosure required by this section. Such doorways
shall be equipped with approved self -closing fire doors, except that
when fire partitions are not required for the enclosure, substantial
self -closing metal or metal covered doors or solid wooden doors of
the flush type of nominal thickness not less than 13/4 inches may be
used. In school buildings, doors on openings in stair enclosures
may have wired glass panels; the area of such glass in any one
door shall not exceed 720 square inches.
7. Width of interior stairways. The minimum unobstructed
width of a stairway serving as a required exit.shall be not less than
44 inches; provided that in multifamily houses and storage buildings,
and in other buildings occupied by a single tenant and limited in
occupancy to 40 persons, such width may be 36 inches. The width
of stairs shall be measured between hand rails except where hand
rails project not more than 3/ inches into such width.
8. Treads and risers.
(a). Treads and risers of required stairs shall be so propor-
tioned that the product of the width of tread, exclusive of nosing,
and the height of riser, in inches, shall be not less than 70 nor more
than 75 ; but risers shall not exceed 7/ inches in height, and treads,
exclusive of nosing, shall be not less than 9% inches wide; except
that in schools the proportion and dimensions of the treads and
22 15
risers may, in the discretion of .the building official, be adjusted to
suit the age of the pupils for which the school is intended. Treads
and risers shall be of uniform width and height in any one story.
(b). The use of winders is prohibited in required stairways.
9. Landings.
(a). No flight of stairs shall have a vertical rise of more than
12 feet between floors or landings; except that in stairways serving
as exits in public buildings such vertical rise shall not exceed 8 feet.
(b). The length and width of landings shall be not less than
the width of stairways in which they occur.
10. Handrails.
(a). Except for steps in aisles, stairs shall have walls or well
secured balustrades or guards on both sides.
(b). Such stairs when less than 44 inches in width shall have
handrails on at least one side.
(c). Such stairs when required to be 44 inches or more in
width shall have handrails on both sides.
(d). When the required width of a flight of stairs exceeds 88
inches, an intermediate handrail, continuous between landings, se-
curely supported and terminating at the upper end in newels or
standards at least 6 feet high, with no projections, shall be pro-
vided.
11. Exit hallways. The clear width of every hallway or pas-
sage leading to a required exit shall be not.less than at the rate of 12
inches for every 100 persons to be accommodated by the hallway but
not less than 44 inches; provided that in multifamily houses or in
case less than 40 persons are to be accommodated, the minimum
clear width may be 36 inches.
12. Width of doorways. The aggregate clear width of door-
ways serving as required exits shall be not less than at the rate of 22
inches for every 100 persons to be accommodated. No exit doorway
serving as an exit for more than 40 persons shall have a clear width
of less than 34 inches (nominal 36-inch door.)
13. Hanging of doors.
(a). The doors of required doorways shall be so hung and ar-
ranged that when fully opened they will not in any way diminish
or obstruct the required width of hallway, stair, or other means of
exit.
(b). Doorways opening onto a street or to a court or open
space communicating with a street, and serving as a required exit
way for more than 40 persons shall have the doors, including the
doors of vestibules, so hung as to swing open in the direction of exit
travel; but this requirement shall not be construed to prohibit the
use of sliding doors in stables, garages, or shipping and receiving
rooms of business buildings and storage buildings.
(c). All exit doors in rooms occupied by 40 or more persons
and all exit doors in exit ways from places of assembly shall be hung
to swing open in the direction of exit travel.
(d). No exit door shall open immediately on a flight of stairs,
but a landing the length and width of which are not less than the
I7
(c). Corrosion -resistant flashing, to prevent moisture from
penetrating behind the stucco, shall be provided over wall openings
and over projecting courses.
4. Sills. Sills shall be anchored to the foundation walls at
intervals not exceeding 6 feet by anchors equivalent to bolts not less
than / inch in diameter with proper washers, embedded at least 6
inches in the foundation.
5. Anchorage.
(a). In all buildings 20 feet or more in width where joists run
at right angles to the rafters, the rafters shall be tied to the ceiling `
' joists with wood or metal ties nailed to the foot of alternate rafters
and extending across 4 joists well nailed to each joist.
(b). All joists shall be well lapped and nailed across the build-
ing to form ties between outside walls.
6. Beams, girders and joists shall conform to the requirements
of section 17-3, paragraphs (a) to (d) inclusive. Where ledger
or ribbon boards are used to support joists, such boards shall be
not less than 1 x 4 inch, nominal dimensions, shall be cut into the
studs and securely nailed with not less than 2 tenpenny nails to each
stud, and the joists shall be spiked to the studs.
7. Load -bearing partitions shall conform to the requirements
of section 17-5.
8. Wooden columns shall conform to the requirements of sec-
tion 17-6.
9. Firestopping.
(a). Exterior walls of wood frame construction shall be prop-
erly firestopped at each floor level, at the top story ceiling level, at
the roof level in the case of flat roofs, and at the foot of roof rafters
in the case of sloping roofs.
(b). Joists shall be firestopped at the ends and over supports
for the full depth of the joists.
(c). Interior stud partitions shall be firestopped at the floor
and ceiling of each story by a 2-inch, nominal dimension, wood
plate, the width of the stud, or the equivalent.
(d). When sliding doors are pocketed in partitions, such
pockets shall be completely firestopped at the top, bottom and ends.
(e). Firestopping shall be of noncombustible material or of
wood not less than 2 inches in thickness, nominal dimension. No
firestopping shall be covered or concealed until inspected by the
building official.
10. Draft stops in attic spaces. Draft stops shall be provided
in attic spaces as required by section 17-10.
SECTION 20. UNPROTECTED METAL CONSTRUC-
TION.
Unprotected metal construction, as applied to buildings, means
that in which the structural supports are unprotected metal and in
which floors and roofs are of noncombustible construction, and the
exterior walls are of noncombustible construction having a fire re-
sistance rating of less than 2 hours.
21
3. Structural members. All structural members shall be of
steel, iron, reinforced concrete, or of other approved noncombustible
materials.
4. Partitions.
(a). If combustible material enters into the construction of
partitions, they shall be built to have a fire resistance rating of not
less than one hour; but this shall not prohibit the use of wooden
doors, door casings, frames, jambs and bucks, window and transom
frames and casings, unless the partitions are required to be fire
partitions.
(b). Nothing in this section shall prevent the erection of tem-
porary partitions of wood and glass or of metal and glass within
the rooms or spaces occupied by a single tenant.
(c). All permanent partitions shall rest on noncombustible
materials.
SECTION 19. WOOD FRAME CONSTRUCTION.
1. Definition. Wood frame construction, as applied to build-
ings, means that in which walls and interior construction are wholly
or partly of wood.
2. Walls.
(a). Framing for exterior walls shall be constructed to develop
a strength and rigidity equivalent to wooden studding, not less than
2 by 4 inches, nominal dimensions, spaced 16 inches on centers with
the larger dimension perpendicular to the wall, and braced with
sheathing or diagonal bracing at the corners to secure the necessary
rigidity; except that in one-story buildings studs not over 10 feet
in length may be spaced not to exceed 24 inches on centers.
(b). In buildings except private garages, an exterior wall
which is less than 3 feet distant from the lot line along an adjoining
area which is or may be built upon shall be of noncombustible con-
struction having a fire resistance rating of not less than two hours;
except that the material of the weather surface may be similar to
that of other exterior walls of the building.
(c). An exterior wall which is less than 6 feet distant from
a wall of another building of wood frame construction on the same
lot, shall be of noncombustible construction having a fire resistance
rating of not less than two hours; except that the material of the
weather surface may be similar to that of other exterior walls of
the building; and except that when the aggregate area of the two
buildings does not exceed 1% times the limiting area fixed by this
code for either building, such fire resistance rating shall not be
required.
3. Stucco.
(a). Stucco shall consist of portland cement mortar or other
approved mortar, on approved metal lath, or other approved backing.
(b). Stucco shall be kept at least 8 inches above adjacent
ground surfaces, with sills, coping and other projecting courses pro-
vided with drips.
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width of such door, shall be provided between such door and such
stairs.
(e). Where the size of the exit doorway requires two doors in
the same opening, the doors shall be so hung as to require no center
post in the opening for the doors to close against.
14. Lighting. Required stairways, hallways and other means of
exit, including exterior open spaces to or through which exits lead,
shall be kept adequately lighted at all times that the building served
thereby is occupied.
SECTION 16. FIREPROOF, SEMIFIREPROOF AND
HEAVY TIMBER CONSTRUCTION.
Fireproof, semifireproof and heavy timber construction shall
conform to generally accepted good practice. The 1949 Edition of
the National Building Code recommended by the National Board
of Fire Underwriters shall be deemed the generally accepted good
practice for these types of construction.
SECTION 17. ORDINARY CONSTRUCTION.
1. Definition. Ordinary construction, as applied to buildings,
means that in which exterior walls and bearing walls are of masonry
or of reinforced concrete, and in which the structural members, in-
cluding columns, floors and roof construction, are wholly or partly
of wood of smaller dimensions than required for heavy timber con-
struction, or of steel or iron not protected as required for semifire-
proof construction.
2. Walls.
(a). Exterior walls and all bearing walls shall be of masonry
or of reinforced concrete.
(b). Exterior walls which are within 3 feet of a lot line along
an adjoining area which is or may be built upon or which are within
6 feet of another building of other than fireproof or semifireproof
construction on the same lot, shall have a fire resistance rating of
not less than 3 hours; except that where the total area of the build-
ings does not exceed 1/ times the allowable area for any one of the
buildings considered such fire resistance rating shall not be required.
3. Beams, girders and joists.
(a). Wooden beams and joists, except headers and tail joists,
and except for bearings at joints limited within the allowable
stresses provided in this code, shall have bearings of at least 3
inches in length.
(b). Wooden trimmers, headers, and tail joists over 6 feet in
length, unless supported on walls or girders, shall be hung in ap-
proved metal stirrups or hangers. If wood girders are set flush
with the floor joists, the joists shall rest in approved metal stirrups
or hangers. The ends of joists against the girders shall be securely
nailed to the girders.
(c). Except in the case of pitched roofs, wooden floor and roof
joists having spans in excess of 8 feet shall be rigidly braced with
continuous rows of bridging at intervals not exceeding 8 feet.
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(d). Joists shall be doubled under partitions which run over
and parallel to the joists, or shall be designed for the load.
(e). The ends of wooden beams and joists resting on masonry
shall be cut to a bevel of 3 inches in their depth.
(f). Wooden joists, beams and girders resting on opposite
sides of a masonry wall shall be separated from one another by
at least 6 inches of solid masonry.
(g). When a wooden girder rests on masonry an air space of
inch shall be provided on the sides and end of such girder for
ventilation, and each wall bearing end of a girder shall be cut on
a bevel.
4. Anchorage.
(a). All trimmers and at least one beam or joist in every six,
feet resting on masonry walls, shall be secured to such walls by
approved metal anchors attached at or near the bottom in a manner
to be self -releasing. Each end of a trimmer, beam or joist that
is supported by a girder, shall be secured or tied in an approved
manner to such girder or to a trimmer, beam or joist correspond-
ingly supported from the opposite side of such girder. Anchors and
ties shall be so arranged as to form continuous ties between opposite
masonry walls.
(b). Where floor or roof joists or beams run parallel to ma-
sonry walls such walls shall be secured to 4 or more joists of the
floor or roof construction by approved metal anchors at maximum
intervals of 8 feet for dwellings, and 6 feet in other buildings.
(c). Wall plates and roof construction shall be anchored to the
walls at least every 6 feet.
(d). Wooden girders shall be anchored to the walls and fas-
tened to each other with suitable steel straps placed near the bottom
of the girder.
5. Load -bearing partitions.
(a). Load -bearing partitions shall be the equivalent of 2 x 4-
inch studs, nominal dimensions, spaced not to exceed 16 inches on
centers with the larger dimension perpendicular to the wall. All
openings shall have studs doubled on each side and if more than 3
feet and 6 inches wide they shall be trussed over or shall have lintels
of sufficient size to carry the load.
(b). Load -bearing stud partitions shall have top plates not
smaller than double 2 x 4-inch, nominal dimensions, and shall be
set over girders or other partitions below, with the space between
the ceiling and the floor above firestopped with solid 2-inch, nominal
thickness plank, or with noncombustible material.
6. Wooden columns.
(a). Wooden columns in the several stories of a building, shall
be set directly above one another, on top of the column below.
(b). The loads on wooden columns shall be transmitted to
the columns below through reinforced concrete or metal caps with
brackets, or through metal caps and bases with pintle connections
or other approved column connections; provided that wooden bol-
sters may be used to support roof girders.
(c). Wooden columns shall not rest directly on floor joists.
(d). When supported by masonry, suitable stone or metal
bases shall be set between the column and the masonry.
7. Firestopping.
(a). When the walls are furred, the space created by the fur-
ring shall be firestopped with noncombustible material at floors,
ceilings and roofs. The firestopping shall be the full thickness of
the furring and extend from the ceiling to the underside of the
flooring or roof.
(b). When joists run parallel to the wall the space between
the wall and nearest joist shall be not less than 1 inch and shall
be solidly filled with masonry or approved noncombustible material.
(c). Interior stud partitions shall be firestopped at the floors
and ceiling of each story by a 2-inch nominal dimension, wood
plate, the width of the stud, or the equivalent.
(d). When sliding doors are pocketed in partitions, such
pockets shall be completely firestopped at the top, bottom and ends,
with noncombustible material or with wood not less than 2 inches in
thickness nominal dimension.
(e). Joists shall be firestopped at the ends and over supports
for the full depth of the joists with noncombustible material or with
wood not less than 2 inches in thickness, nominal dimension.
(f). No firestopping shall be covered or concealed until in-
spected by the building official.
8. Bay windows and show windows. Bay windows and show
windows that extend beyond exterior walls shall be constructed of
noncombustible materials; except that show windows that do not
extend above the second story floor level and bay windows on
dwellings may be constructed of wood; when such bay windows of
wood are more than 10 feet in width they shall be covered on the
exterior surfaces with metal or other approved noncombustible,
weatherproof materials.
9. Mansard roofs. Mansard or other slanting roofs having a
pitch of more than 60' from the horizontal, hereafter placed on a
building over 40 feet in height, shall be of fireproof construction or
semifireproof construction.
10. Draft stops in attic spaces. Attic spaces shall be divided
into areas of 3,000 square feet or less by tight draft stops; these shall
be of 2 thicknesses of 1-inch lumber with joints broken or the equiva-
lent, with access doors of similar construction.
SECTION 18. NONCOMBUSTIBLE CONSTRUCTION.
1. Definition. Noncombustible construction, as applied to
buildings, means that in which all structural members, including
floors, roofs and their supports, are of steel, iron, concrete, or of
other noncombustible materials, and in which the exterior walls are
of noncombustible construction having a fire resistance rating of
not less than two hours.
2. Walls. Exterior enclosure walls shall provide a durable
and stable weatherproof exterior.
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