State Construction Code Amendments Proposed Under Utah Uniform Building Standards Act

Part I
Summary of Construction Code Amendments Recommended Under the Uniform Building Standards Act

This document is a summary of the proposed amendments to the State Construction Code as approved by the Uniform Building Code Commission for publication for consideration at a public hearing to be held on September 8, 2010 at 9:00 a.m. in Room 4112 of the State Office Building, Salt Lake City, Utah.

These recommendations are subject to change after the public hearing and before a final recommendation is made by the Uniform Building Code Commission to the Legislature's Business and Labor Interim Committee.

The proposed changes are written with strikethrough and underline as changes to the adopted construction codes. The changes are shown in this format for easier identification of items that are recommended for change.

This summary also discusses proposed amendments that were not approved by the Uniform Building Code Commission.

Overall Summary of Proposed Changes:

Pending the results of the public hearing, the Uniform Building Code Commission is recommending that the proposed amendments be adopted as part of the State Construction Code.

There are five areas of changes recommended:

1. Update to current NFPA referenced standards.

2. Local amendments for fire sprinkler requirements in the Town of Brian Head.

3. Adoption of 2009 IECC energy provisions for residences.

4. Amendments to the 2009 IECC energy provisions for residences to allow other means of complying with new energy requirements.

5. Amendments to the 2009 IECC energy provisions for residences for log homes.

Summary of Individual Amendments:

Section 201. Statewide amendments to the IBC proposed numbers 70 to 84.

These new amendments were recommended by the State Fire Marshall. These amendments propose adopting the latest NFPA standards as referenced standards. These amendments will allow the most current standards and technology to be used.

These same referenced standards have been approved to be included in the recommended amendments to the 2009 International Fire Code that will be submitted by the State Fire Marshal's Office. These amendments will coordinate the provisions of the Fire Codes and Building Codes so that the requirements are consistent.

These amendments have been reviewed and agreed to by members of the industry affected by the changes.

Section 202. Statewide Amendments to the IRC numbers 20 and 21.

Current amendment number 20: The Uniform Building Code Commission is recommending that this current amendment number 20 be deleted, which means the 2009 IECC energy provisions for the IRC will become effective, with a recommended effective date of January 1, 2012. See section Review of Proposed Adoption of 2009 IECC Energy Provisions for IRC for further details.

A new amendment number 20 is being recommended for approval. This amendment will allow the log home industry to meet the new requirements for energy efficiency under the 2009 energy codes. Members of the log home industry have agreed to this amendment.

Section 207. Statewide Amendments to the IECC number 1 and 2.

The new amendment number 1 allows a builder to comply with the 2009 energy provisions by any method which increases energy efficiency by 12% over the 2006 code. See section Review of Proposed Adoption of 2009 IECC Energy Provisions for IRC for further details.

A new amendment number 2 is being recommended for approval. This amendment will allow the log home industry to meet the new requirements for energy efficiency under the 2009 energy codes. This requires a minimum of 6 inch logs be used. The industry reported that they know of no builders in Utah who are using 5 inch logs.

Members of the log home industry have agreed to this amendment.

Section 301 and 302. Local Amendments to the IBC and IRC

These are local amendments requested by the Town of Brian Head. These proposed amendments have been approved by the Town of Brian Head (local compliance agency) as allowed by part 3 of House Bill 308, 2010 legislative session.

These amendments require additional fire sprinkler requirements in certain larger homes and homes located where access by fire fighting personnel and equipment and ample water supplies may be difficult.

Proposed Amendment to Change from
IPC to UPC -Not Accepted.

IAPMO (The International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials) submitted a request for an amendment to change the adopted Utah Plumbing Code from the IPC (International Plumbing Code) to the UPC (Uniform Plumbing Code) published by IAPMO.

The Plumbing Advisory Committee to the Uniform Building Code Commission met monthly for several months and reviewed and compared the two codes chapter by chapter and side by side to determine the differences between the two codes and amendments that would be necessary should the proposed amendment be approved.

After input from the industry, educators, and code officials, the Plumbing Advisory Committee found that the differences between the two codes was not sufficient to recommend the UPC over the IPC and that there was no compelling advantage in the UPC that would warrant the change. It was also noted that if a person used the UPC that in large majority of cases it would also satisfy the requirements of the IPC.

After this review was completed by the Plumbing Advisory Committee, they recommend that the proposed change not be accepted. The Uniform Building Code Commission agreed with this recommendation.

Review of Proposed Adoption of
2009 IECC Energy Provisions for IRC

The advisory committees to the Uniform Building Code Commission, the Ad Hoc Energy Advisory Group, the Mechanical Advisory Committee and the Architectural Advisory Committee were unable to come to a consensus of whether to recommend adoption of the 2009 IECC energy provisions for the IRC.

The Ad Hoc Energy Advisory Group did not make a recommendation of whether to endorse adoption of the 2009 energy provisions but members of the group presented their studies to the Mechanical Advisory Committee and the Architectural Advisory Committee.

Each of the committees reviewed the studies from the Ad Hoc Energy Advisory Group, but the Mechanical and Architectural Advisory Committees were split on their recommendations to the Uniform Building Code Commission. The Mechanical Committee unanimously recommended adoption of the 2009 IECC energy provisions for the IRC. The Architectural Advisory Committee failed to recommend adoption of the 2009 IECC energy provisions for the IRC with a vote of 2 for and 2 against adoption. A 5th member of the Architectural Advisory Committee stated he was against adoption but had to leave the meeting before the vote.

The Uniform Building Code Commission reviewed the recommendations from the committees and comments received from interested parties and by a vote of 6 in favor and 2 against, voted to recommend adoption of the 2009 IECC energy provisions for the IRC, with an effective date of January 1, 2012. This added time was recommended to allow time for the industry to plan for the change and to allow further amendments or regulations to be recommended should they be necessary.

Details of studies and argument for and against adoption of the 2009 IECC energy provisions for the IRC.

The Ad Hoc Energy Advisory Group met monthly from January 2010 to July 2010.

Their assigned objective was to study the building costs and energy savings that would result from adoption of the 2009 IECC energy provision for residences under the IRC and then make a recommendation on whether to adopt the new energy code provisions.

Members of the ad hoc group devoted a substantial amount of time outside of the ad hoc meetings to complete these studies.

The ad hoc group developed several different scenarios of what the costs and savings would be for a typical home. The energy group and the builder group have each provided their own summary. The summaries do have some variances with the information and disagreement about the significance of the results and what the result should indicate regarding adoption of the 2009 energy provisions. The two summaries are attached.

It was acknowledged by all persons in the ad hoc group that there is a wide range of scenarios and size of projects that could be used and the details of what should be used in all scenarios was not agreed to by all parties. This report, therefore recognizes that the data presented, herein in and on the attached summaries, is still subject to debate. However, this is the best data now available.

The ad hoc group used an average size home of approximately 2,400 square feet. Using that home as a representative model, they developed 13 different scenarios of the construction costs resulting from changing from the 2006 to the 2009 IECC codes for residences and the energy savings that would result from each scenario.

Three of the scenarios were for climate zone 3 (St George area), five of the scenarios were for climate zone 5 (Wasatch Front) and five scenarios were for climate zone 6 (Vernal and higher elevations).

The overall increased building costs on the 13 scenarios ranged from a low of $218 on one scenario to a high of $1,419 on one scenario. The added costs in climate zone 3 ranges from $663 to $747, in climate zone 5 from $218 to $1,220 and climate zone 6 from $467 to $1,419. The average cost of all scenarios was $859. This is not a weighted average cost, but a simply average of the 13 scenarios studied.

The cost identified is the builder cost not the final cost to the home owner, who would ultimately pay the additional costs. The builder would add their normal overhead and markup. The builders in the group estimated that the actual consumer costs of the added provisions would be approximately double the builder's hard costs.

The overall savings from implementing the new energy codes ranged from an annual saving of minus ($33) per year to $200 per year. This resulted in a payback of minus (14.2) years to 87.2 years with an average of 6.7 years for climate zone 3, 5.1 years for climate zone 5 and 44.6 years for climate zone 6. The pay back time period was determined by dividing the total builders cost by the annual savings.

Due to the fact that the hard cost to the builder was used rather than the consumer cost, the actual payback time period for the consumer will be substantially longer. Given the cost to the consumer is expected to be about double the builder cost, the payback time for the consumer will be as much as double the time period specified on the summary charts. No adjustments have been made for interest that would be paid and no adjustments have been made for energy costs that may increase over time.

The primary elements resulting in the increased costs and the energy savings was divided into 5 primary areas: building envelope, HVAC systems, Duct Systems, Testing/Inspection and CFL lighting.

The increased building envelope costs ranged from an additional $118 to $1,767. The most expensive part of the increased costs in this area resulted from changing from 2X4 walls allowed under the 2006 codes to 2X6 walls or equivalent required under the 2009 codes.

The HVAC systems costs ranged from a minus ($650) to $14. The minus cost resulted from a tradeoff of a 90 percent efficiency furnace in the 2006 codes which was allowed to offset staying with the 2X4 walls. The annual net energy use with the trade off not allowed resulted in an energy savings from the building envelope of as much as $56 to $73 per year for the building envelope. The minus energy saving shown on the scenarios resulted from returning to the 80 percent efficiency furnace, which resulted in minus $45 to minus $57 energy savings, for an average net savings after the offset of building envelope of $16 to $21 per year.

There was an amendment recommended to the Mechanical and Architectural Advisory Committees to allow a builder to comply with the 2009 energy provisions by any method which increases energy efficiency by 12% over the 2006 code. This amendment was accepted by the Uniform Building Code Commission to be part of its tentative recommendation to the legislature.

There was a second amendment recommended to the Mechanical and Architectural Advisory Committees to still allow the high efficiency furnace as an offset to meeting other code requirements. This amendment was not included in the tentative recommendation to the legislature.

The details of how either of the amendments would interact with the 2009 code requirements and what effect it would have on the cost of each scenario was not determined. Further study on this effect may be warranted.

However, the intent of both proposed amendments was to allow the trade off but still require the overall energy efficiency now required by the 2009 codes. It is unclear if this intent can be met with the change. The home builders stated that the tradeoff just barely resulted in complying with the code under the 2006 energy requirements. With the new 2009 energy requirement it is unclear if the proposed amendment would allow sufficient offset credit for the 90 percent efficiency furnace to allow keeping the 2X4 walls and the lower building costs that would result.

The next largest item requiring increased costs is the requirement for testing or inspections. The estimated builder's costs for these tests or inspections were $504 per house and resulted in annual energy saving ranging from $48 to $85 per year. This item assumes certain air leakage rates in non tested or non inspected homes to a lower air leakage rate in tested or inspected homes. The ad hoc group did not verify the accuracy of these assumptions but agreed the testing or inspection would ultimately result in corrections to the deficit installations and would result in energy savings.

The next largest area of energy savings was switching a portion of the home lighting to CFL lighting. This resulted in an annual energy savings ranging from $0 to $93 and an average cost of $28 to $35.

Those in favor of adopting the new 2009 energy codes for residential claim that the lengthy pay back periods in some scenarios are not representative of the full spectrum of possibilities and claim that adoption of the 2009 codes will result in energy savings to consumers that have a reasonable pay back period. They claim that homes will be in use for as many as 100 years or more and over the expected life of the home, the higher initial costs will be repaid many times. They also state that Utah has already received $38 million from stimulus funds that could be required to be returned if Utah fails to abide by its commitment to go to the 2009 energy codes.

The builders opposed to the adoption of the 2009 energy codes claim the increased cost is not warranted given the lengthy pay back time periods, particularly when isolating costs elements and the pay back related to those areas. They also claim that adding this much cost to home construction comes at the worst possible time given the status of the economy and the substantially impacted building industry that has resulted. They also object to the adoption of the 2009 energy requirement for purpose of saving stimulus funds, when the parties that have already received the funds are not the home owners who would be paying for the compliance.

NOTE: The following tables are not able to be published in the Utah State Bulletin. If you need a copy of these tables, please contact the Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing directly.

Energy Savings and Building Code by Category: 2006 IECC vs. 2009 IECC

Annual Energy Savings and Building Cost by Compliance Methodology: 2006 IECC vs. 2009 IECC

Part 2
STATE CONSTRUCTION CODE ADOPTION ACT AND
STATE CONSTRUCTION CODE

 

Amendments
Proposed for September 8, 2010
Uniform Building Code Commission Meeting
and Public Hearing

[Sections 1 and 2 and Part 1 remain unchanged]

Part 2. Statewide Amendments

Section 201. Statewide amendments to the IBC.

The following are adopted as amendments to the IBC to be applicable statewide:

[ (1) through (69) remain unchanged]

(70) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 10-7 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     10-10    Portable Fire Extinguishers  906.2, 906.3.2, 906.3.4, Table 906.3(1),
                                           Table 906.3(2)"



(71) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 11-05 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     11-10    Low Expansion Foam           904.7"



(72) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 12-05 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     12-08    Carbon Dioxide               904.8, 904.11"
              Extinguishing Systems



(73) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 12A-04 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     12A-09   Halon 1301 Fire              904.9"
              Extinguishing Systems



(74) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 13-07 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     13-10    Installation of Sprinkler    708.2, 903.3.1.1, 903.3.2, 903.3.5.1.1,
              Systems                      903.3.5.2, 904.11, 905.3.4, 907.6.3,
                                           1613.3"



(75) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 13D-07 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     13D-10   Installation of Sprinkler    903.3.1.3, 903.3.5.1.1"
              Systems in One- and
              Two-family Dwellings and
              Manufactured Homes



(76) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 13R-07 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     13R-10   Installation of Sprinkler    903.3.1.2, 903.3.5.1.1, 903.3.5.1.2, 903.4"
              Systems in Residential
              Occupancies Up to and Including
              Four Stories in Height



(77) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 14-07 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     14-10    Installation of Standpipe    905.2, 905.3.4, 905.4.2, 905.6.2, 905.8"
              and Hose System



(78) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 17-02 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     17-09    Dry Chemical                 904.6, 904.11"
              Extinguishing Systems



(79) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 17A-02 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     17A-09   Wet Chemical                 904.5, 904.11"
              Extinguishing Systems



(80) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 20-07 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     20-10    Installation of Stationary   913.1, 913.2.1, 913.5"
              Pumps for Fire Protection



(81) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 72-07 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     72-10    National Fire Alarm Code     901.6, 903.4.1, 904.3.5, 907.2, 907.2.5,
                                           907.2.11, 907.2.13.2, 907.3, 907.3.3,
                                           907.3.4, 907.5.2.1.2, 907.5.2.2, 907.6, 
                                           907.6.1, 907.6.5, 907.7, 907.7.1,
                                           907.7.2, 911.1.5, 3006.5, 3007.6"



(82) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 92B-05 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     92B-09   Smoke Management             909.8"
              Systems in Malls, Atria and
              Large Spaces



(83) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 101-06 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     101-09   Life Safety Code             1028.6.2"



(84) In IBC, Chapter 35, NFPA referenced standard 110-05 is deleted and replaced with 
the following:



     "Number  Title                        Referenced in code Section number
     110-10   Emergency and Standby        2702.1"
              Power Systems

 

Section 202. Statewide Amendments to the IRC.

The following are adopted as amendments to the IRC to be applicable statewide:

[(1) through (19) remain unchanged]

(20) IRC, Chapter 11, is deleted and replaced with Chapter 11 of the 2006 International Residential Code and Chapter 4 of the 2006 International Energy Conservation Code.

(20) In IRC, Table N1102.1, a new footnote l for Climate Zones 5-8 is added as follows:

"l. Log walls complying with ICC400 and with a minimum average wall thickness of 6" or greater shall be permitted in Climate Zones 5-8 when overall window glazing is .31 U-factor or lower, minimum heating equipment efficiency of 90 AFUE (gas) or 84 AFUE (oil), and all other component requirements are met.

[(21) through (35) remain unchanged]

[Section 203 to 206 remain unchanged]

 

Section 207. Statewide Amendments to the IECC.

The following are adopted as amendments to the IECC to be applicable statewide:

1) In IECC, Section 401.2, a new number 3 is added as follows:

"; or

3. Show compliance based on a 12% energy efficiency improvement over the 2006 IECC. A project may show compliance using the 2006 IECC code tradeoff and performance methodologies including computer software, worksheets, compliance manuals or other approved methods, verifying the project exceeds compliance to the 2006 IECC by a minimum of 12%. The mandatory requirements of the 2009 IECC Section 402 and 403 apply when using this method."

(2) In IECC Table 402.1.1, a new footnote k for Climate Zones 5-8 is added as follows:

"k. Log walls complying with ICC400 and with a minimum average wall thickness of 6"

or greater shall be permitted in Climate Zones 5-8 when overall window glazing is .31

U-factor or lower, minimum heating equipment efficiency of 90 AFUE (gas) or 84 AFUE

(oil), and all other component requirements are met.”

(1)(3)In IECC, Section 504.4, a new exception is added as follows: "Exception: Heat traps, other than the arrangement of piping and fittings, shall be prohibited unless a means of controlling thermal expansion can be ensured as required in the IPC Section 607.3."

[Section 208 remains unchanged]

 

Part 3. Local Amendments

Section 301. Local Amendments to the IBC.

The following are adopted as amendments to the IBC to be applicable to the following jurisdictions:

(1) Brian Head Town, statewide amendment number (30) to the IBC for Section (F)903.2.8 is deleted and replaced with the following: "(F)903.2.8 Group R. An automatic sprinkler system installed in accordance with Section (F)903.3 shall be provided throughout all buildings with a Group R fire area.

Exception:

1. Detached one and two family dwellings and multiple single-family dwellings (townhouses) constructed in accordance with the International Residential Code for one and two-family dwellings. Except that an automatic fire sprinkler system shall be installed in all one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses over 3000 square feet in size of defined living space (garage is excluded from defined living space) in accordance with Section (F)903.3.1 of the International Building Code. In areas not served by Brian Head Town culinary water services, NFPA Standard 1142 for water supplies for rural fire fighting shall apply. Any one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses that are difficult to locate or access, as determined by the authority having jurisdiction, shall be required to follow the guidelines as set forth in the NFPA Standard 1142 regardless of the size of the building.

2. Group R-4 fire areas not more than 4,500 gross square feet and not containing more than 16 residents, provided the building is equipped throughout with an approved fire alarm system that is interconnected and receives its primary power from the building wiring and a commercial power system."

[remaining items 1 to 6 are renumbered as 2 to 7]

 

Section 302. Local Amendments to the IRC.

The following are adopted as amendments to the IRC to be applicable to the following jurisdictions:

(1) A local amendment to the following which may be applied to detached one and two family dwellings and multiple single family dwellings shall be applicable to the corresponding provisions of the IRC for the local jurisdiction to which the local amendment has been made:

(a) IBC under State Construction Code, Section 301;

(b) IPC under State Construction Code, Section 303;

(c) IMC under State Construction Code, Section 304;

(d) IFGC under State Construction Code, Section 305;

(e) NEC under State Construction Code, Section 306; and

(f) IECC under State Construction Code, Section 307.

(2) Brian Head Town, a new IRC, Section R324, is added as follows: "Section R324 Automatic Sprinkler Systems. An automatic fire sprinkler system shall be installed in all one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses over 3000 square feet in size of defined living space (garage is excluded from defined living space) in accordance with Section (F)903.3.1 of the International Building Code. In areas not served by Brian Head Town culinary water services, NFPA Standard 1142 for water supplies for rural fire fighting shall apply. Any one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses that are difficult to locate or access, as determined by the authority having jurisdiction, shall be required to follow the guidelines as set forth in the NFPA Standard 1142 regardless of the size of the building"

[remaining items 2 to 8 are renumbered as 3 to 9]

[section 303 to 307 remain unchanged]

 

Effective dates:

Recommended effective dates are as follows:

Section 201 July 1, 2011 to correspond with adoption of corresponding fire code amendments

Sections 201 and 207 January 1, 2012

Sections 301 and 302 July 1, 2011

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