Smoke Alarm Requirements In Illinois

In Illinois there are a few different laws at the state level that influence the installation requirements of smoke alarms. This post hopes to provide clarification of those requirements.

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Long Term Battery Update to the Smoke Detector Act

Illinois Public Act 100-0200 as of January 1, 2023, requires that any new smoke alarms being installed within a single or multi-family home with only battery power, no 120V (Volt), are required to be featured with a 10-year sealed battery. Based on that law the following inspection and permit scenarios are detailed below.

Existing building – no work being done (Property Maintenance & Sale Inspections): existing smoke alarms may remain in place until they exceed 10 years from the manufactured date or stop functioning properly. Once this point is reached, they must be replaced with units containing a 10-year sealed battery unless provided with power from normal power (120V).

Existing building – minor permit work: Permitted work on the exterior of the home such as re-siding, roofing, concrete work, fences, sheds, would not require the smoke alarms to be inspected. It would be the owners responsibility to ensure any out of date smoke alarms are updated with the 10 year batteries when necessary. The exception would be when a permit involving electrical work is issued (generator, solar, new panel etc.), it comes with the requirement that smoke alarms (locations and types) must be brought up to code throughout the entire home. This would be an example of when you are not required to open up ceilings to add hardwired units, but any new alarms added to fulfil the location requirements must now have a 10-year sealed battery.

Existing building – remodel/alteration/ additions: In the case where a large part of the home is being remodeled, any room where smoke alarms are required and the ceiling is opened up must be equipped with hardwired and interconnected units. The rest of the home that is not being altered must still be brought up to code for smoke alarm coverage, but 10-year sealed battery units are allowed instead of providing normal power (120V).

New construction: In the case of new homes, all smoke alarms must be hardwired with backup batteries and interconnected. In the case of an addition, all required alarms in the new addition must be hardwired with backup batteries and interconnected.

Common Water Service Requirements in Illinois

This post comes from Sean Fallows our Fire Protection Supervisor.

Common water services are becoming the go to design standard for incoming water services. This edition of access to answers is to explore the cause and effect of this design option.

The Illinois Plumbing Code and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) published a memorandum on water services attached to public water supplies (1). The memorandum clearly documents that a combined water service, serving both the fire protection systems and domestic system, or another engineered solution is required when connected to a public water main. This is to prevent fire protection supply lines from creating dead ends.

The Illinois Plumbing Code (IPC) states that a length of more than 2 feet is a dead end. Based on this existing language in the IPC a dedicated fire suppression water service line meets the definition of a dead end. The following information is based off the 2014 IPC and the 2015 Edition of the International Fire Code (IFC), but the principals are reflected in newer and older editions of the code.

When adopted, the IFC contains language that dictates the design, installation, and testing of water mains that serve a fire protection suppression system. The Fire Protection Water Supplies section of the IFC directs the designer to utilize the 2013 edition of NFPA 24 Standard for the Installation of Private Fire Service and Appurtenances (2). After a review of the requirements in IPC, IFC, and NFPA 24 the following conclusions are being brought to your attention for evaluation.

The first area of concern is the design and review process. The design of the combined water service will need to be reviewed based on the plumbing design and proposed fire sprinkler design. Plumbing plan reviews currently do not address the additional requirements laid out in NFPA 24. The additional information would need to be included in the civil, utility, plumbing, or a separate submittal.

Additionally, the Fire Sprinkler Contractor’s Licensing Act scope does not include the common water main and therefore a designer with NICET qualifications would be insufficient. The design is regulated by the Professional Engineering Practice Act for both the individual designer and the design firm. The design of the service must now comply with both standards (IPC and NFPA 24) which layout specific requirements for the materials that can be used for the underground water piping and materials (3).

While the two standards reference different years of the same standard the only standards that meet both requirements (IPC & NFPA 24 per the IFC) are Ductile Iron Pipe that meets AWWA C151 and Ductile Iron Fittings that meets AWWA C110, Polyethylene (PE) Pipe and Fittings that meets AWWA C906, and Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) Pipe and Fittings that meets AWWA C900.

Additionally, the design must accommodate the stricter requirements for thrust blocking. While the IPC requires only support of the water filled pipe, NFPA 24 requires the materials and size are more specific. The size of the thrust blocks utilize reference tables or calculations to determine the size of the thrust blocking (4). The composition of the thrust blocks is required to be a specific mix of concrete.

Once the system is installed, the piping system must be inspected to both standards. The most stringent testing requires a Chlorination test per the IPC and a flushing and hydrostatic test per NFPA 24 (5). The NFPA 24 flush test is based on achieving 10 feet per second a seen in Table 10.10.2.1.3 or required fire sprinkler flow. The accompanying hydrostatic test is required to last 2 hours and be pressurized to at least 200 psi.

Footnotes:

(1) See code reference IPC 890.1200 c)

(2) See code reference IFC 507.2.1

(3) See code reference IPC 890 Appendix A Table A Approved materials for Water Service Pipe, Approved Standards for Fittings, NFPA 24 Table 10.1.1.1 and 10.2.1.1

(4) See code reference NFPA 24 Table A.10.8.2(b) for example block sizes (5) See code reference IPC 890.1180

Fire Alarm System Design Influenced by the 2018 Illinois Accessibility Code

This post comes from Sean Fallows our Fire Protection Supervisor.

Fire Alarm system design is primarily influenced by the Building Code and NFPA Standards. For many of the jurisdictions we deal with this is the International Building and Fire Code, the Fire Alarm and Signaling Code (NFPA 72), and the National Electrical Code (NFPA 70). There is one set of codes and standards that can influence the design the accessibility standards.

While many of these requirements from the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), ADAAG (ADA Accessibility Guidelines), and A117.1 (2017 ICC Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities) have been included in the standard and codes, there can be subtle differences. As we are located in Illinois, we also must work on achieving compliance with the 2018 Illinois Accessibility Code as adopted by the Illinois Capitol Development Board.

One key difference that is more restrictive than the model codes and standards is that the 2018 Illinois Accessibility Code requires significantly more visual notification. Subsection 215.3 on Employee Work Areas within the Fire Alarm Systems Section states "Where employee work areas have audible alarm coverage, visible alarms complying with 702 shall be provided." The italicized section is Illinois specific language. If we go back to the same section in the ADA, the italicized section is replaced with the following "the wiring system shall be designed to that visible alarms complying with 702 can be integrated into the alarm system". As one can see this language is significantly different!

The ADA would then only require that system be built with the capability to support addition visual notification. This is further refined in A117.1 and the International Building and Fire Code (ICC IBC & IFC), includes providing an additional 20 percent capacity for future visual notification for employees that have hearing impairments.

The Illinois specific language requires all employee work areas where audible coverage is provided to also provide visual notification. Basically all areas of the building that are habitable require audible coverage and as such we find that most work areas will therefore need visual notification. After some additional research and clarification the follow are all examples of work areas needing visual notification as noted previously:

• Private Offices

• Storage Areas

• Supply Rooms

• Filing Rooms

• Coat Rooms

• Spray Booths

• Walk-in Freezers & Refrigerators

• Utility Rooms

• Mechanical Rooms

• Electrical Rooms

• Plumbing Rooms

• Fire Protection Rooms

This departure if not anticipated into the original design documents may result in significant additional costs. It is imperative that design professionals, contractors, plan reviewers, and inspectors strive to ensure that system design capacity and circuit paths anticipate these additional devices.

Hail Damage and Roof Replacements

This post comes from Thaddeus Mack our Director of Technical Services.

With the recent hail storms that came through our area on April 7, 2020, you may see an influx of roofing companies in the area looking for work.  Some of these contractors will even go door to door and ask to look at your roof and offer a free estimate to assess your roof.  Being well informed before this happens will arm you with the tools to decipher the good from the bad. 

• In the State of Illinois, all roofing contractors are required to have a license.  For residential roof work, the roofer is required to have a “limited license.”  For commercial roofing work, contractors are required to have an “unlimited license.”  You can quickly verify if a roofer has a valid license or not by using the State website: https://ilesonline.idfpr.illinois.gov/DFPR/Lookup/LicenseLookup.aspx

• The State requires all roofing projects to have at least one licensed roofer from the company on site at all times to ensure the work is being done in compliance with the license and state regulations.  That roofer should have a copy of their license on their person and the license number and company name on their vehicle. 

• Roofing contractors will offer to facilitate negotiations with your insurance company to get the roof paid for.  What you don’t know is that sometimes the cost of the roof work is far less than the cost the roof company pays out.  It never hurts to get your insurance company involved to do an assessment of the damage before signing anything.  If you’re still unsure, call a local and trusted roofer for a second opinion to see if the costs are in line.

• Be sure to read the entire “estimate” the contractor is preparing for your home.  Some of these estimates have fine print on the back page that turn the “estimate” into a contract to do the work if the home owner does not specifically call to cancel within a short time period.

• Do not be pressured to sign anything.  It’s OK to take some time to do research into the customer satisfaction of the roofing company and make sure you’re working with a reputable contractor who is responsive and does a quality job.  You can even ask for other roofs they’ve done in the area and drive by to take a look at their work.

• Lastly, all roof replacement and major repair work requires a permit.  Permits must be obtained prior to the start of work and must be visibly posted on the street side of the property.  Permit fees are set by the municipality and should be available for you to confirm this cost is included in your quote OR is being provided by the contractor. 

Fire Safety During the Ongoing Pandemic

As we start May we will begin to see businesses begin or continue to operate with new safety procedures in response to COVID-19. We here at B&F Construction Code Services, Inc. to keep in mind a few items to ensure we don’t accidentally create a secondary fire safety hazard.

Egress

While many companies are limiting people within their buildings how they go about setting up and controlling these access points is very important. A store may be experiencing significantly fewer patrons at this time in their store this does not give the operator license to block exits. Egress design is not limited to just how many people are within a building or space, but the distance to travel out of the building is an important factor. Without prior approval exits should not be blocked or barricaded, multiple fire marshals have already responded to complaints [1]. No matter, egress to the outside must be maintained.

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Thumb Turn Locks

Many offices and retail that was once open to the public is now operating with limited or no public access. To facilitate this the doors are locked, depending on the door hardware this may not be permitted. Thumb turn (as pictured above) door hardware on an egress path is not permitted to be locked with the building is occupied. These locks are typically found on older building and smaller establishments at the main entrance (as permitted by IBC & IFC 2018 1010.1.9.4).

courtesy of Wikipedia

Fire Rated Doors

Another consideration is inside building we are all looking at reducing the common surfaces we must touch. Fire dated doors can separate different hazards, sections of buildings, or protect egress paths into stairways. Rated doors will be equipped with a label like the one shown above, these doors should not be propped open.

Welcome

We here at B&F Construction Code Services, Inc. wish to welcome you to our new website. Here we hope to share new developments about our company and developments in local and national building codes.