Module 4: Fire Protection

9.10.1.1 Support of Noncombustible construction

In the construction of houses, if an assembly is required to be of noncombustible construction and have a fire resistance rating, the assembly of non-combustible construction must be supported by non-combustible construction.

9.10.1.2 Sloped Roofs

Roofs that have a slope of 60 degrees or more to the horizontal and which they are adjacent to a room or space that is intended for occupancy, must be considered as walls.

Items of Houses under Part 3 Jurisdiction

Elevators, basements (containing more than 1 storey or exceed 600m³) and automatic sprinkler systems

Items of Houses under P6 Jurisdiction

Fuel-fired appliances installed on a roof

Detached house, semi-detached house and row house

House that contains not more than two dwelling units

Dwelling unit

A suite operated as a housekeeping unit, used or intended to be used by one or more persons and usually containing cooking, eating, sanitary and living facilities.

Suite

A single room or series of rooms of complementary use, operated under a single tenancy, and includes a dwelling unit, individual guest rooms in motels, hotels, boarding houses, etc.

Residential Occupancy

The occupancy in which sleeping accommodation is provided to residents who are not harboured for the purposes of receiving special care or treatment and are not individually detained

Major Occupancy

The major occupancy of a detached house, semi-detached house, and row house which contains not more than 2 dwelling units and do not share a means of egress is Group C residential.

Fire-Resistance Rating

The time in minutes or hours that a material or assembly of materials will withstand the passage of flame and the transmission of heat when exposed to fire under specific conditions.

Fire Performance Rating

The time in minutes or hours that a closure will withstand the passage of flame when exposed to fire under specified testing conditions.

Closure

A device or assembly for closing an opening through a fire separation or an exterior wall, such as a door, shutter, damper, wired glass and glass bloc and includes all components such as hardware, closing devices, frames and anchors

Fire Separation

Construction assembly that acts as a barrier against the spread of fire.

Flame Spread Rating

An index or classification indicating the extent of the spread of flame on the surface of a material or an assembly of materials, as determined in a standard fire test prescribed in this Code

Mezzanine

A mezzanine is an intermediate floor assembly between the floor and ceiling of any room or storey and includes an interior balcony

Mezzanines not Considered as Storeys (Open and Enclosed)

In houses, the mezzanines (open and enclosed) ARE NOT COUNTED as storeys in calculating building height if the total area of all mezzanine floors (open and enclosed) is 10% or less of

1. the suite (dwelling unit) in which they are located where there is more than one suite (dwelling unit) in the storey OR

2. the area of the storey in which they are located in all other cases

Mezzanines not considered as storeys (Open)

In houses, mezzanines (open) are NOT COUNTED as storeys in calculating building height if the total area of the mezzanine floors (open) is 40% or less

1. of the area of the room or the storey in which they are located AND

2. the open mezzanines have no visual obstruction that are more than 1070mm above their floor levels.

9.10.4.4 Rooftop Enclosures

In houses, rooftop enclosures for elevator machinery, stairways or service rooms are NOT counted as storeys when determining building height.

9.10.5.1.1 Permitted Openings in Wall and Ceiling Membranes

Except as permitted in Sentences (2) and (4), a membrane forming part of an assembly required to have a fire resistance rating shall not be pierced by openings into the assembly unless the assembly has been tested and rated for such openings.

9.10.5.1.2 Permitted Openings in Wall and Ceiling Membranes

A wall or ceiling membrane forming part of an assembly required to have a fire-resistance rating is permitted to be pierced by openings for electrical and similar service outlet boxes provided such outlet boxes are tightly fitted.

9.10.5.1.3 Permitted Openings in Wall and Ceiling Membranes

Where boxes referred to in Sentence (2) are located on both sides of walls required to have a fire-resistance rating, they shall be offset where necessary to maintain the integrity of the fire separation.

Combustible

The material fails to meet the acceptable criteria of CAN/ULC-S114. Combustible construction is a type of construction that does not meet the requirements for combustible construction.

Heavy Timber

Heavy timber is a type of combustible construction in which a degree of fire safety is attained:

1. By placing limitations on the sizes of wood structural members and on thickness and composition of wood floors and roofs AND

2. By avoidance of concealed spaces under floors and roofs.

Non-combustible

A material meets the acceptable criteria of CAN/ULC4-S114. Non-combustible construction is a type of construction in which a degree of fire safety is attained by the use of noncombustible materials for structural materials and other building assemblies.

9.10.6.1 Combustible Elements in Noncombustible construction

Where a building or part of a building is required to be of noncombustible construction, combustible elements shall be limited (but can still be used if they meet CAN/ULC S114)

9.10.6.2 Heavy Timber Construction

Heavy timber construction can be used as an alternative to combustible construction with membrane protection where the fire-resistance rating is not required to exceed 45 minutes of fire-resistance rating

9.10.7.1 Protection of Structural Steel Members

For the construction of a house, structural steel members used in construction required to have a fire resistance rating must be protected o provide the required fire-resistance rating.

Exceptions where fire protection is not required

1. Steel lintels above openings not more than

   1. 2m wide in LB walls AND

   2. 3m wide in NLB walls

2. The bottom flanges of shelf angles and plates that are not part of the structural frame

3. Steel members of stairway that are not part of the structural frame of the building.

4. Steel members of porches, exterior balconies, exterior stairways

9.10.8.1 Fire-Resistance Ratings for Floors and Roofs

The fire resistance rating between dwelling units in houses with two dwelling units must not be less than 45 minutes.

9.10.9.14 Separation of Residential Suites

A dwelling unit in a house must be separated from adjacent rooms and suites with a fire separation having a fire resistance rating of not less than 45 minutes.

9.10.9.14 Separation of Residential Suites

In a house with dwelling units that contains 2 or more storeys including basements must be separated from the remainder of the building by a fire resistance rating of not less than 1 hour

9.10.9.14 Separation of Residential Suites

Dwelling units in a house must be separated from each other and common area by fire separation with a fire resistance rating of not less than 45 minutes.

9.10.9.14 Separation of Residential Suites

The fire-resistance rating from the previous section can be waived if the house is sprinklered.

9.10.8.3 Fire-Resistance Ratings for Walls, Columns and Arches

All loadbearing walls, columns and arches in the storey immediately below a floor or roof assembly shall have a fire-resistance rating of not less than that required for the supported floor or roof assembly (this does not apply to service rooms).

9.10.8.8.3 Floors of Exterior Passageways

No fire resistance rating is required for floors of exterior passageways serving

1. A house or an individual dwelling unit in a house OR

2. An individual dwelling unit in a building other than a house where no suite is located above or below the dwelling unit.

9.10.8.9 Crawl Spaces (being considered as basements)

Where a crawl space exceeds 1800mm in height or is used for any occupancy or as a plenum in combustible construction or for the passage of flue pipe shall be considered as a basement

9.10.8.11 Part 3 as an Alternative

The fire-resistance ratings of floors, roofs, loadbearing walls, columns and arches need not conform to this subsection if such assemblies conform in all respects to the appropriate requirements in Section 3.2.

9.10.9.1 Fire Separations Between Rooms and Spaces within Buildings

This applies to fire separations required between rooms and spaces in Houses with two dwelling units. As an exception, fire separations are not required between rooms and spaces within a dwelling unit in houses with two dwelling units.

9.10.9.2 Continuous Barrier

In houses, a wall or floor assembly that is required to be constructed as a fire separation

1. Must be constructed as a continuous barrier against the spread of fire

2. Its continuity as a fire separation must be maintained where it abuts another fire separation, a floor, a ceiling, a roof or an exterior wall assembly.

9.10.9.3 Openings to be Protected With Closures

Openings in a required fire separation must be protected with closures conforming to 9.10.13