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// CODE SNIPPET

Section 910 Smoke and Heat Vents

NYC Building Code 2014 > 9 Fire Protection Systems > 910 Smoke and Heat Vents
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910.1 General

Where required by this code or otherwise installed, smoke and heat vents or mechanical smoke exhaust systems and draft curtains shall conform to the requirements of this section.
Exceptions:
  1. Frozen-food warehouses used solely for storage of Class I and II commodities where protected by an automatic sprinkler system in accordance with Section 903.3.1.1.
  2. Where areas of buildings are equipped with early suppression fast-response (ESFR) sprinklers, automatic smoke and heat vents shall not be required within these areas.

910.2 Where Required

Smoke and heat vents shall be installed in the roofs of buildings or portions thereof occupied for the uses set forth in Sections 910.2.1 and 910.2.2. Vents shall be installed at the top of a closed shaft in accordance with Section 708.12.1.

910.2.1 Group F-1 or S-1

Buildings and portions thereof used as a Group F-1 or S-1 occupancy having more than 50,000 square feet (4645 m2) in undivided area.
Exception: Group S-1 aircraft repair hangars.

910.2.2 High-Piled Combustible Storage

Buildings and portions thereof containing high-piled combustible stock or rack storage in any occupancy group in accordance with Section 413 of this code and the New York City Fire Code.

910.3 Design and Installation

The design and installation of smoke and heat vents and draft curtains shall be as specified in Sections 910.3.1 and Table 910.3.
TABLE 910.3 
REQUIREMENTS FOR DRAFT CURTAINS AND SMOKE AND HEAT VENTSa
OCCUPANCY
GROUP AND
COMMODITY
CLASSIFICATION
DESIGNATED
STORAGE HEIGHT
(feet)
MINIMUM DRAFT
CURTAIN DEPTH
(feet)
MAXIMUM AREA
FORMED BY DRAFT
CURTAINS
(square feet)
VENT AREA
TO FLOOR AREA
RATIOc
MAXIMUM
SPACING OF
VENT CENTERS
(feet)
MAXIMUM
DISTANCE FROM
VENTS TO WALL
OR DRAFT
CURTAINb
(feet)
Group F-1 — 0.2 × Hd
but ≥ 4
50,000 1:100 120 60
High-piled
(see Section 910.2.2)
Class I-IV commodities
(Option 1)
≤ 20 6 10,000 1:100 100 60
> 20 ≤ 40 6 8,000 1:75 100 55
High-piled Storage
(see Section 910.2.2)
Class I-IV commodities
(Option 2)
≤ 20 4 3,000 1:75 100 55
> 20 ≤ 40 4 3,000 1:50 100 50
High-piled Storage(see
Section 910.2.2)
High hazard commodities
(Option 1)
≤ 20 6 6,000 1:50 100 50
> 20 ≤ 30 6 6,000 1:40 90 45
High-piled Storage
(see Section 910.2.2)
Class High hazard
commodities
(Option 2)
≤ 20 4 4,000 1:50 100 50
> 20 ≤ 30 4 2,000 1:30 75 40

For SI: 1 foot = 304.8 mm, 1 square foot = 0.0929 m2.
a. Requirements for rack storage heights in excess of those indicated shall be in accordance with the New York City Fire Code. For solid-piled storage heights in excess of those indicated, an approved engineered design shall be used.
b. Vents adjacent to walls or draft curtains shall be located within a horizontal distance not greater than the maximum distance specified in this column as measured perpendicular to the wall or draft curtain that forms the perimeter of the draft curtained area.
c. Where draft curtains are not required, the vent area to floor area ratio shall be calculated based on a minimum draft curtain depth of 6 feet (Option 1).
d. H is the height of the vent, in feet, above the floor.

910.3.1 Design

Smoke and heat vents shall be listed and labeled to indicate compliance with UL 793.

910.3.2 Vent Operation

Smoke and heat vents shall be capable of being operated by approved automatic and manual means. Automatic operation of smoke and heat vents shall conform to the provisions of Sections 910.3.2.1 through 910.3.2.3.

910.3.2.1 Gravity-Operated Drop-Out Vents

Automatic smoke and heat vents containing heat-sensitive glazing designed to shrink and drop out of the vent opening when exposed to fire shall fully open within 5 minutes after the vent cavity is exposed to a simulated fire, represented by a time-temperature gradient that reaches an air temperature of 500°F (260°C) within 5 minutes.

910.3.2.2 Sprinklered Buildings

Where installed in buildings provided with an automatic sprinkler system in accordance with Section 903.3.1.1, smoke and heat vents shall be designed to operate automatically.

910.3.2.3 Nonsprinklered Buildings

Where installed in buildings not provided with an automatic sprinkler system, smoke and heat vents shall operate automatically by actuation of a heat-responsive device rated at between 100°F (38°C) and 220°F (104°C) above ambient.
Exception: Gravity-operated drop-out vents complying with Section 910.3.2.1.

910.3.3 Vent Dimensions

The effective venting area shall not be less than 16 square feet (1.5 m2) with no dimension less than 4 feet (1219 mm), excluding ribs or gutters having a total width not exceeding 6 inches (152 mm).

910.3.4 Vent Locations

Smoke and heat vents shall be located 20 feet (6096 mm) or more from adjacent lot lines and fire walls and 10 feet (3048 mm) or more from fire barriers. Vents shall be uniformly located within the roof in the areas of the building where the vents are required to be installed by Section 910.2, with consideration given to roof pitch, draft curtain location, sprinkler location and structural members.

910.3.5 Draft Curtains

Where required by Table 910.3, draft curtains shall be installed on the underside of the roof in accordance with this section.
Exception: Where areas of buildings are equipped with early suppression fast-response (ESFR) sprinklers, draft curtains shall not be provided within these areas. Draft curtains shall only be provided at the separation between the ESFR sprinklers and the conventional non-ESFR sprinklers.

910.3.5.1 Construction

Draft curtains shall be constructed of sheet metal, lath and plaster, gypsum board or other approved materials that provide equivalent performance to resist the passage of smoke. Joints and connections shall be smoke tight.

910.3.5.2 Location and Depth

The location and minimum depth of draft curtains shall be in accordance with Table 910.3.

910.4 Mechanical Smoke Exhaust

Where approved by the department, engineered mechanical smoke exhaust shall be an acceptable alternate to smoke and heat vents.

910.4.1 Location

Exhaust fans shall be uniformly spaced within each draft-curtained area and the maximum distance between fans shall not be greater than 100 feet (30 480 mm).

910.4.2 Size

Fans shall have a maximum individual capacity of 30,000 cfm (14.2 m3/s). The aggregate capacity of smoke exhaust fans shall be determined by the equation:

C = A × 300 (Equation 9-4)


where:

C = Capacity of mechanical ventilation required, in cubic feet per minute (m3/s).
A = Area of roof vents provided in square feet (m2) in accordance with Table 910.3.

910.4.3 Operation

Mechanical smoke exhaust fans shall be automatically activated by the automatic sprinkler system or by heat detectors having operating characteristics equivalent to those described in Section 910.3.2. Individual manual controls of each fan unit shall also be provided.

910.4.4 Wiring and Control

Wiring for operation and control of smoke exhaust fans shall be connected ahead of the main disconnect and protected against exposure to temperatures in excess of 1,000°F (538°C) for a period of not less than 15 minutes. Controls shall be located so as to be immediately accessible to the fire service from the exterior of the building and protected against interior fire exposure by not less than 1-hour fire barriers constructed in accordance with Section 707 or horizontal assemblies constructed in accordance with Section 712, or both. The location of manual controls is subject to the approval of the Fire Commissioner.

910.4.5 Supply Air

Supply air for exhaust fans shall be provided at or near the floor level and shall be sized to provide a minimum of 50 percent of required exhaust. Openings for supply air shall be uniformly distributed around the periphery of the area served.

910.4.6 Interlocks

In combination comfort air-handling/smoke removal systems or independent comfort air-handling systems, fans shall be controlled to shut down in accordance with the approved smoke control sequence.

Related Code Sections


Section 311 General Regulations, Smoke and Heat Vents
Approved smoke and heat vents shall be installed in the roofs of one-story buildings where required by the New York City Fire Code. Smoke and heat ...
NYC Mechanical Code 2008 > 3 General Regulations > 311 Smoke and Heat Vents
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Approved smoke and heat vents shall be installed in the roofs of one-story buildings where required by the New York City Fire Code . Smoke and heat ...
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415.6 Special Detailed Requirements Based on Use and Occupancy, Smoke and Heat Venting
Smoke and heat vents complying with Section 910 shall be installed in the following locations: In occupancies classified as Group H-2 or H-3 ...
NYC Building Code 2008 > 4 Special Detailed Requirements Based on Use and Occupancy > 415 Groups H-1, H-2, H-3, H-4 and H-5 > 415.6 Smoke and Heat Venting
Section 910 Fire Protection Systems, Smoke and Heat Vents
Where required by this code or otherwise installed, smoke and heat vents or mechanical smoke exhaust systems and draft curtains shall conform ...
NYC Building Code 2008 > 9 Fire Protection Systems > 910 Smoke and Heat Vents
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Where required by this code or otherwise installed, smoke and heat vents or mechanical smoke exhaust systems and draft curtains shall conform ...
NYC Building Code 2014 > 9 Fire Protection Systems > 910 Smoke and Heat Vents
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