# Upholstered furniture



## Rick18071 (Jul 2, 2010)

903.2.7 sprinklers needed in group M if: (4) A group M occupancy is used for the display and sale of upholstered furniture.

I have a change in use with a antique store coming in. There will be upholstered furniture in it at times. This store is in a tenant space in a building that is not sprinkled. They already moved in without permits.

It seems a bit much to require sprinklers. I don't know why upholstered furniture in a doctors waiting room is less dangerous. I want to know how other inspectors feel about this.

Also no definition in the IBC for upholstered furniture. Would you call a padded stool or a high chair upholstered?


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## pwood (Jul 2, 2010)

type of construction, square feet,distance to property lines,m now what was it? how much furniture? ,got neighbors on each side? more info would help.


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## Yankee (Jul 2, 2010)

My understanding is that it isn't to cover the type of situation you are describing, but a typical furniture store.


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## fatboy (Jul 2, 2010)

Unfortunatelly, in the 09, you don't have a choice, there are no parameters, if you are selling upholstered furniture, code says sprinklers are required.

*[F] 903.2.7 Group M. *

An _automatic sprinkler system _shall
​be provided throughout buildings containing a Group M
​occupancy *where one of the following conditions exists:*
​

*4. A GroupMoccupancy is used for the display and sale **of upholstered furniture.*


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## vegas paul (Jul 2, 2010)

Of course, according to the 2009 code, if it were a small (same size as your antique store) Museum that displayed antique upholstered furniture, no sprinkler would be required!  So the commercial transaction is the hazard, not the upholstered contents!


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## Yankee (Jul 2, 2010)

From  my discussions with ICC educator, it isn't one or two upholstered items, but the typical furniture store with rooms of couches and stuffed chairs along with the wood tables, lamps etc. Judgement call.


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## globe trekker (Jul 2, 2010)

Rick18071,

Sounds like an interpreation from the BO [ where this business is located ] is in order.

They should be able to render a decision that will determine the hazard level present.

The upholstered furniture in the doctors room is less hazardous because of

the actual quantity / volume of furniture in that space  vs.  a mega furniture

type store / warehouse.

Also, in todays "very tough" economy, some jurisictions may relax their codes

to accommodate new businesses in their area.       It is what it is!

.


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## High Desert (Jul 2, 2010)

That was a terrible code change. What the code change did is exactly what Fatboy said....there is no threshold to how much upholstered furniture is on display and for sale. If you have one piece, sprinklers are required. Now if the local jurisdiction wants to interpret that a little different, that's their call. Oregon simply took it out of the code and we are working with the fire services to add some criteria and threshold.


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## Rick18071 (Jul 2, 2010)

Zoning officer caught this. I went into this store today, the sign said open. I walked around, I did not see anyone. Lots of old sofas, stuffed chairs and wood furniture. Mostly arranged like it would be in a house that has a lot of extra furniture. The building is 5B, two stories, maybe a basement. Around 1,200 to 2,000 sq. ft. maybe 50 to 60 years old. Don't know what's upstairs, maybe apartment(s)? Lots of accessibility problems. It doesn't look like any work was done. I was told it was an office before. Some one came in the office for a change of occupancy permit later in the day.

Isn't old furniture more flammable than new? should we be more strict about sprinklers with used furniture?

How would other inspectors handle a mattress store? They usually have beds too.


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## Yankee (Jul 2, 2010)

If there isn't any more load than a spinsters house, I'd leave it. I can't quite recall, but I think it had something to do with the quality of the smoke from the treated fabrics.


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## mtlogcabin (Jul 2, 2010)

Rick18071

I do not have an 09 code but Chapter 34 of the o6 IBC and IFC had this lanquage and the ICC instructors I sat under taught this was there to allow the AHJ some latitude when making decisions with regards to Change of Occupancy in older buildings. The key is to DOCUMENT why you decided what you did. In this case it seems the square footage and the amount of upholstered furniture is no more than you would find in a lobby area of a office or home.. Perhaps talking to your fire guys they could give an idea of how much and what kind of upholstered furniture would be a concern where you would not consider 3406.1 as an option. Remember you are primarily looking at fire risk

3406.1 Conformance.

No change shall be made in the use or occupancy of any building that would place the building in a different division of the same group of occupancy or in a different group of occupancies, unless such building is made to comply with the requirements of this code for such division or group of occupancy. Subject to the approval of the building official, the use or occupancy of existing buildings shall be permitted to be changed and the building is allowed to be occupied for purposes in other groups without conforming to all the requirements of this code for those groups, provided the new or proposed use is less hazardous, based on life and fire risk, than the existing use.


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## peach (Jul 3, 2010)

what was it before?


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## FM William Burns (Jul 3, 2010)

The applicable code official should use their heads and common sense (a forgotten trait).  If a facility is displaying a couple of chairs and sofa in a "M" like say Goodwill it may not be such a big deal.  However, when the facility expands operations with the use and sales of appreciable amounts (evaluated by official but consistently applied), then regulations for retrofitting or upgrading protection schemes should be initiated.  Let us remember that if a facility “changes” their hazard/operation the jurisdiction can properly request protection for the increased risk regardless of which code is used.


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## peach (Jul 3, 2010)

If it was a yoga studio before, there is a much increased hazard by putting furniture, books, or 2nd hand clothing in it.  If it's a really small space.. maybe.


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## Yankee (Jul 3, 2010)

peach said:
			
		

> If it was a yoga studio before, there is a much increased hazard by putting furniture, books, or 2nd hand clothing in it.  If it's a really small space.. maybe.


I don't believe the section is concerned with fire loading as I am accustomed to thinking of it i.e., racks of clothing, high rack storage, etc but with the specific fact that it is upholstered furniture, and again, I believe the issue is with the off-gassing of the upholstery in the event of a fire. The mass quantity of the chemicals due to the amount of furniture.


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## Rick18071 (Jul 3, 2010)

FM W. Burns, I don't go around to existing buildings to see if they change their hazards. A store could start off with one chair and be stuffed with upholstered furniture the next day. I don't expect the owner to come in for a permit every time their inventory changes.

Yankee, you said it would not be any worst than a house. Apartments and town houses need to be sprinkled and and single houses will need to be sprinklered soon. Different used furniture treated or not treated will be moved in and out daily.

mtlogcabin, I don't know if this new use is more or less hazardous, I never was in this building before when it was an office. Who knows what was in this office before. It might have had even more upholstered furniture than it has now.


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## Yankee (Jul 3, 2010)

Rick18071 said:
			
		

> FM W. Burns, I don't go around to existing buildings to see if they change their hazards. A store could start off with one chair and be stuffed with upholstered furniture the next day. I don't expect the owner to come in for a permit every time their inventory changes.Yankee, you said it would not be any worst than a house. Apartments and town houses need to be sprinkled and and single houses will need to be sprinklered soon. Different used furniture treated or not treated will be moved in and out daily.
> 
> mtlogcabin, I don't know if this new use is more or less hazardous, I never was in this building before when it was an office. Who knows what was in this office before. It might have had even more upholstered furniture than it has now.


Houses and Townhouses are sprinklered for the primary purpose of saving lives in the event of a fire. and then to reduce property damage. This requirement is not primarily to save the lives of the customers/employees, but to protect the heath of the responders. As we discuss this, the conversation I had w/ICC is returning to me. (A mind is a horrible thing to lose). Point being the sheer amount of chemically treated fabric up in flames creates unique fumes.


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## peach (Jul 3, 2010)

Rick..

I don't think you have enough information to make a decision.  Hints like HOW BIG IS THE SPACE.. should tell you that.  The differences between B & M are often a fuzzy line.  I still believe that in most cases you can go to 12,000 sf fire area before you need to sprinkle..


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## RJJ (Jul 3, 2010)

I agree: The code change was a bad one and should have been voted down or had some guidelines. FM says common sense. Hard to defend that if a major problem or fire resulted. If you are to take the common sense approach well then more info is needed. What type of fuel load is the building and contents? How much furniture? Is this one floor? Is there living above or offices? Fire department access? Adjoining business uses? Got to have the facts.


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## Rick18071 (Jul 3, 2010)

Peach, where do you get sq. ft. out of this?

[F] 903.2.7 Group M.

An automatic sprinkler system shall

be provided throughout buildings containing a Group M

occupancy where one of the following conditions exists:

4. A Group M occupancy is used for the display and sale of upholstered furniture.


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## Rick18071 (Jul 3, 2010)

RJJ, I suspect that the amount and type of furniture would always be changing. I would think the best way is to base it on the worst scenario.


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## RJJ (Jul 3, 2010)

Rick: Not to speak for peach, but I believe she was using 12K just as a reference point.


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## RJJ (Jul 3, 2010)

RicK I agree! But if you are going to look at this with a common sense approach you need to have and weigh all the factors. FM's point is valid and so is Paul's.


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## Rick18071 (Jul 4, 2010)

I'm not  sure but I think new upholstered furniture must be fire retarded or some kind of treatment to help make it nonflammable.

The code wants new 1A buildings, M, with brand new upholstered furniture sprinkled even it is 200 sq. ft.

I think a old 5B, M building, 2,000 sq. ft.  with antique upholstered furniture would be a much greater hazard.


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## mark handler (Jul 4, 2010)

June 2007

9 Firefighters Killed in Furniture Blaze


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## peach (Jul 5, 2010)

then Rick.. the whole building needs to be sprinklered... not just the one tenant space.


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## Paul Sweet (Jul 5, 2010)

Although antique furniture might catch fire a more readily from a dropped cigarette, etc. it isn't as deadly once it catches fire.  Antique furniture had wire spring cushions with thin cotton & horsehair padding over the springs.  New furniture usually is foam plastic several inches thick.  Once it catches fire it burns rapidly and produces great quantities of toxic smoke.

It's ironic that an inch of foam insulation has to be covered with a 1/2" gypsum board thermal barrier, but the 6" or thicker foam on a sofa or mattress doesn't require any protection.

I agree that the one piece threshold is ridiculous.  ICC should be able to come up with a density approximating a living room or office reception suite - maybe one sofa (or mattress) per 200 SF, and also reduce the present threshold from 12,000 SF to 5000 or 6000 SF.


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## RJJ (Jul 6, 2010)

MH: I hear you! And RicK, I went back and read the code. Yes it must be sprinklered! Just doesn't make a great deal of sense.


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## Gene Boecker (Jul 6, 2010)

The way the stupid code change went in, a single piece of upholstered furniture requires the entire building to be sprinkelred. I spoke against this at the code hearings (all of them) and the stupid thing still passed. There is no latitude in the way the code text is worded. It's dumb and needs a variance.

I wish all you level headed folks would have been at the code hearings so we could shoot this down.

mtlogcabin,

I don't know who the instructor was but he/she was obviously telling you what the thinking was for the code chaneg not what it actually says. 

The 2012 will be better:

*903.2.7 (IBC [F] 903.2.7*

*Group M.* An automatic sprinkler system shall be provided throughout buildings containing a Group M occupancy where one of the following conditions exists:

1. Where a Group M fire area exceeds 12,000 square feet (1115 m2);

2. Where a Group M fire area is located more than three stories above grade plane; or

3. Where the combined area of all Group M fire areas on all floors, including any mezzanines, exceeds 24,000 square feet (2230 m2). ; or 

4. Where a Group M occupancy that is used for the display and sale of upholstered furniture or mattresses exceeds 5,000 square feet (464 m2).

*903.2.9 (IBC [F] 903.2.9) *

*Group S-1.* An automatic sprinkler system shall be provided throughout all buildings containing a Group S-1 occupancy where one of the following conditions exists:

1. A Group S-1 fire area exceeds 12,000 square feet (1115 m2);

2. A Group S-1 fire area is located more than three stories above grade plane; or

3. The combined area of all Group S-1 fire areas on all floors, including any mezzanines, exceeds 24,000 square feet (2230 m2).

4. A Group S-1 fire area used for the storage of commercial trucks or buses where the fire area exceeds 5,000 square feet (464 m2).

5. A Group S-1 occupancy that is used for the storage of upholstered furniture or mattresses exceeds 2,500 square feet (232 m2).


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## High Desert (Jul 6, 2010)

Right on, Gene. More people need to get up and testify at the fire code hearings where Chapter 9 is developed.


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## Rick18071 (Jul 6, 2010)

The 1012 code makes sense, I would like to use it now.


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## RJJ (Jul 7, 2010)

Gene: I agree and remember the change. Thought it was poor at the time and now I see the effects. High Dessert I agree more people need to be involved either at the hearings or from the use of computer access. Someday ICC in thier infant wisdom will see the need and provide such a service to the members. But for now we end up with stupid sections that make no sense.

Rick18071: Don't know were you are from but in PA we can only enforce what has been adopted. However, I do believe if the code official has a reasonable defense to not use the section of the code then I would apply my reasoning. Not saying I am going to make my own rules, but rather I would weigh other factors regarding this occupancy. To mandate sprinklers on a small antique store is just crazy.


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## peach (Jul 7, 2010)

*903.2.7 (IBC [F] 903.2.7*

*Group M.* An automatic sprinkler system shall be provided throughout buildings containing a Group M occupancy where one of the following conditions exists:

1. Where a Group M fire area exceeds 12,000 square feet (1115 m2);

2. Where a Group M fire area is located more than three stories above grade plane; or

3. Where the combined area of all Group M fire areas on all floors, including any mezzanines, exceeds 24,000 square feet (2230 m2). ; or 

4. Where a Group M occupancy that is used for the display and sale of upholstered furniture or mattresses exceeds 5,000 square feet (464 m2).

*If it's under 5000 sf.. there is no issue.. otherwise you need to require the entire building to be sprinklered.*

*Good luck with that.*


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## RJJ (Jul 8, 2010)

YA I went back and read both IBC & IFC. Is my copy missing something.


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## Gene Boecker (Jul 8, 2010)

Which part?

The 5000 SF threshold will be in the 2012 edition - it's not there now.  Now the threshold is one piece.

The lead-in text says that sprinklers will be required "throughout buildings containing. . . "


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## peach (Jul 8, 2010)

Where in the code do we interject common sense?

The entire building needs to be sprinklered..

Sorry building owner..


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## RJJ (Jul 9, 2010)

Peach we don't have a section for common sense. Gene I see the 2012 comment. Just thought I had a miss print or something.

The existing code is over done and a burden. A great deal of small consignment shops and antique stores contain upholstered furniture. In a change of use or occupancy situation the call for sprinklers (IMHO) is not reasonable. Not sure I agree with the 5k area either. That type of use could contain a great deal of furniture. I would be comfortable with 2K or 3K for the threshold.


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## gvictor (Jul 9, 2010)

Good points by all.  When common sense leaves us and the code, the BO can use the Modification orAlternate materials, design and methods sections found in Chapter 1.

Greg


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## Rick18071 (Jul 9, 2010)

The 2012 code is better, but it still leaves a lot of gray areas:

Does the 2012 code have a definition for upholstered furniture? You could call an desk chair or a padded high chair upholstered furniture.

 The code should say how much furniture. Would a Staples or K-Mart that has a small amount of upholstered furniture in a 8,000 sq. ft. 2B store need sprinklers?

Also if it is an existing M and not a change of occupancy and a furniture store moves in they would not need sprinklers no matter the size of store. This would only force owners of stores that have upholstered furniture to move into existing M buildings.


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