# Stairway Communication - Locked Door



## LGreene (Sep 13, 2011)

One of my coworkers has a situation with a 17-story residential building currently in the design phase.  None of the doors from the stair to the residential floors are lockable, but the top floor is a mechanical penthouse that should be locked from the stair side.  The mechanical penthouse doors could have fail safe locks with the capability of remote release, but the question is whether locking the mechanical penthouse would result in the need for a stairway communication system.  I'm not sure that letting people into the mechanical penthouse during a fire is a great option, but there is another exit on that level so if someone could find their way though the mechanical equipment they could use the other stair.  It seems excessive to have the communication system for just that one door, but what do you think?

Here's the language from the 2009 IBC and the Commentary:

403.5.3 Stairway door operation. Stairway doors other than the exit discharge doors shall be permitted to be locked from the stairway side. Stairway doors that are locked from the stairway side shall be capable of being unlocked simultaneously without unlatching upon a signal from the fire command center.

Commentary:  Section 1008.1.9.10 requires that all egress doors for interior stairways be readily openable from both sides. It is often desirable to control movement of people within a building and to provide additional security from external threats. This section permits locking of stairway doors from the stair side when all doors are capable of being simultaneously unlocked. Since high-rise buildings are difficult to evacuate and people are often relocated to another floor level during an emergency, access from the stairway to a floor could be essential in a fire or other emergency. Therefore, all stairway doors that are to be locked from the stairway side must have the capability of being unlocked on a signal from the fire command center. The unlocking of the door must not negate the latching feature, which is essential to the operation of the door as a fire door. Section 403.4.7.2, Item 1, by its reference to Section 403.4.5, requires the locking feature to be connected to the standby power system. When the door is unlocked during an emergency, it should not automatically relock on closure. Electrically powered locks should be designed such that when power to the locking device is interrupted, the lock is released. This is intended to enable doors to be operable from the inside of the stairway, and not locked, if power to the lock is interrupted. The building official should review the emergency release operation of stairway doors to determine that they remain unlocked.

403.5.3.1 Stairway communication system. A telephone or other two-way communications system connected to an approved constantly attended station shall be provided at not less than every fifth floor in each stairway where the doors to the stairway are locked.

Commentary:  If the stairway doors are locked to restrict reentry as permitted in Section 403.5.3, a two-way communication system must be provided at no less than every fifth floor and must be connected to the standby power system. This system is required to be connected to a constantly attended location, which could be within the building, or to a central station that monitors fire alarms and is manned 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Use of the fire command center is not recommended, since it may not be constantly attended. The system will permit occupants in the stairway to notify the attended location that the stairway doors need to be unlocked to access another floor or because conditions in the stairway prevent its continued use.


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## permitguy (Sep 13, 2011)

> It seems excessive to have the communication system for just that one door, but what do you think?


I agree.  In my opinion, the situation described in the OP does not meet the intent.


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## mtlogcabin (Sep 13, 2011)

Is it a stairway egress door or a roof access door or a mechanical room access door. Can a mechanical room door open directly into a vertical exit enclosure? Just playing devils advocate

Depending on the location of the standpipe a locked door will slow the firefighters down

905.4 Location of Class I standpipe hose connections.

Class I standpipe hose connections shall be provided in all of the following locations:

5. Where the roof has a slope less than four units vertical in 12 units horizontal (33.3-percent slope), each standpipe shall be provided with a hose connection located either on the roof or at the highest landing of a stairway with stair access to the roof. An additional hose connection shall be provided at the top of the most hydraulically remote standpipe for testing purposes.

1009.13 Stairway to roof.

In buildings four or more stories above grade plane , one stairway shall extend to the roof surface, unless the roof has a slope steeper than four units vertical in 12 units horizontal (33-percent slope). In buildings without an occupied roof, access to the roof from the top story shall be permitted to be by an alternating tread device . This would indicate a stair leading to a roof penthouse is not intended to be considered an egress stair.

1009.13.1 Roof access.

Where a stairway is provided to a roof, access to the roof shall be provided through a penthouse complying with Section 1509.2.


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## AegisFPE (Sep 13, 2011)

The intent of the communication system is where someone finds themselves "trapped" in a stair and unable to re-enter another floor.

The code allows the stair occupant to travel a maximum of 5 floors to reach a communication system "where the doors to the stairway are locked."  Therefore, you could place the communication system up to 5 floors away from the locked stair door.  When that location has a door that is not locked, no communication system should be required.

Signage could be a solution, such as labeling the locked door in some approved manner to indicate "NO RE-ENTRY".  Where a hypothetical building had a locked stair and every 5th floor unlocked in lieu of a communication system, then it may be appropriate to sign the designated re-entry doors as well.


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## Dr. J (Sep 13, 2011)

Mt asked the question I am wondering about

IBC 1022.3:

_"__Openings in __exit enclosures __other than unprotected exterior openings shall be limited to those necessary for __exit access __to the enclosure from __*normally occupied spaces *__and for egress from the enclosure."_

How can there be a door from a mechanical space in the first place?


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## brudgers (Sep 13, 2011)

I say treat it like an attic.....


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## AegisFPE (Sep 13, 2011)

> How can there be a door from a mechanical space in the first place?


Could be a vestibule serving as a "corridor" between the stair and space that may not normally be occupied, since we allow corridors to open to exit enclosures.


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## brudgers (Sep 14, 2011)

AegisFPE said:
			
		

> Could be a vestibule serving as a "corridor" between the stair and space that may not normally be occupied, since we allow corridors to open to exit enclosures.


  I was thinking something similar. Ideally the Enclosed Exit Access would connect with the other Exit and be separated from the Mechanical space.


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## permitguy (Sep 14, 2011)

> Could be a vestibule serving as a "corridor" between the stair and space that may not normally be occupied, since we allow corridors to open to exit enclosures.


Yep.  Pretty common design option around here.


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## peach (Sep 14, 2011)

1014.2 Egress shall not pass through kitchens, storage rooms, closets or spaces used for similar purposes.  The exit access can't go through the mechanical room anyway.. can be locked.  Put signage in the stairway pointing down and No Roof Access or No Roof Exit.


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## LGreene (Sep 14, 2011)

The top story of this building is a mechanical penthouse - the entire floor is full of mechanical equipment.  It's not a roof with mechanical equipment, and it's not like a mechanical room opening to the stairwell - there is a clear egress path from one stair door to the other through the mechanical penthouse.  Each of the stairwells in the building have a door that leads to this floor, and we need to keep the building occupants out of the mechanical floor.  The doors to this floor will be locked, and will have the capability of remote release.  The doors would also be unlocked in a power failure.  In the past we have not asked permission to lock these doors mechanically (with no remote release), because the IBC doesn't differentiate between types of uses when it talks about the locking of stairwell doors.

I agree with permitguy and AegisFPE - I don't think the intent of the code is to require stairwell communication because of this one locked door.  Anybody have a different opinion?


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