Forum discussion

NC-2009 SSc7.2:Heat Island Effect—Roof

Fire exits

Are fire exits/emergency stairs considered part of the roof or can these be excluded?

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Mon, 01/06/2014 - 17:11

MM, per the guidance above, appurtenances such as mechanical equipment, skylights, pools, helipads, and more are excluded. The terminology used is "functional, usable spaces." I haven't seen stairs mentioned on a list of exclusions but it seems like they fit the mold.

Mon, 01/06/2014 - 17:28

Thanks Tristan! On another note, when part of the roof is covered by louvres that do not fully shade the roof (i.e., lets in strips of sunlight in), which part has to be documented, the roof or the louvres?

Mon, 01/06/2014 - 17:46

What are the louvres covering? Just roof? That's a bit of an odd case, and I could see an argument for going one of three ways.If the louvres are over a skylight, which makes more sense to me funtionally, it would be an appurtenance.

Mon, 01/06/2014 - 18:13

Be careful on the stairs, if you have covered, conditioned stairs leading up to the roof that stair roof IS part of the calculation. Ask me how I know.

Mon, 01/06/2014 - 19:38

I'd like to echo what Susan said. Example: If a football stadium has seating/stairs covering enclosed floor area: that's a roof! There is a Reference Guide addition ID#100000972 that defines "Roof area" as "the area of the uppermost surface of the building which covers enclosed Gross Floor Area, as measured when projected onto a flat, horizontal surface (i.e. as seen in Roof Plan view). \'Roofs\', or portions of roofs, covering unenclosed areas (e.g. roofs over porches and open covered parking structures) are not included in the areas used to evaluate compliance with SSc7.2, though they may be applicable to SSc7.1." I'd read that closely and interpret it very literally. Look at your project in roof plan view. If the area covers enclosed gross floor area then include it in your calculation.

Thu, 01/16/2014 - 10:49

The stairs are not covered or conditioned. They are just emergency exit stairs. About the louvres, if they partly cover the terraces on the roof (the terraces are not conditioned and the louvres only cover half of the terraces for shading purposes), should these be included in the calculations or should we include the paving of the terraces in the calculations?

Thu, 01/16/2014 - 18:17

I would say the stairs are not a part of your calculations. I would ignore the louvers and call them shading devices which equal appurtenances. The paving should be counted.

Thu, 01/16/2014 - 18:31

I have previously been asked to include louver-like systems in the calculations, especially if they cover a significant amount of roof area. If it's more like a trellis, with relatively little coverage, then you can probably skip it.

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