Been asked to rebuild (tear down and start from scratch) a dilapitated old 3 story deck/fire escape on a 3 family bldg. It occurs to me that there may be an issue with leaving the building without 2nd form of egress during construction… anyone have any experience with this?
TIA
PaulB
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Replies
If those spaces are inhabited,and you remove a required means of egress,it would not be code compliant.
I understand, hence my question. I guess what I'm trying to anticipate before showing up for a permit is whether they would make any allowance for the fact that the decks and stairs need to be rebuilt, or whether they're going to require that they be functional at all times...PaulB
In multi family units I would think that you have to maintain adequate egress regardless of renovations. Ask your local BI to see what he suggests.
I would not expect too much leeway for a life safety issue.
Can you rent some heavy duty scaffolding with the stairs in them ? If they were professionally staged. Might they be approved as a temporary exit. Check with your BI. Someone would have to carry an insurance policy with the city named as additional insured also.
May be cheaper to put upper floor tenants in a hotel.
Edited 9/11/2007 8:32 pm ET by arrowpov
You may be allowed to use a temp fixed in place ladder for egress. You get to keep it after. Place it so it runs half over a pair of inline windows.
If you have to cage the ladder, think about using #9 or 1/4" x 6x6 rebar mesh, also strapped to the wall.
SamT