Page 59 - Build 161

Building controls
all came from the east or the mid-west, regions known for very cold winters and hot summers, their knowledge of construction in milder climates may have been limited.
They set to work with vigour, travelling regularly from their home cities by train to Washington DC for meetings. In February 1922, they sent out over 1,000 copies of the draft code, receiving back 150 letters of comment mostly from groups or organisa- tions. These were debated and incorporated along with a range of illustrations provided by industry associations and companies.
First US building code in 1922
In July 1922, Recommended minimum requirements for small dwelling construction was published, complete with a letter of approval from Hoover.
It covered brick, concrete block, mono- lithic concrete and timber-framed buildings up to 30 feet (9.1 m) high accommodating one or two families.
This was the rst nationally developed US building code. It brought together the experiences of not only the wider nation- wide code community but also the work of researchers at organisations such as the National Bureau of Standards and the Forest Products Laboratory. The nal code received wide support from the building industry and was widely distributed.
Code small and prescriptive
The code was divided into nine articles, each with a number of clauses (see Table 1). To those used to working with modern building codes, a surprise is the small number of clauses and pages.
Table 1
1922 US building code clauses and coverage
ARTICLE I GENERAL (2 CLAUSES, 2 PAGES)
● Limitations, heights and areas
ARTICLE II DWELLINGS WITH SOLID BRICK WALLS (5 CLAUSES, 1 PAGE)
● Thickness, height and bonding of exterior walls ● Piers, chases, arches and lintels
● Material quality
ARTICLE III HOLLOW: BUILDING TILE, CONCRETE BLOCK, BRICK (5 CLAUSES, 3 PAGES)
● Thickness, height and bonding of exterior walls ● Piers, chases, bearing for concentrated loads
● Material quality
ARTICLE IV CONCRETE MONOLITHIC, UNIT OR STRUCTURAL FRAME (5 CLAUSES, 2 PAGES)
● Monolithic concrete, unit construction
● Concrete structural frame with enclosing walls ● Height of concrete exterior walls
● Floors, oor beams and columns
ARTICLE V FRAME CONSTRUCTION (4 CLAUSES, 2 PAGES)
● De nition, exterior walls
● Masonry veneer and stucco on frame construction
ARTICLE VI WOOD FRAMING (6 CLAUSES, 3 PAGES)
● General requirements, strength of members
● Beams, joists, girders and rafters, basement columns
● Bearing partitions, non-bearing partitions
ARTICLE VII PARTY AND DIVISION WALLS AND PARTITIONS (3 CLAUSES, 4 PAGES)
● Party and division walls, parapet walls, interior partitions ARTICLE VIII FOUNDATIONS (3 CLAUSES, 2 PAGES)
● Foundation walls, footings, ventilation
ARTICLE IX MISCELLANEOUS REQUIREMENTS (10 CLAUSES, 2 PAGES)
● Loads, weight of materials, oor loads, roof loads ● Plastering, timber in walls
● Chimneys and surround woodwork, re-stopping ● Private garages
Build 161 — August/September 2017 — 57
FEATURE SECTION