Residential Building Plan Review Guidelines

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PERMITS The window shall have a finished sill height at 44" or less above the floor. Emergency escape and rescue openings shall be operational from the inside of the Refer to the Residential Building Permit Guidelines or room without the use of keys, tools, or special Section 5-19 of the Hawai‘i County Code. Contact a knowledge. Window wells shall be provided when Building Division office to answer any questions 961-8331 egress windows have a finished sill height below the (Hilo) or 323-4720 (Kona). adjacent ground elevation. The well shall allow the window to be fully opened and provide a minimum FLOOR PLAN accessible net clear opening of 9 square feet, with a minimum dimension of 36". Window wells with a vertical depth of more than 44" shall be equipped with a permanent ladder or steps. See ROOM IDENTIFICATION: 1. HCC Sec 5-20 Page 25, Emergency Egress/Rescue Opening, for Each room and its intended use must be clearly additional information. shown, labeled, and dimensioned by the applicant on the plans for plan review purposes. SMOKE ALARMS: 3. IRC Section R313 & A. Dwellings must indicate provisions for living, HCC 5-71 310.3.10. A smoke alarm listed in sleeping / bedroom, eating / dining, cooking / accordance with UL217 shall be installed in each kitchen and sanitation / bathroom. (R202 sleeping room, including each bedroom, bonus Definitions) , room, habitable attic or loftand other habitable Efficiency Dwelling Units are defined in HCC rooms that could potentially be sleeping rooms Sec. 310.3.8. that contain an intervening door that can be B. Accessory Spaces such as decks, lanai, closed to separate the room from areas carport/garage should be labeled and areas otherwise provided with smoke alarms, as well as summarized separately from living spaces. outside each separate sleeping area in the C. Bathrooms must contain a water closet, immediate vicinity of the bedrooms, and each lavatory and either a bathtub or shower. additional story of the dwelling including basements D. Detached portions should be labeled by use (but excluding crawl spaces and uninhabitable (bathroom, bedroom, etc.). Note that access to attics.) In dwelling units with split levels and without a bathroom or water closet is not allowed by an intervening door between the adjacent levels, a going through another sleeping room when smoke alarm installed on the upper level shall more than one sleeping room is provided. suffice for the adjacent lower level provided that the Similarly, a bedroom cannot be accessed by lower level is less than one full story below the only going through a bathroom or water closet upper level. When more than one smoke alarm is compartment. required to be installed within an individual dwelling E. An office established in a dwelling for other unit, the alarm devices shall be interconnected in than personal use may be restricted by the such a manner that the actuation of one alarm will Zoning Code. Please consult the Planning activate all of the alarms in the individual unit. Department when establishing an office in a Alterations, repairs and additions shall be residence. equipped with smoke alarms located as required for new dwellings, except work performed only EGRESS WINDOWS: 2. IRC Section R310.1. on the outside, or plumbing or mechanical work HCC 5-71 310.3.4 Basements, habitableattics, and only. Interconnection and hardwiring is not every sleeping room shall have at least one operable required in existing buildings if the alterations emergency escape and rescue opening. (Habitable attic do not result in the removal of wall or ceiling is an attic area with an occupiable floor area of 70 finishes unless there is a basement, attic, or square feet and ceiling height of at least 7 feet over crawl space which could provide access for minimum area of 35 square feet.) Windows shall hardwiring and interconnection without have a minimum net clear open able area of 5.7 removing the interior finish. square feet, or, minimum of 5.0 square feet for grade Note: Habitable rooms such as dens, libraries and Exceptions: Glass jalousie blade floor openings. home offices that are provided with built in features that windows may be used for emergency escape or establish the specific use of the room as something other rescue. The minimum clear opening height shall be than for sleeping, and do not contain clothes closets, 24", and the minimum clear opening width shall be 20". need not be considered a sleeping room. The County of Hawai‘i is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer 101 Pauahi Street, Suite 107 74-5044 Ane Keohoklole Hwy ā Hilo, Hawai‘i 96720 Kailua-Kona, Hawai’i 96740 Tel: (808) 961-8331 Page 5 Tel: (808) 323-4720