Consulting-Specifying Engineer - March 2008 - (Page 54)

Codes & Standards pilot, nothing but room air will go up the flue, cooling the water even more. I believe what the proponent was intending to do was eliminate atmospheric combustion water heaters and mandate high-efficiency sealed combustion water heaters, but the proposal was worded poorly and only asked to eliminate standing pilots. With the current wording, someone now can install a spark-ignition on an atmospherictype water heater, which will be less efficient. Spark-ignition water heaters require an electrical connection, so there will be the cost of an electrical circuit for the water heater and the additional cost for the spark ignition on the water heater. With this scenario, the cost of construction will go up and the energy savings may be less. There is still an opportunity to address this code change through a comment or challenge process at the ICC’s final action hearings scheduled for late September in Minneapolis. The comment forms and dates will be posted on the ICC Web site at www.iccsafe.org. Minimum pressures Another significant code change dealt Table 604.3 with the plumbing code and the minimum domestic cold water pressures to be delivered to various plumbing fixtures. Table 604.3 in the International Plumbing Code (see Table) gives minimum required capacities at fixture pipe outlets in gallons per minute and in flowing pressure. The table conflicted with the minimum pressure and flow requirements in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) standard for plumbing fixtures, ASME A112.19.2, “Vitreous China Plumbing Fixtures and Hydraulic Requirements for Water Closets and Urinals,” and the pressure requirements recommended in the American Society of Sanitary Engineering standard for pressure balancing and thermostatic mixing valves and combination pressure balancing/thermostatic mixing valves. The increase in pressures in this table will assure plumbing systems have the proper pressure for safe and sanitary operation, and in a few cases, it may trigger a need for a domestic water booster pump. Grease traps During the last code cycle, code requirements were added to change Water distribution system design criteria, Required capacity at fixture supply outlets Type of fixture Bathtub, with ASSE 1016 or 1070 valve Bidet, with ASSE 1070 valve Shower, with ASSE 1016 Urinal, flushometer valve Water closet blowout, flushometer valve Water closet, flushometer tank Water closet, siphonic, flushometer valve Water closet, tank, close coupled 8 psi 20 psi 15 psi 15 psi 20 psi 35 psi Old minimum Flow pressure (psi) none none 20 psi 15 psi 25 psi New minimum Flow pressure (psi) 20 psi 20 psi 20 psi 25 psi 45 psi the term grease trap, which was eliminated and a new definition for grease interceptor was included. An addition of the requirements for grease interceptors also was added to meet the Plumbing and Drainage Institute Standard PDI G101 standard or ASME A112.14.3 or ASME A112.14.4. These new requirements left the larger outdoor, gravity-type grease interceptors without code acceptance, and they have been used in many areas for many years. Many manufacturers of large gravity-type grease interceptors construct these large outdoor-type gravity grease interceptors from concrete, fiberglass, or plastic. A code exception was added this year to allow an exception for interceptors that have a volume greater than 500 gallons and are located outdoors to not have to meet the requirements for the standards listed in the code. These code changes will appear in the 2009 edition of the International Codes after the final action hearings this fall. Local jurisdictions still must adopt the 2000 code before these code changes can be enforced locally. Also of note, the International Assn. of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials will have its code hearings for the Uniform Plumbing Code and Uniform Mechanical Code May 5-9, 2008, at the Adams Mark Hotel in Denver. The ICC proposed code changes and the results can be viewed on the ICC’s Web site at www.iccsafe.org. George is president of Ron George Design & Consulting Services (www.ron georgedesign.com), which offers plumbing design and code consulting service, 3-D CAD design, and construction coordination services and forensic investigations of mechanical system failures and litigation support. 54 Consulting-Specifying Engineer • MARCH 2008 54 http://www.iccsafe.org http://www.iccsafe.org http://www.rongeorgedesign.com http://www.rongeorgedesign.com

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Consulting-Specifying Engineer - March 2008 Contents Viewpoint Letters News M/E Roundtable Grade A HVAC When UPS and Gensets Have Issues Ignite Opportunities To Mentor Fire Protection Engineers Cooling People, Not Buildings Codes & Standards Case Study New Products Equipment Lifecycles Advertiser Index Green Space Pure Power Supplement Edison Institute Honors Recovery Efforts Canada Launches Clean Energy Software Climate Change Drives Increased Investment Critical Power for R&D Heating Calculations for Electrical Duct Bank Submetering for Energy Profiling New Products

Consulting-Specifying Engineer - March 2008

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