NFPA 900 (Building Energy Code) [2022 ed.] 9781455928576

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IMPORTANT NOTICES AND DISClAIMERS CONCERNING NFPA® STANDARDS NFPA®codes, standards, recommended practices, and guides ("NFPA Standards"), of which the docume nt contained h e rein is one, a re developed through a consensus standards deve lopment process approved by the American National Standards Institute. T his process brings together voluntee rs representing varied viewpoints and interests to achieve consensus on fire and oth er safety issues. Wh ile the NFPA administers the process and establishes rules to promote fairness in the development of consensus, it docs not independently test, evaluate, or verify the accuracy of any information or the soundness of any judgments contained in NFPA Standards. The NFPA disclaims liability for a ny personal injury, property, or other damages of any nature whatsoever, whe ther special, indirect, consequential or compensatory, directly or indirectly resulting from the publication, u se of, or reliance on NFPA Standards. T h e NFPA also makes no guaranty or warranty as to th e accuracy or completeness of any information published herein. In issuing and making NFPA Standards available, the NFPA is not und ertaking to render professional or other services for or on be half of any person or entity. Nor is the NFPA undertaking to perform any duty owed by a ny person or entity to someone e lse. Anyone using th is document sh ould rely on his or her own independent judgmen t or, as appropriate, seck the advice of a competent professional in d etermining the exercise of reasonable care in any given circumstances. T h e NFPA has no power, nor does it undertake, to police or enforce compliance with the contents ofNFPA Standards. Nor docs the NFPA list, ce rtify, test, or inspect products, d esigns, or installations for compliance with this docum ent. Any certification or othe r statement of compliance with th e requireme nts of this docume n t shall not be attribmable to the NFPA and is solely the responsib ility of th e certifier or maker of the stateme n t.

REMINDER: UPDATING OF NFPA STANDARDS Users of NFPA cod es, standards, recommended practices, and guides ("NFPA Standards") should be aware that these documents may be supe rseded at any time by the issuance of a new edition, may be amended with the issuance of Tentative Interim Amendments (TIAs), or be corr ected by E rrata. It is intended that through regu la r revisions and amendments, participants in the NFPA standards d eve lopment process consider the th en-current and availa ble information on incidents, materials, tech nologies, innovations, and methods as these d evelop over time and that NFPA Standards reflect this consideration. T h e refore , any previous edition of this document no longer represents the current NFPA Standard on the subject matter addressed. NFPA encourages the use of the most curre nt edition of any NFPA Standard [as it may be amended by TIA(s) or E rra ta] to take advantage of curre nt exp e rie nce and unde rstanding. An official N FPA Standard at any point in time consists of the current edition of the document, including any issued TIAs a nd Errata then in effect. To determine wheth er a n NFPA Standard has been amended through the issuance ofTIAs or corrected by Errata, visit th e "Codes & Standards" section at www.nfpa.org.

ISBN: 978-145592857-6 (Print)

ADDITIONAL IMPORTANT NOTICES AND DISCLAIMERS CONCERNING NFPA® STANDARDS Updating of NFPA Standards Users of NFPA codes, standards, recommended practices, and guides ("NFPA Standards") should be aware that these may be superseded at any time by the issuance of a new edition, may be amended with the issuance of Tentative Interim Amendments (TIAs), or be co1-rected by En·ata. It is intended that through regular revisions and amendments, participants in the NFPA standards development process consider the then-current and available information on incidents, materials, technologies, innovations, and methods as these develop over time and that NFPA Standards reflect this consideration. Therefore, any previous edition of this document no longer represents the current NFPA Standard on the subject matter addressed . NFPA encourages the use of the most current edition of any NFPA Standard [as it may be amended by TIA(s) or Erratal to take advantage of current experience and understanding. An official NFPA Standard at any point in time consists of the current edition of the docwnent, including any issued TIAs and Errata then in effect. document~

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900-1

Copyright© 2021 National Fire Protection A~sociation®. All Rights Reserved.

Building Energy Code 2022 Edition This edition of NFPA 900, Building Energy Code, was prepared by the Technical Committee on Building Systems and released by the Correlating Committee on Building Code. It was issued by the Standards Council on April 14, 2021, with an effective date of May 4, 2021, and supersedes all previous editions. This edition of NFPA 900 was approved as an American National Standard o n May 4, 2021 . Origin and Development of NFPA 900

In late 2002, the Standards Council charged the Technical Committee on Building Systems with developing a new document, NFPA 900, Building Energy Code, to complement the Comp-rehensive Consensus Codes® (C3®) . NFPA 900 incorporates the technical provisions of ASHRAE 90.1 , l!.nergy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, and ASHRAE 90.2, Energy Efficient Design of Low-Rise Residential Buildings, with administrative provisions and appropriate annexes, table of contents, definitions, references, index, and other information developed through the NFPA process to create a stand-alone building energy code. The ASHRAE provisions, while incot-pot·ated into the document, cannot be modified by NFPA comm ittees. They can be modified only through ASH RAE's ANSI-accredited process. The 2007 edition updated the references for the technical provisions to the 2004 editions of both ASHRAE 90 .1, Ene1gy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, and ASHRAE 90.2, Ene1gy Efficient Design of Low-Rise Residential Buildings. The 2010 edition updated the references for the technical provisions to the 2007 editions of both ASHRAE 90.1 , Enmgy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, a nd ASHRAE 90.2, Ene-rgy Efficient Design of Low-Rise Residential Buildings. The 2013 edition made a few minor editorial revisions, but the committee determined that n o substantive changes were required. The 2016 edition made a few minor editorial revisions for clarity and updated the editi on of a number of referenced standards, but the comrn ittee determined that no substantive cha nges were ,-equired. The 2019 edition made a few minor editorial revisions for clarity. The comm ittee again determined that no substantive changes were required. The 2022 edition provides a substantial update to Annex B, Supplemental Administrative Provisions, that outlines the most recent changes extracted from NFPA 5000, Building Construction and Safety Code.

NFPA and National Fire Protection Association are registered trademarks of the National Fire Protection Association, Quincy, Massachusetts 02169.

BUILDING ENERGY CODE

90()..2

Correlating Committee on Building Code Peter J. Willse, Chair AXA XL/ Global Asset Protection Services, LLC, Cf [I] Rep. Global Asset Protection Services, LLC Jerry Wooldridge, Secrelm)• Reedy Creek Improvement District, FL [E) Tracey D. Bellamy, Telgian Corporation, GA [IM] Rep. American Fire Sprinkler Association Paul D. Coats, American Wood Council, SC [M] David W. Frable, US General Services Administration, lL [U] Raymond N. Hansen, US Deparunent of the Air Force, FL [U] Howard Hopper, UL LLC, CA [ RT] Jeffrey M. Hugo, National Fire Sprinkler Association, Inc., Ml [M] Jonathan Humble, American Iron and Steel Institute, CT [M] Gerald H. Jones, Kansas City, MO [E) Rep. Building Seismic Safety Council/Code Resource Support Committee

Danie!J. O'Connor,JENSEN HUGHES, IL [U] Rep. An1erican Hotel & Lodging Association James R. Quiter, Retired-Arup, CA [SE] Richard Jay Roberts, Honeywell Fire Safety, lL [M) Rep. National Electrical Manufacwrers Association Faimeen Shah, Vortex Fire Engineering Consultancy, United Arab Emirates [SE] Leon F. Vinci, H ealth Promotion Consultants, VA [C) Rep. An1erican Public Health Association

Alternates Andrew Bevis, National Fire Sprinkler Association, Inc. (NFSA), MD[M] (Alt. toj elfrey M. Hugo) John August Denhardt, American Fire Sp•·inkler Association (AFSA), TX [IM] (Alt. to Tracey D. Bella my) Jack Keays, Vortex Fire Consulting Inc., Canada [SE] (Alt. to Faimeen Shah) Scott T. Laramee, AON Property Risk, CA [I] (Alt. to DanieiJ. O 'Connor)

Bonnie E. Manley, American Iron and Steel Institute, MA [M] (Alt. to Jonathan Humble) Jake Pauls, J ake Pauls Consulting Services, Canada [C) (Alt. to Leon F. Vinci) Joseph A. Simone, US Department of the Navy, DC [ U] (Alt. to Raymond N. Hansen) James B. Smith, American Wood Council, WI [M] (Alt. to Paul D. Coats) JeffreyS. Tubbs, Arup, MA [SE] (Alt. to James R. Quiter) Nonvoting

DavidS. Collins, The Preview Group, Inc., OH [SE] Rep. TC on Means of Egress Nicholas A. Dawe, Cobb County Fire Marshal's Office, GA [E) Rep. TC on Interior Finish & Contents Richard L. Day, Michigan State Fire Marshal's Office, Ml [E) Rep. TC on Building Consu·uction John F. Devlin, JE NSEN H UGHES, l'viD [SE] Rep. TC on Fire Protection Feawres Randy Gaw, DET-CORR Fire Safety Consulting, Canada [SE] Rep. TC on Detention & Correctional Occupancies Joshua D. Greene, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, MA [SE] Rep. TC on Bu ilding Systems Chris Jelenewicz, Society of Fire Protection Engineers, l'viD [SE] Rep. TC on Fundamentals

Moriel E. Kaplan,JENSEN HUGHES, lL [SE] Rep. T C on Structures, Construction, & Materials William E. Koffel, Kofl'e l Associates, Inc., MD [SE] Rep. T C on Healm Care Occupancies Josh Lambert, University of Texas at Austin, TX [U] Rep. T C on Assembly Occupancies James K. Lathrop, Koffel Associates, Inc., CT [SE] Rep. TC on Residential Occupancies Matthew J. Mertens, North Shore Fire Department, WI [E) Rep. TC on Educational and Day-Care Occupancies Amy J. Murdock, Code Co nsultants, Inc., MO [SE] Rep. TC on Mercantile & Business Occupancies John A. Rickard, P3 Consulting, TX [SE] Rep. TC on Board & Care Facilities

Tracy L. Vecchiarelli, NFPA Staff Liaison This lisl rejmsents lhe rnembershiji all he lime the Commiuee was ball,oled on lhe jinallexl oflhis edilion. Since lhal lime, changes in lhe menwership may have occurred. A key lo classijicalions is found al lhe back of lhe doettmenl.

NOTE: Membership on a committee shall not in and of itse lf constitute an endo rsemem of the Association or any document developed by the comm ittee on which the member serves. Committee Scope: This committee shall have primary responsibility for documents or portions of documents on the design and construction of every building or structure, including struclllral design methods and techniques, as well as the design of integn1ted building systems tor health, safety, comfort, and conven ience.

2022 Edition

COMMITIEE PERSONNEL

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Technical Committee on Building Systems Joshua D. Greene, Chai1· Simpson Gumpertz & H eger, MA [SE) Kevin Carr, Adrninistmtive Secretary National Fire P rotection Association, MA William Ambrefe, City of Beverly, MA [E) Kevin L. Brinkman, National Elevator Industry, Inc., I.L [M) Rep. National Elevator Industry Inc. Phil Forner, Allendale Heating Company Inc., Ml [1M) Rep. Air Conditioning Contractors of America Raymond N. Hansen , US Department of the Air Force, FL [U) Matthew M. Hunter, American Wood Council, PA [M) Thomas W. McKeon, Dual North Ame rica, NJ [l) Davor Novosel, National Energy Management l nstimte, VA [ L) MichaelJ. Reeser, Santa Rosa Fire Equipment Sen~ce Inc., CA [1M) Rep. California Automatic Fire Alarm Association Inc .

James Rickard, P3 Consulting, TX [SE] Frank Shingleton, Viega, LLC, KS [M) Shelley Siegel, Universal Desig n & Education Network, LLC, FL [SE) Rep. American Society of Interior Designe rs StevenJ. Whitman,JENSEN H UGHES, MD [SE) Peter J. Willse, AXA X L/ Global Asset Protection Services, LLC, CT [l ) Felix I. Zemel, Town Of Dover, MA [SE)

Alternates Andrew S. Carmean, US Departme nt of the Air Force, FL [U) (AIL to Raymond N. H.ansen)

Marc Mueller, Thyssenkrupp Eleva tot; T N [M) (AIL to Kevin L Brinkman )

Shane M. Clary, Bay Alarm Company, CA [lM) (AIL to Michae! J Reeser) Mark Fasel, Viega LLC, IN [M) (AIL to Frank Shingleton)

John A. Rickard, P3 Consulting, TX [SE) (AIL to James Ric kard) James B. Smith, American Wood Council, WI [M) (AIL to Matthew M. Hunte r)

Kevin Carr, NFPA Staff Liaison This list n:Jnesen/s the membershijJ at the lime lhe CmnmiU& was balloted on thefinallexl ofthis edition. Since th(ll time, changes in the membershijJ trW)' have occurred. A key to classifiwtions is found at the back of the document.

NOTE: Membership on a committee shall nor in a nd ofit~elf constitute an e ndorsement of the Association or any document d eveloped by th e committee on which the me mbe r serves. Committee Scope: This Committee shall have primary responsibility for documents on the application of various building systems and features that relate to convenience, health, comfort, and access to a building.

2022 Edition

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BU ILDI NG ENERGY CODE

Contents Chapter 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6

I Administration ............ ............................... . Scope ......................... .......... ................................ . Purpose . ................................... ............................ Application . ................................. .......... ............... Retroactivity. (Reserved) ........ ............... ............. . Enforcement. ............ .......... ................................ . Code T itle .......... ............... .................................... .

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Chapter 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4

2 Referenced Publications ...... ..... ............... .. General . .............................................. ..... ............. NFPA Publications . ....................... ............... ....... . Other Publications........................................... ... References for Extracts in Mandatory Sections. (Reserved) .......... ..................................................

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Chapter 3 Definitions ............................................. ..... . 3. 1 General. .......................... .......... ............................ NFPA Official Definitions . .................. ..... .......... . 3.2

2022 Edition

3.3

General Definitions. (Reserved) ........................

Chapter 4 4.1

Technical Provision for All Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings ..... Technical P rovisions . ..............................

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Chapter 5

Technical Provision for Low-Rise Residential Buildings ................................. . Technical Provisions . ...... .................................... .

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Annex A

Explanatory Material .......... ........................

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Annex B

Supplemental Administrative Provisions ...

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Annex C

Sample Ordinance Adopting NFPA 900 ....

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Annex D

Informational References .............. .......... ..

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5.1

Index

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DEFINITIONS

NFPA900

Building Energy Code 2022 Edition

IlvfPORTANT NOTE: This NFPA document is made available for use subject to important twtices ami legal disclaimers. These 1wtices and disclaimers appear in all publicatioos containing this document and may be found under the heading "Important Notices and Disclaimers Coocerning NFPA Standards. " They can also be viewed at www. n.JPa.org/disclaimers or obtained on request from NFPA. UPDATES, ALERTS, AND FUTURE EDITIONS: New editions of NFPA codes, stanclards, rerommemled practices, and guides (i.e., NFPA Standards) are released on scheduled revision cycles. This edition may be superseded by a later one, or it may be amended outside of its scheduled revision cycle through the issuance of Tentative Interim Amendments (TIAs). An official NFPA Standard at any point in time consists of the current edition of the document, together with all TlAs and Errata in effect. To verify that this document is the current edition or to determine if it has been amended by TlAs or Errata, please consult the National Fire Codes® Subscription Service or the "List of NFPA Codes & Standards" at www.nfpa.org!docinfo. In addition to TIAs ami Errata, the document informatioo pages alm include the option to sign up for alerts for individual documents and to be itwolved in the development ofthe next edition. NOTICE: An asterisk (*) following the number or- letter designating a paragraph indicates that explanatory material on the paragraph can be found in Annex A. A reference in brackets [ ) following a section m paragr-aph indicates material that has been extracted from another NFPA document. Extracted text may be edited for consistency and style and may include the revision of internal paragraph references and other references as appropriate. Requests for interpretations or revisions of extracted text shall be sent to the technical comrnittee responsible for the source document. Information on referenced publications and extracted publications can be found in Chapter 2 and Annex D. Chapter 1 Administration

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1.3.1.1 The provisions of this Code shall apply to all buildings except low-r·ise residential buildings to the extent required by the standard referenced in Section 4.1. 1.3. 1.2 The provisions of this Code shall apply to low-rise residential buildings to the extent required by the standard referenced in Section 5.1. 1.3.1.3 When constructed in accordance wi th NFPA 501, manufactured housing shall be exempt from the provisions of this Code. 1.4 Retroactivity. (Reserved) 1.5 Enforcement. This Code shall be administered and enforced by the authority having jurisdiction designated by the governing authority. (See Annex C joT sample wording joT enabling legislation.) 1.6 Code Title. The provisions in the followi ng chapters of this document shall constitute and be known as NFPA 900, hereinafter referred to as "this Code' or "the Code."

Chapter 2 Referenced Publications 2.1 General. The documents or portions thereof listed in this chapter are referenced within this Code and shall be considered part of the requirements of this document.

2.2 NFPA Publications. National Fire Protection Association, 1 Batterymarch Park, Quincy, MA 02169-7471. NFPA 501, Standm·d on ManufactuTed Housing, 2022 edition . 2.3 Other Publications. 2.3.1 ASHRAE Publications. ASHRAE, Circle, N.E., Atlanta, GA 30329-2305.

Inc.,

1791

Tullie

ANSI/ASHRAE/ IES 90.1 , Energy Standard joT Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, 2019. ANSI/ ASHRAE/ IES Standard 90.2, 1