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Cable tensioning devices for residential cable or wire guardrail, Tivolin NY (C) Daniel Friedman RA Building Codes for Cable-type Guardrails
Wire Rope Railings & Ladder Effect Codes, Standards, Installation Manuals

  • POST a QUESTION or COMMENT about Building Code Rules & Installation Specifications for Guardrail Cables: Wire Rope Railings, spacing, tensioning, support, cable diameters, inspection, safety hazards, applications, & code approvals

Model Building Code citations for cable railings or wire rope guardrails:

This article lists historical and current model building codes regulating guardrail openings, cable railings, and railings where the ladder-effect, climbable guardrails, may be present. We give the allowable opening size between guardrail or stair guard openings including the 4" sphere and 6" sphere passage through openings guidelines.

This article series describes and includes illustrations of cable or wire rope railings or guardrails used along decks, balconies, walkways and stairways. We include definitions of guardrail, a handrailing or stairway handrail, and other terms that assist in understanding the building code, construction, and safety requirements that wire cable type railings must meet.

Where the presence of children argues against any sort of horizontally-run guard railing member, cable railing manufacturers can provide vertical cable railing designs.

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- Daniel Friedman, Publisher/Editor/Author - See WHO ARE WE?

Model Building Code Citations on Allowable Openings Code Citations pertinent to Cable Railings

Guardrail unsafe (C) Daniel FriedmanWatch out: because local state or provincial building codes adopt model codes from different years and because the final legal authority always rests with local building officials, you should check with your local building department about what guardrailing specifications are required where you live.

[Click to enlarge any image]

History of Model Building Code Specifications for Opening Size & Ladder Effect in Guardrails

Exceptions to the spacing rules given above:

Triangular openings formed by the riser, tread and bottom rail of a guard at the open side of a stairway should be such that a sphere 6 inches (152 mm) cannot pass through.

Openings for required guards on the sides of stair treads shall not allow a sphere 4 3/8 inches (107mm) to pass through.

Cable railing tension demonstration (C) Daniel Friedman

Exceptions: 21" sphere for elevated walk for electrical, mechanical and plumbing systems and Group I-3, F, H, or S occupancies, balusters, horizontal intermediate rails or other construction.

Comment:

2016/08/28 Steve Anzelc Dove Inspections said:

This Feeney Inc. article has great history on removal of ladder effect from IRC in 2001

[See an expanded citation at Feeney, Inc., found in this article at CABLE RAILING SAFETY RESEARCH - Ed. ]

Reply:

Thanks Steve,

A brief history of the IRC's position on horizontal "ladder effect" railings (including cable railings) is given in our own article CABLE RAILINGS & GUARDRAILS in section: LADDER EFFECT at GUARDRAILS and that history is indeed repeated for IRC editions in 2000, 2001, and 2012 in the in the article you suggested and whose citation we have expanded.

Indeed it's both significant and interesting that guidance regarding an obvious child hazard: climbable guardrails, was amended to remove what experts previously agreed was a concern.

Perhaps this was a concession to cable railing manufacturers and architects who like horizontal cabling either aesthetically or because the longer horizontal cable-pull runs are manifestly easier and more economical to install.

We might both also look for research comparing hazard levels of vertical vs. horizontal cable guardrails that lack adequate tension to prevent deformation and openings that form safety hazards.

Also see CABLE GUARDRAIL INSTALLATION SPECIFICATIONS

Other Cable Guardrail & Stair Guard Codes & Standards

Watch out: In addition to the requirement to comply with all local zoning and building codes, or safety and durability cable type guardrailings and stair rails, their posts, connections, and tensioning devices must be installed following the specifications provided by the cable railing manufacturer. We give some examples and cable railing or cable guardrail installation standards and manuals here.

Some cable railing system manufacturers provide a cable tensioning gauge intended for use with their cable system. For example Fortress Railing System instructions specify that the cable tension be set to between 10 and 16 on the tension gauge provided by the manufacturer. (We don't have a translation of that into psi.)

In other cases you may find that there are often no quantitative tensioning instructions nor measurements in other instructions for cable rail systems, perhaps in part because of the difficulty of making precise, accurate and objective field measurements.

Cable Railing Systems & Installation Manuals, Specifications

Full Text of Adopted Building Codes 2006, 2012

The ICC has free, limited, live, online access to some of the latest codes, but I couldn't find the free link for IRC immediately.

Question: mandatory inspection for cable handrails?

Just have a question. Do you know if it’s mandatory by the USA to have cable inspected, tested, have specifications or be certified prior to selling? Cable that will be used for handrails. - Anonymous by private email, 2017/08/28

Reply:

Anon:

As we discuss in this article series starting at CABLE RAILINGS & GUARDRAILS - topic home, you will see that

Cable infill used in guard railings and stair guards is regulated by some state building codes, and the system would be inspected as part of the permit and inspections and final building code authority approval for the construction of stairs, balconies, etc. where such guards are installed.

National model building codes discuss railing security, strength, graspability, and safe opening widths in terms that would apply to cable type guardails.

Beyond those general guides I add that it will be essential to obtain and follow the installation specifications including for all connectors, posts, cable tensioning, and top railing that are set by the manufacturer of the specific cable railing system you are installing.

Watch out: regarding the details of your questin, there is no cable railing system that intends that you use a cable as the handrailing.

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Reader Comments, Questions & Answers About The Article Above

Below you will find questions and answers previously posted on this page at its page bottom reader comment box.

Reader Q&A - also see RECOMMENDED ARTICLES & FAQs

On 2018-10-23 - by (mod) -

ST

BCC Ruling No. 16-26-1454

discusses this very question; I'll find and attach a copy for you and other readers.

Excerpt from the conclusions:

Although the Appendix to the Building Code does not strictly form part of the Code, it is the Commission's opinion that based on the information provided in the Appendix, it can be determined that Article 9.8.8.5. of Division B of the Building Code considers a child getting stuck or falling through a guard as potential risks.

See CABLE GUARDRAILS in CANADA [PDF] - BCC Ruling No. 16­26­1454 on cable railings in Canada at

https://inspectapedia.com/Stairs/Cable-Railings-Canada-BCC-Ruling-16-26-1454.pdf

retrieved 2018/10/20, original source: http://www.mah.gov.on.ca/Page16639.aspx

On 2018-10-22 by S.T

Is cable railing legal in Canada as of December 2018? What are the specifics of the new code?

Question: what building codes regulate the use of cables on guardrailings?

The stainless steel cables are used in commercial, what's the IBC on cables in guards? - Scott Emerson 8/18/12

Reply:

Thanks for the question, Scott. We do find both horizontal and vertical cable guardrailings installed in commercial locations such as the shopping center shown in photos earlier on this page, but ultimately the approval is up to local code enforcement officials. As for specific code requirements, the railings have to pass the same height, strength, spacing, and graspability rules as other types of railings. Please take a look at the article above and also see references [48][49][50][51][52] and let me know if questions remain.

Question: Can the top rail of a guardrailing or stair rail be cable?

(May 18, 2014) bill blackburn said:
I find nowhere on the internet a specific reference to the code requirement for a rigid top rail in a cable guardrail system. Can the top rail be cable? (assuming a substantial anchor post and adequate cable tension) I am referring to an elevated deck, not stairs.

Reply:

Bill

The top rail and entire assembly requirements are generally specified as strength and height and spacing requirements.

See GUARDRAIL & HANDRAIL STRENGTH for examples of the requirement for a top railing along a glass guardrail. Similar restrictions would pertain to a cable type guardrail system.

Reader Question: are cable railings permitted by OSHA?

(Aug 5, 2015) Fran said:
Can these cables be applied for OSHA guardrailing?

Reply:

There is not an explicit discussion of cable railings and guardrails in the OSHA language, as you'll see in the citation below.

Please see GUARDRAIL & HANDRAIL STRENGTH for details.

Question:

(Oct 11, 2015) jackie said:
Hi I know the cable has to be about 4" apart but does anyone know what the local code is for post to post spacing? I live in orange county CA. I've been looking and can't find that. Spacing b/t cable is easy but what about post to post? Is there a code or is it whatever you feel like spacing them?

Reply:

Post spacing is not illustrated in the model codes that we cite in this article series; rather the post spacing for cable railings will be specified by the manufacturer and are a feature of the cable railing's tensioning system. Typically you'll see more-modest intermediate posts and heavier, reinforced posts at corners where tensioning hardware is installed; on longer runs indeed a reinforced intermediate post or posts may be required for proper cable tensioning.


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