Free Republic

NFPA makes important safety codes and standards available for free online As part of its commitment to enhancing public safety, NFPA makes its codes and standards available online to the public for free. Online access to NFPA's consensus documents conveniently places important safety information on the desktops of traditional users as well as others who have a keen interest. NFPA is committed to serving the public's increasing interest in technical information, and online access to these key codes is a valuable resource. To review codes and standards online: View the list of NFPA's codes and standards. Select the link of...

FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS, states have quickly adopted most building safety features blessed by the Washington-based nonprofit that recommends minimum codes for the nation. But that’s not what happened after the International Code Council decided in 2008 that every new American home should have fire sprinklers. Fire Fight Far outside DC, there’s a campaign finance fight taking place over fire safety. And it’s putting families at risk. Instead, a review by ProPublica shows, U.S. homebuilders and realtors unleashed an unprecedented campaign to fend off the change, which they argued would not improve safety enough to justify the added cost....

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – How would you like to not pay your rent, year after year, and get away with it? A Brooklyn woman has done just that for the past six years. Artist Margaret Maugenest, 60, stopped paying rent for several years, but instead of getting evicted, the state’s highest court said she was justified, CBS 2′s John Slattery reported. “Yeah, I feel very good about that, John. I feel very relieved,” Maugenest told Slattery. Since 1984, Maugenest has lived in a loft — a converted manufacturing building on Nevins Street in Gowanus – with rent of less than...

TOWN OF FRANKLIN, Wis. -- Daniel Borntreger's Jackson County home looks like hundreds of other Wisconsin farmhouses. But it could cost him thousands of dollars in fines. The Amish farmer built it without a permit.

Sorry for the vanity, but I've come across a minor business issue that needs some clarification in terms of building code standards in the State of New Jersey. In particular, I'm dealing with code requiremetns for a business establishment. I know the current requirements under the New Jersey Building Code, but I need to find out how the applicable code may have changed over the last 10-15 years. If there are any architects out there who are familiar with the New Jersey Building Code and/or the National Standard Plumbing Code, I'd appreciate any assistance anyone might be able to provide....

People were going to the doghouses in San Francisco on Thursday, and the doghouses were ready. Doghouses, in fact, are 20 percent off. It's the big Board of Supervisors doghouse sale. "We're ready,'' said Susan Fry, manager of the Pet Food Express store at Stonestown, which has taken the proposed city doghouse ordinance most seriously, as befits an establishment that sells $300 doghouses.

<p>A California commission has picked a new state building code favored by a firefighters union that is among the biggest donors to Gov. Gray Davis' anti-recall campaign.</p> <p>Critics say the new code will lead to delays and higher costs in construction.</p>

By TOM MOONEY Journal staff writer Updated 1:36 p.m. / The owner of American Foam Corp. in Johnston says The Station nightclub in June 2000 purchased $575 worth of common egg-crate packing foam for soundproofing, but it was not fire retardant. The fire retardant foam would have cost twice as much, according to Aram DerManouelian, who said the club wanted "the lowest grade, the cheapest stuff." "They had a choice, and they bought general purpose egg-crate foam," said DerManouelian. "It kept the noise down, but whoever figured they'd put flame on it? Jesus. For a $575 invoice, here we are."...

The was an article a few months back about a guy who made improvements on his home 30 years ago without a permit.Now the city 30 years later is making him tear down thse additions. I think this happend in Daly City,Ca.