It’s a huge win!  According to the 2024 IRC the floor system is required to support the stair guard above.  The code now prescribes the dimensions of the edge member, the frame, where we have struggled to find solid anchor for our newel posts.  Breathe a sigh of relief with me…in 3 years.

Yes, we were victorious in changing the code, but this alone doesn’t flip the switch.  Truly this issue has been overlooked in building code, there was no language discussing this interaction of level guards and the floor framing system.  Across the country stair installers and stairbuilders have carried another trade’s burden for years; stiffening the edge to secure a post and remove as much rotation and leverage as possible with make-shift blocking. We are not house framers; this burden does not belong to the stair installer.  This is the victory for the SMA and its members, this code change places the burden where it belongs.  Why will it take three years to see any relief?

The new IRC code years, though adopted by the International Code Council, are still subject to the enforcing entities’ cycle of adoption. Where you live and the governing body that decides the building code will determine when this big win will be enforceable in your area.  Houston Texas only just adopted the 2021 IRC this past October.

The SMA is not a group that is satisfied to wait around, and you don’t have to either.  With members of our Quality Standards Committee, we are focusing on early adoption and spreading the message about this great improvement to building code. There is a detailed handout in the ‘resources-building code development’ section of the SMA website.  This handout targets your code official, architect and builder all at once.  Email a copy to your customers; encourage them to review it, appeal to the building safety component.  Send the handout to an architect firm you work with, there is a section that can be copied and pasted into their drawings (CSI specifications).  You could send it to your city building code official and encourage them to adopt these sections as soon as possible.

The homebuilder could respond in favor and begin work to update their plans to include the specifications even before they would be subject to enforcement. If it only takes an email, a conversation with your customer, to improve the job-site conditions for install and finally take advantage of this relief, do you have anything to lose?  I suppose they could not respond as favorably and not make any changes to their floor framing leaving you stuck with the status quo until the code is adopted in your area.  It sounds like a low-risk high reward to me.

The architect could respond in favor of the new code section and begin applying it to their plans, but someone needs to share the news first.

The building official should be the most responsive and definitive in the process and timeline for adoption of code changes. It is common for multiple code years to be reviewed and decided upon, not every entity will adopt the complete text of the published code when making changes. You should email the handout to your local building official and request that it be considered during the next proposal cycle.

In addition to the handout, the SMA office can share a form email and postcard with you, even a pre-recorded power point; all the legwork and thought done for you.  This will change our industry for the better.  Will you help us push it across the finish line and start feeling the relief?

Take pride in knowing the SMA is working for your benefit.  This code change is another feather in the cap for the long-standing history of SMA Code Development. Now go and tell everyone!

More information is available at www.stairways.org/guard-connections.

Article written by Renda Barr, SMA President