I know JCAHO requires that shelving not be closer than 18 inches to sprinkler heads. What about shelving on the walls on the perimeter of the room? Some of ours go almost to the ceiling. Are wall units exempt from the 18-inches rule?
Yes. Shelves, storage shelves, and materials can be up to the ceiling if they are against the wall and not in the open obstructing the flow of the sprinkler.
This comes from the 1999 NFPA 13, Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems, Chapter 5, Sections 5-5.6 and 5-6.6. Annex A-5-6.6 states, “The 18-inch dimension is not intended to limit the height of shelving on a wall or shelving against a wall. Where shelving is installed on a wall and is not directly below sprinklers, the shelves, including storage thereon, may extend above the level of a plane located 18 inches below ceiling sprinkler deflectors. Other shelving, and any storage thereon, directly below the sprinklers may not extend above a plane located 18 inches below the ceiling sprinkler deflectors.”
The 18-inch clearance is meant to be applied to rooms or areas that are sprinkled only. There is a note in the Statement of Conditions, Part 3A, Existing Health Care Occupancies, Section VI-Operating Features, under Item 6B.4, that clarifies this issue.
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