700.16

[porterh]

Everyone has seen the egress lighting heads installed outside exits on commercial buildings.
There is normally one head installed. A plan review person wants a minimum of two heads installed because of the text in section 700.16 which reads:

Emergency lighting systems shall be designed and installed so that the failure of any individual lighting element, such as the burning out of a light bulb, cannot leave in total darkness any space that requires emergency illumination.

All of the plans that I have seen always have one emergency light outside of exit doors. Have these plans been incorrect? Or is the plan review person interpreting section 700.16 incorrectly?

Porterh

 

[ryan_618]

Re: 700.16

One head does not comply. I also have to wirte this up often.

 

[bphgravity]

Re: 700.16

Do both heads have to be pointing in the same direction or can each point 180 apart?

 

[charlie b]

Re: 700.16

If they are pointing 180 degrees apart, then they are pointing along the sides of the building, and not at the sidewalk that they are intended to illuminate. But they don't have be pointing in exactly the same direction. The intent that that either head can illuminate the exit path, if the light bulb in the other head were to burn out.