Stories of buildings - an indicator that is used to characterize structures in terms of their height. It is used in a number of regulatory documents (more on them later) to indicate the technical characteristics of the buildings being created. Has a number of specific characteristics.
General information
SNiP 31-01-2003 was chosen as the most appropriate legal document. It is necessary to extract several especially important points from it:
- Only the above-ground part is included in the concept of number of storeys.
- A space that is less than 1.8 meters high does not belong to it.
- Mansards are included in the total number of storeys.
- Ground and technical levels can only be considered above-ground if their top floor is at least two meters from the ground.
Stories of a building are used to indicate the height of buildings.
About the quantitative factor
This concept is providedCity Planning Code, and is also used in various examinations. This is one of the normative documents on which the concept of number of storeys is based. Used to determine the height of structures in cases such as:
- deviations in project documentation upon its approval;
- problems during examinations;
- difficulties in participating in government projects and orders;
- problems in coordinating projects for individual housing construction;
- and many more.
As many might guess, the problems here relate to determining the number of storeys of a building. How to prevent such a development of the situation?
Example
Most often, such confusion is faced by those who conduct individual housing construction. Why has this situation come about? The fact is that only the house in which the number of floors does not exceed three falls under the definition of individual housing construction. In this case, the facilities under construction do not need to be subject to state expertise.
Let's say a house has three levels above ground. And another underground technical floor, where the boiler equipment and many other engineering units are located. And now the number of levels in the house is already four. And as we remember, state expertise is not needed in cases where the number of floors is not more than three. Many people get confused in this situation and believe that the documentation is talking about the number of storeys, but such an idea is not true. If you do not take into accountthis circumstance in the preparation and further approval of project documentation, then in the future troubles may arise. It is necessary to pay attention to the fact that practically all the regulations available in the Urban Planning Code, as well as other regulations, are, as a rule, oriented not to the number of storeys of the building. What matters to them is how many levels it has.
About number of storeys
Now it's the turn of the inventory of the housing stock. The number of storeys is determined by the number of above-ground levels built. When designing, it is necessary to take into account a number of specific points. Namely, what is included in the number of storeys of a residential building:
- technical floor;
- attic;
- ground floor - provided that the top of its ceiling is at least two meters above the ground;
- platforms, mezzanines, tiers (if their area is at least 40% of the size of the level).
At the same time, one should not forget about safety requirements. Indeed, various problems, for example, the peculiarities of fires in high-rise buildings, can lead to significant casu alties when people are cut off from evacuation routes and cannot leave the danger zone. The height of buildings can make this process difficult.
Space that doesn't count
In this case, they are noted, although they are not included in the number of floors:
- Technical underground under construction. Regardless of its height, it does not count.
- Interfloor space. Provided that its height is notexceeds 1.8 meters.
- Technical loft. Provided that its height does not exceed 1.8 meters.
- Technical superstructures on the roof. These are machine rooms for elevators, ventilation chambers, exits from stairwells, roof boiler rooms.
Bureaucratic issue
You need to know about certain nuances during the preparation of the technical plan. For example, if a structure has a different number of levels, then you must specify the smallest and largest values using intervals. For example: 14-16. But when inventorying the housing stock, the rules change a little. So, if an object has a different number of levels, then the number of floors is determined by the largest value. It is also necessary to remember about the restrictions that allow the structure to be attributed to a certain group. For example, individual residential buildings should have no more than three floors above ground. Whereas, according to the current legislation, state expertise is required for auxiliary facilities if it is planned to build more than two levels.
Classification
Classification of buildings by number of floors provides for the allocation of small, medium and large objects. Each of them has its own requirements:
- Low-rise buildings. These include all buildings that have from one to four levels, taking into account the attic.
- Mid-rise buildings. The number of levels which ranges from five to eight.
- High-rise buildings (high-rise buildings). These are structures that have nine or more levels.
It should be noted that this is far from the only classification approach. In addition to it, there is also this:
- Low-rise buildings. They have one or two levels.
- Mid-rise buildings. They have three to five levels.
- Multi-storey buildings. Have from six levels.
- High-rise buildings. They have eleven to sixteen levels.
- High-rise buildings. They have from sixteen floors.
And even these two classification approaches are not limited. This is due to the fact that there are no clear and uniform criteria for the set of concepts used. For example, the designations presented in the article can be used, but with other practical indicators. Until a single standard is developed and adopted at the legislative level, such "fluctuations" in the classification will continue.
Security Issues
Of course, I would like nothing dangerous to happen, but it is better to be prepared for possible problems. This applies both to the means of liquidation and to the ways of salvation. If we talk about the totality of requirements related to durability, fire resistance, as well as a number of other operational qualities, then all buildings should be divided into four classes:
- These are large industrial and public buildings, residential buildings with nine or more floors. They are characterized by increased operational and architectural requirements.
- High demands are placed on mostsmall public and industrial buildings, residential buildings up to nine floors.
- Buildings with medium architectural and operational requirements - low and medium-rise residential buildings.
- Temporary buildings that must meet minimum operational and architectural requirements.
This is not all that needs to be taken into account. So, you should always think about possible escape routes. If we touch on the features of high-rise buildings, then you should know that they need not only entrances, but also stairs located on the sides of the buildings. It is easier with low-rise buildings in this regard, because in the event of an emergency, residents can leave them not only through doors, but also through window openings. Whereas for the ninth floor, such a "backup plan" looks no better than the danger itself.
On the implementation of legislative norms of construction
This is very important for a number of reasons:
- Neglecting established standards does not contribute to the reliability of the final product. Builders will not be able to sell it to future residents, and this is the best outcome. And it is also possible that the erected building will collapse and take away human lives.
- Neglect of the established norms, when they are revealed by the controlling commissions, is "rewarded" with fines and orders. If an unpleasant incident occurs, resulting in a loss of he alth or death of a person, then the responsible person may be suspended from work with subsequent deprivationfreedom.
You should always remember that safety rules are written in blood, so they should not be neglected. And in the end, if unpleasant incidents occur, their observance pays off completely. Although many do not like the regulatory bureaucracy (it should be noted that quite often this is deserved), but it should not be completely ignored. Indeed, the many different aspects and nuances in question deserve to be given due attention.
To partially assess the consequences, you can read the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. Here we are most interested in Article 9.4 "Violation of mandatory requirements in the field of construction …". Thus, fines range from twenty thousand to one million rubles.
Conclusion
Here is the basic information on the main topic. Of course, if you delve into more detailed nuances, then there is still something to talk about. But alas, even a whole book may not be enough for a full consideration of the topic. The information provided should be more than enough to learn how to distinguish the number of storeys of a building and its levels, understand the subject of the article and understand various issues that may arise during the design or documentation process. Although it is better not to hope that such a small amount of information is enough to confront a true professional in a dispute. And it should be remembered - the number of storeys of a building is used to characterize the height of buildings. But this parameter has a numberspecific features and requirements, due to which there are differences between the use of everyday and bureaucratic terminology.
