BUILDINGREGULATIONS: A SELF-HELP GUIDE FOR THE OWNER-BUILDER

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Before showing you how to go about getting a building permit to construct a new home on a vacant lot, let's first determine if a building permit is required to make repairs on an existing dwelling under the different codes. This is instructive because [1] three of the codes happen to treat the problem differently, [2] it's a relatively simple and easy way to learn the code-reading technique that you should develop, and [3] you may want to use some of the theories (arguments) presented here to persuade your building inspector that you don't need a permit to fix up the old farmhouse you just bought or that you don't have to make the old, building conform to the requirements of the newer code.

REPAIRS. The BBC states in § 113.1 that you must get a building permit to construct or alter a building "except thatordinary repairs, as defined in Section 102.0, which do notinvolve any violation of this code shall be exempt from thisprovision " . When you turn to § 102.1, you find the follow ing. "Ordinary repairs to structures may be made without application or notice to the building official; but such repairsshall not include the cutting away of any wall, partition orportion thereof. . . " and continues on to state other defini tions of what these repairs are not! Though it's nice to know that you can make ordinary repairs without application or notice to the building inspector, you're still not sure—from the language of this section—just what ordinary repairs are.

CODE-READING TECHNIQUE: There is in most every code a chapter (or article or part) containing definitions. You must always refer to that chapter for every word that you find ambiguous . . . and whenever you try to make a noun or verb or adjective that you think you know fit a particular situation, you will find that the word's meaning becomes fuzzy. So look up that term you're Sure you can define anyway: you may not always find the word defined in your code, but frequently it will be (sometimes very differently from what you thought the meaning was), and how that word is defined can make all the difference in the world to your situation.

When you look in Article 2 of the BBC (entitled "Definitions and Classifications") you'll find that the "O's" don't include a definition of ordinary repairs (though tile meaning of "ordinary materials" is given). When you look under the "R's" in Article 2, you'll find "repairs" defined as: "The reconstruction or renewal of any part of an existing building for the purpose of its maintenance" There's no meaning Oven for "repairs, ordinary" so you still don't know if repairs and ordinary repairs are two slightly different concepts. But you are sure—if you're subject to a building code similar to the BBC-that you can reconstruct, renew, and repair (of course for the purpose of maintenance!) without first obtaining a building permit.

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