City of Lawrence

Building Code Board of Appeals

Meeting

May 17th, 2007 minutes

 

MEMBERS PRESENT:

 

Lee Queen - Chairperson, Mark Stogsdill, Janet Smalter John Craft,  Mike Porter

 

 

 

MEMBERS ABSENT:

 

None

 

 

 

STAFF  PRESENT:

 

 

Guess Present :

 

 

Ex-Officio

 

Adrian Jones

Attachments

 

None 

 

 

Meeting called to order at 11:45

 

Review Minutes from Meeting on May 3rd, 2007

Porter motioned to accept minutes as written, seconded by Smalter. Motion passed 5-0.

 

Complete discussion of 2006 IRC Radon Control Methods

Porter said that he would suggest that the Board could add a section “AF104 Alternate Requirements”. This section would require roughed in subsurface gravel and poly, extend a 3” pipe through the roof and labeled it.

 

Queen said that Snead suggested capping the vent in the attic.

 

Smalter added that Snead did suggest capping the system in the attic but that would not be logical. Why not vent through the roof and be done.

 

Craft said that what Snead didn’t want was for the vent to be uncapped and in the attic. If it’s not run through the roof he wanted it capped.   

 

Queen said that on 2/3rd of the homes you would have an extra hole in the roof that you don’t need. It would be one more spot to leak and one more rubber gasket to wear out in ten years. Queen said in the sprit of compromise he would say that it would be a good deal to allow gravel, poly, “T” under the slab, and a pipe through the roof.  Queen asked if this was going to require another inspection?

 

Jones said he would not anticipate an added inspection. The sub surface system could be checked during the rough-in plumbing inspection and the venting system could be checked during the stack out inspection. Both systems would most likely be installed by the plumber.

 

Queen said the system would basically be a radon system as prescribed in the code without the sealing and fan.

 

Jones said Snead and Hanson said the system the Board is describing could be called a passive system. The sealing increased the efficiency of the system.

 

Queen suggested that the City created a sticker that could be placed on the pipe during final inspection that would identify it as a rough-in for an active/passive radon system and not a plumbing system.  The plumber could put on the sticker. The point is to make a uniform sticker and not allow a guy writing it in with a magic marker. The sticker should describe the system and say it is capped in the attic.

 

Smalter said that she does not understand why the system would be capped in the attic.

Where is the extra cost?

 

Queen said he is more concerned about the extra hole in the roof.

 

Stogsdill stated the code book has certain requirements that are non-negotiable. Most of them are for safety health and welfare. If these things are not done it will be a dangerous situation. The Board is now discussing an optional system. It is not part of the main code and the jurisdiction has complete flexibility regarding adoption. He would like to ask what additional safety is guaranteed by this system that is not already in place?  Are homes currently being built dangerous because of radon?  The ones that are built and are tested are corrected or they are not marketable. So has the Board increased the safety of these occupants of new homes by requiring this section be added to the Code?

 

Craft said his gut response is yes.

 

Stogsdill asked how so, because if the home is tested and a system is put in, that mitigates the radon. His understanding is the passive system is not completely effective because you would have to go back and modify it.

 

Craft replied not necessarily because the passive system often mitigates the level to the point where it is acceptable. If the acceptable level needs to be lowered then at the worst it would mean installing a fan and plugging it in.

 

Jones said that he discussed radon mitigation this morning with Joe McKinney. Mr. McKinney is the owner of a radon mitigation company. Mr. McKinney stated the one in three number of homes in Douglass County that have unacceptable levels of radon is an average. Some areas of Lawrence in the Northwest area near the high school have homes that have tested at levels of 75 pCi/L. Homes in that area have a 50% chance of testing with levels that are higher than acceptable levels. In the southeast area there is a 20% chance of testing higher than acceptable levels. Acceptable radon levels are below 4 pCi/L.

 

Porter said that by giving the builder the option of complying 100% with appendix F or installing a rough-in system he estimates only adding $200 to the cost of a home.

 

Queen said he thought it would be less than that.

 

Porter said that would save money for people that do have a problem. It’s not a significant cost in general.

 

Stogsdill wanted to confirm that every new home built will be hit with a $200 charge.  

 

Queen said that in his mind that would be better than each home adding $800 to $1000 to install a true passive system by adopting appendix F with no amendments. The Board would really be helping someone out a lot by spending $100 to $200 to get this one stack out and even though it’s not sealed this system might reduce radon to acceptable levels.  

 

Stogsdill asked if the Board was going to deal with the sump pump issue?

 

Porter said that Snead said the pit needed to be dealt with if in fact the levels were high. Porter said that he believes that many people in Lawrence would be disappointed if the Board did not address radon. The people of Lawrence care about these types of issues.

 

Craft stated the fact that Lawrence seems to have pockets that test high he feels that it would not be responsible to ignore it.

 

Stogsdill said that if he was a builder and he knew an area of Lawrence consistently test high for radon it would be prudent to install a system.  The builder would have to cover the cost if the home had to be retrofitted.

 

Queen disagreed.

 

Stogsdill asked if a home could be sold with a radon problem?

 

Queen said that it could. A contract could be signed before anyone was aware there was a radon problem. Unless there is a contract that specifically says if a home has radon the contractor is responsible the homeowner would have to fix the problem.

 

Craft said the last home that he sold the buyer had a buyer’s agent test the home for radon.

 

Porter said the whether the builder pays for it or the homeowner pays for it the bottom line is someone has to pay for it.  He feels that gambling $150 is better than gambling $800 especially in areas where we know there is high radon.

 

Stogsdill said the reason he is raising the issue is that he did a lot of thinking and he is taking the position that Queen originally took which is to say that he realizes that there may be a radon problem in Lawrence but they are being resolved. Homes are being inhabited and those radon issues are being resolved.

 

Jones said not necessarily so because there may be many homes that have high levels of radon and have not been tested therefore these homes would be unhealthy.

 

Queen said that it has been only in the last two years that he remembers homes being tested for radon.  He said of the ten homes that he has recently sold only three of those have had radon test performed. He expects those numbers to go up.

 

Craft added there is not much history of government raising threshold levels. The trend is with contaminates for government to lower those levels. If the Board does adopt a code where a system is at least roughed in and in place and if the government does lower threshold levels or general public awareness becomes such the home owner has a way of mitigating radon levels by testing and activating the system.

 

Porter stated that he moved here over six years ago.  He said that he looked at over 100 houses.  He said that he estimates that half of the homes that he looked at had active radon systems. It was something that he’d not seen before. They looked at primarily existing homes.

 

Craft motioned that in order to address the radon problem Lawrence the Board recommends adopting Appendix F and adding an exception that as an alternate to installing the passive system described in Appendix F, a rough in for an active system would be permitted.  Seconded by Porter.  Motion passed 5-0

 

The board discussed wording for an amendment to Appendix F.

 

It was determined that an exception to section AF103.1 would be added to allow for the rough in of an active system. The system would comply with section AF 103.2, AF103.3, AF103.5, AF103.6, AF103.7, AF103.8, AF103.9.1, and AF103.10 and AF103.11. The Board recommended a label identifying the system that read “This is a rough in for a radon depressurization system. This system is not currently operational.”  The Board directed staff to draft an amendment accordingly.       

 

Motion to adjourn made by Porter Second by Craft. Motion passed 5-0.

Meeting Adjourned 12:58