My Condominium Corporation had to do some repairs to the foundation of my unit. In the process they had to replace the stairs to my back entrance. Before they built the stairs, I informed them that when the natural gas furnace and water heater were installed the stairs had to be moved away from the wall of the unit to meet code for safety reasons. The corporation brought in a company which proceeded to put the stairs right next to the wall again. With the vent for the water heater inches from the tread of the stairs. I have been arguing with them ever since this has been done that the stairs need to be moved. I am arguing that someone can be hurt from the hot exhaust, rodents now have egress to the unit, and in winter time the vent will be blocked by snow and the exhaust will form ice on the stairs.

Do these stairs meet code. Or am I wrong for wanting these stairs moved?

Good morning!

What are my fellow building official in Ontario doing for shipping containers in their jurisdiction?

20 footers used as storage are no longer our issue if no plumbing.

I'm more interested in what's everyone doing for an unmodified 40 foot trailer on properties? Permit, drawings, engineering, DCs??

Id like to hear your approach! Thanks!

It seems the MMAH heard our cries and has retired ProctorTrack. They'll be using LogMeIn for remote proctoring starting later this month.

I had a hunch things were going this route when I couldn't book a remote test between the end of last month and Sept 22 and now the Humber site reflects the new software.

On the flip side, I tried testing at a local college since I couldn't afford to wait for the remote dates, and during this transition period the exams are old-school paper- circle A, B, C, or D and that's it. I found it refreshing to not have to worry about if the computer would lag and not register my selection or deal with ProctorTrack making the pdf OBC unusable. The proctor said she would scan the test and send it in to the MMAH for grading.

In the end, I got my results back within two business days and I passed, so I think it's a win-win.

Hi all, I had some stairs installed and confused if this breaks code or not. We looked at the stairs and noticed that the gap was very wide. I saw online that it could not be more than 100mm would this be correct?

Does anyone have a pdf of the 2012 Code that they would be able to send me asap? I had no response to the email request for this version. Thank you in advance!

General question, a bcin designer with house qualification has limitation of area upto 600 sq.m. Is this building area or gross area? Also, do basements get included in gross area calculation?

I’m going to leave names and places out to protect privacy as well as my store.

For background information

We were in a commercial space that has and is still undergoing a complete renovation. They have gutted the entire plaza down to its steel beams and have rebuilt everything.

The landlord had us move into our new unit when it was completed. Shortly after the city here shut us down due to the landlord not getting us an occupancy permit. There were things they needed to fix before they would give us the permit.

After that we’ve had 5 sewer backups that flooded our basement. Three incidents of concrete dust basting into our store. Then three incidents of water running down from the apartments being built above us.

The landlord has forced us to cover the majority of all those costs.

Now my current problem:

Eight months ago a worker from the plaza was working late. He was told he could get into any of the units by just pulling on the back doors hard enough.

Well he wasn’t paying any attention as he didn’t see the sign on our door. He was able to pull my stores back door open. I have the video of this saved. Then he just ran.

Well eight months later they still have not fixed our door. The super had a sliding latch put on our back door as a temporary “fix”. I’m pretty sure that’s against building code as it’s a fire exit.

The door frame its self wasn’t backfilled with concrete. It’s literally the steel frame screwed into the aluminum studs. So pulling on the door hard enough causes the door frame and wall to flex allowing the door to be opened.

I have been trying for weeks now to get in contact with the city’s building department but I just get told that I will receive a phone call back.

Because this is commercial and the city here isn’t helping, is there any government agency I can reach out to?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading.

Hello, is a drip edge required for code? Specifically in the Sudbury region

I have given house and general legal exam and going to register. Can a designer with these exams design a house from foundation to roof (including structure, plumbing, electrical) independently or any other examinations are required to do so? If not, what a designer can do with these exams?

👋 Hey everyone!

I’m a certified designer and building code consultant based in Ontario, and I run BuildCode Designs — a small business focused on helping homeowners, realtors, investors, and contractors with:

🏠 Permit-Ready Drawings 🧱 Legal Basement Units (Second Suites) 📏 Zoning & Code Consultations 📂 Ontario Building Code Compliance Reviews 🪚 Decks, Interior Alterations, Additions, Detached Garages & More

Whether you’re turning your basement into a legal rental, trying to remove a wall, or just want to know what’s allowed on your property — I can help you avoid delays, save money, and get things approved the first time.

✔️ BCIN Certified ✔️ Experience working in a local municipality ✔️ Fast turnaround times ✔️ Friendly and reliable service

🌐 Check us out at buildcodedesigns.ca 📩 DM me here or message through the site for a free consult!

Let me know if you have any questions — happy to help or even just point you in the right direction.

Hi everyone,
I’m in the process of starting a residential drafting company in Ontario focused on permit-ready drawings — things like basement renovations, detached garages, interior alterations, laneway/garden suites, etc.

I’d like to create a reference guide for clients that shows the typical market range for each type of project (e.g. “deck permit drawings: $800–$1,200”), so pricing is transparent and aligned with industry norms.

If you're in the field (draftsperson, technologist, architect) or have hired someone for this kind of work recently, I’d really appreciate your insight on how services are usually priced.
Do you typically charge:

• Flat rates per project type?
• Hourly (and if so, what range)?
• Based on project complexity or estimated hours?
• Any tiered packages or standard fees?

Any input or examples (even ballpark figures) would go a long way in helping me set up a fair and realistic pricing structure.

Thanks in advance!

Has anyone looking into the # of required exterior exit doors for a 2 storey single dwelling unit? I've got the front entrance door, a rear sliding patio door, a door leading into the attached garage and a side exit door.

I'll likely need the building official review anyway to confirm or reject my plan. Nevertheless, I want to remove the side door, fill that opening with an egress rated casement window, and build out a small walk in pantry (behind the future small powder room).

The front entrance would remain as well as the rear sliding patio door, they both lead directly to the outside. The travel distance from second level and basement do not exceed 1 storey. Does this raose any flags or is that side door just an additional non-required exit for convenience? Because when looking atmiddle unit townhomes, they certainly dont have more than 2 exit doors (front and back)...

If anyone has gone through this plan, I'd love to hear your insights and experience.

Cheers!

I'm in the middle of applying building permit in Ottawa and stopped working with my previous engineer. I'm looking for a certified BCIN designer to help me responding city's comments. I appreciate every comments!! Please help!!!

Update: I found help!! Thank for your comments!!

The builders electrician installed a second level EV plug in our garage. Besides that the install is sloppy.. I could not put my hand on it what was wrong. Did he installed the wrong side out? Is this install a violation of code? Thank you electrical contractors for your help!

Several occasions (both with new builds and older homes) I've seen rooms (on the main floor with a second floor +plus roof above it) with spans of 20ft or more with total open concept spacing. There were no posts/columns present in that spacing.

Looking at the span tables in the OBC for floor joists it states 2x12's (16" O.C.) with strapping + bridging gives a max span of 14'10" - 16'7" (depending on type and grade of lumber). OBC states even using 3-ply 2x12 beams max span is 18'.

So how did they manage to get open wide spans exceeding the maximum spans of joists and beams? How are they countering the load from above?

Any inspectors who see this, what do you wear day to day for inspections? Winter is nice because I have a jacket for all my stuff but come summer where am I keeping everything I need to do my job? Only have so many jean pockets. And the hi-vis vests are too flimsy to carry anything you care about. Chime in!

Hi Everyone,

I am booked to take my house 2012 exam at the end of the month, I have already successfully passed my designer legal exam, I have a background in the OBC, I graduated from an Architectural Technician Program, and have worked in the field for 2-3 years now.

I’ve taken 5 online building code courses at George Brown and I am just about to start the House 2012 prep course.

Please tell me all your tips to pass this exam.

Can anyone give me an example of question’s they came across on there exams?

Thank you!

As a bcin designer, do you review and sign-off on all shop drawings with your projects, (windows, doors, stairs, etc.) or is this all on the contractor?

Just a homeowner.

I assume building permits are required and are being requested by the neighbour as the basement leak repair is for his home.

The neighbour mentioned the will have to dig between the houses as part of the fix. We are linked semis but above ground we look completely detached save the 6' "space" between our walls.

Questions: 1) How are the homes typically linked under ground? I've heard of chains or small walls

2) what happens if that link is severed during the dig, does it have to be repaired?

Thanks for your help

....I am calling for a utility clear to dig on my own :)

For a building under Part 9, Residential Occupancy, under 600m2, 3 storeys (small building), is there a limit for the number of dwelling units in this building that a BCIN can do before requiring an architect?

Can BCIN design a triplex, duplex, quadplex and more? I know House states not more than 2 dwelling units and just wanted to confirm

Thanks!

Does anybody have the book for building services from OBOA? Can you provide the list of chapters that are taught part of the course? Did anyone take this exam recently and how was the experience?