Section 706.1/Glass Replacement and Hazardous Glazing
IEBC 706 requires replacement glazing in hazardous locations to comply with current safety glazing requirements of the IBC, even in existing buildings.
When glazing is replaced in an existing building, the replacement glazing in hazardous locations must comply with the safety glazing requirements of IBC Section 2406. Hazardous locations include: glazing in doors and enclosures for hot tubs, bathtubs, showers, and saunas; glazing within 24 inches of a door on the same plane; glazing in panels adjacent to walking surfaces where the bottom edge is less than 18 inches above the floor, the top edge is more than 36 inches above the floor, and the panel area exceeds 9 square feet; glazing in guards and railings; and glazing in walls and fences surrounding pools and spas. Safety glazing must be tempered, laminated, or an approved equivalent that meets CPSC 16 CFR 1201 or ANSI Z97.1. This requirement applies regardless of the scope of the overall renovation project: even a simple glass replacement with no other work triggers the safety glazing requirement in hazardous locations.
Why this section exists
Annealed (standard) glass in hazardous locations breaks into large sharp shards that cause severe lacerations. Falls through glass doors, glass shower enclosures, and floor-to-ceiling glass panels cause serious injuries and fatalities every year. Safety glazing (tempered or laminated) either breaks into small granular pieces (tempered) or holds together when broken (laminated), dramatically reducing injury severity. The IEBC requires safety glazing at replacement because it is the most practical opportunity to upgrade the safety of existing buildings without triggering a full code compliance upgrade under alteration requirements.
What plan reviewers look for
Plan reviewers check the glazing schedule and floor plans for glass in hazardous locations. When replacement glazing is specified, they verify that safety glazing (tempered or laminated per CPSC 16 CFR 1201) is called out for all hazardous locations. They check glass adjacent to doors, glass in shower enclosures, large panels near walking surfaces, and glazing in guards. They verify the glazing schedule includes the safety standard designation. For existing building compliance methods, they confirm the safety glazing requirement applies regardless of whether the prescriptive or performance method is used.