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Indoor Environmental Quality

Baltimore City Code div. Building Codes, pt. XI, ch. 8
in effect

Baltimore City Code, Building Codes, Part XI, Section 801.3 Mandatory Provisions

Section 801.3. Mandatory Provisions 801.3.1 Indoor Air Quality. {As in IgCC} 801.3.1.1 Minimum Ventilation Rates. {As in IgCC} 801.3.1.2 Outdoor Air Delivery Monitoring. {As in IgCC} 801.3.1.3 Filtration and Air Cleaner. {As in IgCC} 801.3.1.4 Building Pressure. {As in IgCC} 801.3.1.5 Venting of Combustion Products. {As in IgCC} 801.3.1.6 Humidity Control. {As in IgCC} 801.3.1.7 Environmental Tobacco Smoke. {As in IgCC} 801.3.1.8 Building Entrances. {As in IgCC} 801.3.1.9 Guest Room Preoccupancy Out-door Air Purge Cycle. {Not adopted} 801.3.1.10 Preoccupancy Ventilation Control. {As in IgCC} 801.3.2 Thermal Environmental Conditions for Human Occupancy. {As in IgCC} 801.3.3 Acoustical Control. a. This section governs acoustical control for the building envelope, the interior spaces within the building or structure, and the design of the related mechanical equipment and systems. b. PreK-12 school spaces must be designed as follows: i. in accordance with §§ 801.3.3.1 through 801.3.3.5, or ii. tested in accordance with the ICC version of § 1001.3.1.1.2. 801.3.3.1 Documentation. {As in IgCC} 801.3.3.1.1 Test Methods. The laboratory-tested performance for sound transmission class (STC) for wall, partition, window, and ceiling/floor assemblies must be tested in accordance with ASTM E90, and the laboratory-tested performance for impact insulation class (IIC) for floor/ceiling assemblies must be tested in accordance with ASTM E492. All assemblies must be sealed according to ASTM C919 and in accordance with the laboratory-tested assembly details and materials. Field tested assemblies used in the analysis must be tested in accordance with ASTM E336 and ASTM E1007. Laboratory sound levels of HVAC equipment must be tested in accordance with the relevant ARI or ASHRAE procedures based on equipment type. Sound absorption materials and coefficients must be tested in accordance with ASTM C423. 801.3.3.2 Interior Background Noise Requirements. The building envelope, interior spaces within the building, and building systems, including mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems, shall be designed and constructed so that the interior sound pressure levels created by the combination of building systems noise and exterior sound sources, under normal operation with windows closed and no active sound masking systems, do not exceed the values specified in Table 801.3.3.2. The hourly average sound pressure level may not exceed the values listed in Table 801.3.3.2. Outdoor noise levels must comply with Title 9 of the Baltimore City Health Article. 801.3.3.2.1 High-Noise Exterior Events. {Not Adopted} 801.3.3.2.2 Conformance. {As in IgCC} 801.3.3.2.3 Interior Background Noise – Design. {As in IgCC} 801.3.3.2.3.1 Building Envelope. {Not Adopted} 801.3.3.2.3.2 Interior Systems. Interior noise from HVAC systems must be calculated for room types listed in Table 801.3.3.2 and used in determining the hourly average interior background sound pressure levels for the room types listed in Table 801.3.3.2. HVAC systems noise shall be calculated in accordance with the 2015 ASHRAE HVAC Applications Handbook – Chapter 48: Noise and Vibration Controls. 801.3.3.2.3.3 Penetrations and Fenestrations. {As in IgCC} 801.3.3.2.3.4 Inspection. {As in IgCC} 801.3.3.2.4 Interior Background Noise – Testing. {Not Adopted} Table 801.3.3.2 Interior Background Sound Pressure Levels from Building Systems and Exterior Sound Sources Hourly Average Sound Pressure Level (Leq) Room Type | dBA | dBC Residential sleeping areas (nighttime) a Residential living and sleeping areas (daytime) | 35 40 | 60 60 Hotel and motel guest rooms or suites and dormitories Meeting and banquet rooms Corridors and lobbies Service and support areas | 40 35 45 45 | 60 60 65 65 Enclosed offices Conference rooms Teleconference rooms Open-plan offices | 35 35 30 45 | 60 60 55 65 Courtrooms – unamplified speech Courtrooms – amplified speech | 35 40 | 60 60 Laboratories – minimal speech communication Laboratories – extensive phone use, speech communication Laboratories – group teaching | 55 50 40 | 75 70 60 Religious – general assembly with music program | 30 | 55 Library study and reading areas | 35 | 60 Gymnasiums & natatoriums without speech amplification Gymnasiums & natatoriums with speech amplification | 50 55 | 70 75 Classrooms | 35 | 40 a “Nighttime” is defined as the time between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. 801.3.3.3 Interior Sound Transmission. {As in IgCC} 801.3.3.3.1 Conformance. {As in IgCC} 801.3.3.3.2 Interior Sound Transmission – Design. {As in IgCC} 801.3.3.3.2.1 Inspection. Construction of acoustical items required in § 801.3.3.3.2 must be visually inspected by a design professional. 801.3.3.3.3 Interior Sound Transmission – Testing. {Not Adopted} Table 801.3.3.3 Minimum Sound and Impact Sound Ratings Room Type | cSTC c, d | IIC Dwelling unit (apartment, condominium, duplex, hotel guest room, etc.) | 55 | 55 Retail or restaurant | 55 | 45 Exercise, gym or pool b | 55 | 50 a Mechanical, electrical, & elevator machinery rooms b | 60 | N/A Conference and teleconference rooms | 50 | 50 Enclosed offices | 45 | 45 Open offices | N/A | 45 Classrooms | 5 50 | 50 Classrooms › 20,000 ft3 | 53 | N/A a The IIC value listed addresses footfall noise but not exercise-related vibration-borne sound. Exercise-related vibration-borne sound must comply with the requirements of § 801.3.3.2. b Minimum cSTC and IIC values are not required between adjacent rooms of the same room type. c For operable partitions and walls containing doors, windows, or both, the minimum cSTC ratings must be 5 less than the values listed in Table 801.3.3.3. d The minimum cSTC values must be 5 less than the cSTC values in Table 801.3.3.3 for walls between spaces and corridors and between spaces and open offices. The minimum cSTC values must be 15 less than the cSTC values specified in Table 801.3.3.3 for walls having doors that open to corridors or open offices. 801.3.3.4 Interior Sound Reverberation. The reverberation time T60 for designated spaces must be calculated in accordance with ANSI/ASA S12.60-2010, Part 1, Annex A, for the octave bands 500, 1000, and 2000 Hz and may not exceed the values specified in Table 801.3.3.4 for fully furnished rooms. Exceptions: a. The design professional may use the FGI Guidelines for Healthcare or the ASHRAE Performance Measurement Protocols for Commercial Buildings to show compliance. b. Minimum compliance for classrooms < 20,000 cubic feet may be shown prescriptively using an area equivalent to the ceiling less lights and diffusers on any surface of the room that meets NRC 70 or better. Table 801.3.3.4 Maximum Reverberation Time Room Types | T60, sec Meeting & banquet rooms < 3000 ft3 (85 m3) | 0.8 Meeting &banquet rooms 3000 ft3 (85 m3) up to 8000 ft3 (225 m3) | 1.0 Meeting &banquet rooms > 8000 ft3 (225m3) up to 30,000 ft3 (850 m3) | 1.2 Meeting &banquet rooms > 30,000 ft3 (850 m3) | 1.5 Enclosed offices | 0.6 Conference/teleconference rooms | 0.6 Open-plan offices | 0.6 Courtrooms – unamplified speech | 0.7 Courtrooms – amplified speech | 1.0 Testing/research labs (tittle speech communication) | 1.0 Labs (extensive phone use and speech communication) | 0.6 Library study and reading areas | 1.0 Gymnasiums and natatoriums | 2.0 Classrooms <=10,000 ft3 | 0.6 Classrooms > 10,000 ft3 and <=20,000 ft3 | 0.7 Classrooms > 20,000 ft3 | 1.5 a a Classrooms > 20,000 ft3 must meet ANS/ASA S12.60. 801.3.3.5 Property Line Sound Levels. {Not Adopted} 801.3.4 Soil-Gas Control. {As in IgCC} 801.3.5 Lighting Quality. {As in IgCC} 801.3.6 Moisture Control. {As in IgCC} 801.3.7 Glare Control {As in IgCC}

Baltimore City Code, Building Codes, Part XI, Section 801.4 Prescriptive option

Section 801.4. Prescriptive option 801.4.1 Day lighting. 801.4.1.1 Daylighting in large spaces directly under a roof and having high ceilings. {As in IgCC} 801.4.1.1.1 through 801.4.1.1.3 {Not Adopted} 801.4.2 Materials. {As in IgCC} 801.4.2.1 Adhesives and Sealants. {As in IgCC} 801.4.2.2 Paints and Coatings. {As in IgCC} 801.4.2.3 Floor Covering Materials. {As in IgCC} 801.4.2.3.1 Deemed to Comply. {As in IgCC} 801.4.2.4 Composite Wood, Wood Structural Panel, and Agrifiber Products. {As in IgCC} 801.4.2.5 Office Furniture Systems and Seating. {Not Adopted} 801.4.2.6 Ceiling and Wall Assemblies. {Not Adopted} 801.4.2.7 Insulation. {Not Adopted} 801.4.3 Lighting for Presentations. {Not Adopted} (Ord. 24-341 Section 1.)
Source: City of Baltimore Department of Legislative Reference, City of Baltimore Law Library (codes.baltimorecity.gov; Open Law Library bulk XML)URL: https://codes.baltimorecity.gov/us/md/cities/baltimore/code/building-codes/XI/8Fetched: 10/25/2026

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