Systems Description Form
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4BBS MEMO
Ohio Board of Building Standards
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
6606 Tussing Road, P.O. Box 4009, Reynoldsburg, Ohio 43068-9009
RESIDENTIAL BUILDING SYSTEM DESCRIPTIONS
In order for a plan examiner to be able to properly ascertain compliance with the Residential Code of Ohio
(RCO), information on the residential building must be communicated and submitted to the residential
building department. An organized set of construction documents will speed the review and allow the plan
examiner to ascertain compliance in the timeliest manner. The construction documents required for review
for a residential project are generally quite different in nature that those submitted for a non-residential
project. Section 106 of the RCO helps define what should be submitted and the provisions of this section
are neither an all-inclusive list nor a list of information without which a complete review cannot be
completed. The building official should use good judgment in determining whether adequate information
has been submitted. An example of this good judgment is the document index described in Section
106.1(1). An index is also a good tool to assist in the review of the documents when the package is a large
set of documents. An index could be placed on the cover sheet of any large set or in a block on the first
page of construction documents submitted for review. Judgment should be used when dealing with small
sets of documents that can easily be identified as to whether an index is really helpful or needed.
This same practice should be exercised when dealing with all the items listed in Section 106.1(8) of the
RCO.
RCO Section 106.1 (8)
“8. System descriptions. Description of the mechanical, plumbing and electrical systems, including:
materials; location and type of fixtures and equipment; materials, and sizes of all ductwork; location
and type of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and other mechanical equipment; and all lighting
and power equipment;”
Because there appears to be some confusion remaining regarding the descriptions of residential building
systems and what must be submitted for review, the Residential Construction Advisory Committee has
developed
a
commentary
for
Section
106
that
is
available
on
the
BBS
web
page
at
You will also find electrical system description help there.
An adequate description of electrical, plumbing, or mechanical systems are essential to assuring that the
project can be built safely and will meet electrical, energy, and sanitary requirements in Ohio law. This
description may take the form of a drawing, isometric, written description, table, schedule, specification, or
any other form or method of adequately describing the proposed work and the systems that are a critical
part of the building’s service equipment that the owner chooses to submit. The system descriptions must
include basic information for review:
Mechanical – Equipment Type/Size, Location of Equipment, Type of Fuel, Heat Gain/Loss, Square
Footage of Conditioned Space, Duct Size (Supply/Return), Equipment Efficiency Ratings
Electrical – Service Size (General Loads, HVAC Loads, Total Loads), Panel Location in Dwelling, Size
of Service Entry Cable, Location of Service (Overhead, Underground)
Plumbing – Fixture Types and Locations
These system descriptions can then be verified by the building official as a part of the plan review and
inspection process. A specific plan is not required for each of these descriptions.
Examples of forms that owners can use to describe and submit this system information are included below.
Narrative descriptions, graphic, or other pictorial documents could also be submitted by the owner to
communicate this system description information to the building official.
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