South Carolina (Limited) Building Contractor

Key Concepts

SC 811 / Underground Facility Damage Prevention Act - Normal notice: notify SC811 3 to 12 full working days before the proposed commencement date for excavation not involving a subaqueous facility (Section 58-36-60(A); SC 811 Excavator Manual, p. 54). Locators have 3 full working days to respond; the life of the request begins the day after the request, at 12:00 am (Manual, p. 13). - Subaqueous notice: give member operators 10 to 20 full working days (not counting day of call, weekends, or holidays) to respond (Section 58-36-60(A); Manual pp. 13, 54–55). - A notice expires 15 working days after the date of notice; no excavation may continue after that period without a subsequent notice (Section 58-36-60(B); Manual p. 55). Once a notice is closed out, digging must stop even if the 15 working days have not…

Key Concepts

Mixture and proportioning. Concrete is cement, coarse aggregate, fine aggregate and water; hydration is the chemical reaction between water and cement that generates heat and hardens the mix — concrete does not "dry out" (Carpentry and Building Construction, Ch. 8). Omit the coarse aggregate and the material is mortar or grout. Ready-mix is ordered by bags of cement per cubic yard: five-bag mix is the minimum for most work; six-bag where high strength is needed or steel reinforcement is used (Sec. 8.2, p. 226). Largest coarse aggregate: never more than one-fifth the thickness of a finished wall section, one-third a slab thickness, or three-fourths the narrowest space the concrete must pass (Modern Masonry, Ch. 18, p. 384). Concrete exposed to freezing and thawing must be air entrained with a minimum total air content of 5% (Modern Masonry,…

SC (Limited) Building Contractor

Key Concepts

Brick classification and materials - A solid masonry unit is "one whose cross-sectional area in every plane parallel to the bearing surface is 75% or more of its gross cross-sectional area measured in the same plane" (Modern Masonry, p. 123). Cored brick still counts as solid if holes are under 25% of the area. - Building brick grades: Grade SW is highly resistant to frost action, for foundation courses or retaining walls; Grade MW for moderate exposure; Grade NW for interior backup masonry (Modern Masonry, p. 116). FBX/FBS/FBA are facing brick types, not building brick grades. - Green bricks are formed but unfired; they contain 5% to 30% moisture from the molding or extruding machines (Modern Masonry, p. 115).

SC (Limited) Building Contractor

Key Concepts

Joist products and designations (SJI Technical Digest, Chapter 1 – Products) - Four SJI joist products plus composite: K-Series (bar joists/shortspans), LH-Series (longspans), DLH-Series (deep longspans), Joist Girders, and CJ-Series composite joists. - K-Series: depths 10"–30" in 2" increments, spans up to 60 ft. Standard bearing depth 2½". Designation 18K7 = 18" nominal depth, K series, 7 = chord number designation. - LH-Series: depths 18"–48", spans up to 96 ft. Standard underslung bearing depth 5". - DLH-Series: depths 52"–120", spans up to 240 ft. - Joist Girders: depths 20"–120", spans up to 120 ft. Standard underslung bearing depth 7½". Designation 36G9N6K = 36" depth, G = joist girder, 9N = 9 joist spacings, 6K = 6 kips unfactored at each panel point. - CJ-Series: shear connection made by welding shear studs **3/8" to…

Key Concepts

Lumber quality and moisture - Sawn lumber used for load-supporting purposes must bear the grade mark of a lumber grading or inspection agency approved by an accreditation body complying with DOC PS 20 or equivalent (IBC 2303.1.1). - Preservative-treated wood used in enclosed locations where drying in service cannot readily occur must be at 19 percent or less moisture content before being covered with insulation, interior wall finish or floor covering (IBC 2303.1.9.2). - Fire-retardant-treated wood must be dried to 19 percent or less for lumber and 15 percent or less for wood structural panels before use (Section 2303.2.8).

Engineered wood products - Prefabricated wood I-joists: ASTM D5055 (IBC 2303.1.2). Structural composite lumber: ASTM D5456 (IBC 2303.1.10). - Wood structural panels permanently exposed outdoors must be exterior type, **except roof sheathing exposed to the outdoors on the…

South Carolina (Limited) Building Contractor

Key Concepts

Insulation and R-value - R-value measures a material's ability to resist heat transmission and is cumulative: insulation rated R-5 per inch gives R-10 at two inches (Carpentry and Building Construction, Sec. 31.1 — R-Value Basics). - The continuous layer of insulation separating heated/cooled spaces from unheated spaces is the building envelope. Everything inside is conditioned; everything outside is exposed to outdoor temperatures (Sec. 31.1 — Where to Insulate). - In a one-and-a-half-story house, second-floor knee walls are treated just as if they were exterior walls (Sec. 31.1 — Where to Insulate (Walls)). - Fiberglass batts: low-density 2×4 walls = R-11; high-density 2×4 = R-15; low-density 2×6 = R-19 (Sec. 31.1 — Fiberglass Insulation R-Value). - Loose-fill R-values per inch: cellulose R-3.5, rock wool R-3.2, fiberglass R-2.5 (Sec. 31.1 — Loose-Fill Insulation Materials…

Key Concepts

Window types (Windows & Skylights ch., Types of Windows) - Six major types: double-hung, casement, stationary, awning, hopper, horizontal-sliding. - Casement: side-hinged sash swinging inward or outward; its advantage over the double-hung is that the entire window area can be opened for ventilation. Hardware: rotary opener, hinge assembly, sash lock. - Double-hung: upper and lower sash slide in channels in the side jambs; only half can be opened at one time. Single-hung fixes the upper sash. Hardware: one or two metal sash locks that also draw the sash together at the meeting rails to reduce air infiltration. - Stationary (fixed-glass) windows do not open. - Screens mount outside on double-hung, sliding and hopper windows; inside on casement and awning windows that open out.

Key Concepts

Drywall types and fire-code board - Drywall consists of panels with a noncombustible gypsum core covered with paper — smooth face paper on the front, rougher liner paper on the back. Sheets are commonly 4' × 8' (also 9', 10', 12', 14'); the most common thickness is ½". Drywall is strongest in its long dimension. (Carpentry & Building Construction, Ch. 32, Drywall) - Type-X fire-code drywall is 5/8" thick and contains glass fibers that prevent crumbling in extreme heat; it is required on the outer surface of walls separating an attached garage from the house and on garage ceilings where the garage is beneath a habitable room. Type-C is even more fire resistant and contains vermiculite. (Ch. 32, Fire-Code Drywall) - Green board is no longer allowed in shower stalls and tub/shower surrounds starting with the 2006…

Key Concepts

Fall protection - Employees engaged in residential construction 6 feet or more above lower levels must be protected by guardrail systems, scaffolding, safety net systems, or personal fall arrest systems — 29 CFR 1926.501(b)(13). - OSHA requires protection at levels 6' and above for most construction activities, including masonry work; falls cause roughly 400 of nearly 1,000 annual construction deaths (about 40%) — Safety, Section 4.2.6. - Guardrail top rails must withstand, without failure, a force of at least 200 pounds (890 N) applied within 2 inches of the top edge in any outward or downward direction — 1926.502(b)(3). Midrails and intermediate members: 150 pounds — 1926.502(b)(5). Top rail height: 39–45 inches — 1926.502. - Anchor points must be rated to support 5000 lb (2300 kg); general industry triggers fall protection at 4 ft (1.2 m) —…

Key Concepts

Construction documents and design loads. Construction documents shall show the size, section and relative locations of structural members with floor levels, column centers and offsets dimensioned (IBC §1603.1). For buildings built under the conventional light-frame provisions of §2308, the Exception to §1603.1 requires, among other items, the basic design wind speed V (mph), the allowable stress design wind speed V_asd per §1609.3.1, and wind exposure — not the detailed seismic parameters of §1603.1.5.

Live loads (IBC Table 1607.1). Residential one- and two-family dwellings: "all other areas" 40 psf; sleeping areas 30 psf; uninhabitable attics without storage 10 psf; canopies 20 psf. An uninhabitable attic is classified with storage where the maximum clear height between joist and rafter is 42 inches or greater, or where two or more adjacent trusses can accommodate a 42-in. by 24-in. rectangle (§1607.22.2);…