(a) Application and Compliance. The provisions of the Ohio Building Code, the Ohio Mechanical Code and the Ohio Plumbing Code shall apply to the construction, alteration, movement, enlargement, replacement, repair, equipment, use and occupancy, location, maintenance, removal and demolition of every building or structure or any appurtenances connected or attached to such buildings or structures. As provided in Section 3791.04(B) of the Ohio Revised Code, no plans or specifications shall be approved or inspection approval given unless the building represented by those plans or specifications would, if constructed, repaired, erected or equipped according to those plans or specifications, comply with Chapters 3781 and 3791 of the Ohio Revised Code and any rules adopted by the Board.
An owner may exceed the requirements of the Ohio Building Code in compliance with Section 102.9 of the Ohio Building Code.
This Building Code applies to detached one-, two-, and three-family dwellings and structures accessory to those dwellings only to the extent indicated in Section 310 of this Building Code.
(b) Exceptions.
(1) Detached one-, two-, or three-family dwellings, structures accessory to those dwellings, or those single family dwellings with five or fewer persons receiving care in a supervised environment but capable of self-preservation with or without limited verbal or physical assistance are within the scope of the “Residential Code of Ohio for One-, Two-, or Three-Family Dwellings”;
(2) Buildings owned by and used for a function of the United States Government;
(3) Buildings or structures which are incident to the use for agricultural purposes of the land on which said buildings or structures are located, provided such buildings or structures are not used in the business of retail trade; for the purposes of this section, a building or structure is not considered used in the business of retail trade if fifty percent or more of the gross income received from sales of products in the building or structure by the owner or operator is from sales of products produced or raised in a normal crop year on farms owned or operated by the seller (see Ohio R.C. 3781.06 and 3781.061);
(4) Agricultural labor camps;
(5) Type A or Type B family day-care homes, except for the inspection required for licensure by the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services (ODJFS). This required inspection shall be conducted by the certified building department having jurisdiction or the Division of Industrial Compliance and Labor in accordance with the inspection checklist found on the Board of Building Standard’s website;
(6) Buildings or structures which are designed, constructed, and maintained in accordance with federal standards and regulations and are used primarily for federal and state military purposes where the U.S. Secretary of Defense, pursuant to 10 U.S.C. Sections 18233(A)(1) and 18237, has acquired by purchase, lease, or transfer, and constructs, expands, rehabilitates, or corrects and equips, such buildings or structures as he determines to be necessary to carry out the purposes of Chapter 1803 of the U.S.C.
(7) Manufactured homes constructed under “24 CFR Part 3280", “Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards” and within the scope of the rules adopted by the Ohio Manufactured Home Commission, including additions, alterations and all utility connections from the utility service point to the manufactured home. This exception does not apply to changes of occupancy of manufactured homes, except that a manufactured home located within a manufactured home park and used by the park operator to promote the sale/rental of manufactured homes in that part remains exempt.
(8) Sewerage systems, treatment works, and disposal systems (the tanks, piping and process equipment associated with these systems), regulated by the legislative authority of a municipal corporation or the governing board of a county or special district owning or operating a publicly owned treatment works or sewerage system as stated in division (A) of Ohio R.C. 6111.032, however a building that houses such process equipment is within the scope of this Code.
(9) Building sewer piping.
(10) Amusement rides and portable electric generators and wiring supplying carnival and amusement park rides regulated by the Ohio Department of Agriculture pursuant to Ohio R.C. 1711.50 et seq.
(11) Structures on the premises of and directly related to the operation of a generating plant defined as a major utility facility regulated by the Power Siting Board, including the structures associated with generation, transmission, and distribution. As a condition of the Power Siting Board’s approval, the Building Department may be requested to review and inspect these structures for compliance with the rules of the Board of Building Standards. However, the Building Department has no enforcement authority.
(12) Structures associated with pipelines used for the transmission of natural gas and other hydrocarbons.
(13) Public water systems (the tanks, foundations, piping and process equipment associated with these systems) regulated by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency in accordance with division (A) of Ohio R.C. 6109.07, however, a building that houses such process equipment is within the scope of this Code.
(14) Private water systems (the tanks, foundations, piping and process equipment associated with these systems) regulated by the Ohio Department of Health in accordance with Ohio R.C. 3701.344, however, a building that houses such process equipment is within the scope of this Code.
(15) Fixed or floating docks (including the electrical wiring, lighting, and fire protection systems serving the docks) at marinas or boatyards, unless the docks directly serve as a means of egress from, or an accessible route to, a regulated building located at the marina or boatyard.
(16) Portable mobile vehicles which have been issued a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) by the United States Department of Transportation. The vehicles have wheels and license plates and are intended for transportation on the public streets and highways. Examples of the exempt vehicles include, but are not limited to, recreational vehicles, book mobiles, blood mobiles, mobile medical imaging units, mobile concession trailers, network television transmission and production trailers used at sporting events, mobile restroom facilities, mobile pet grooming units, etc.
(17) Wind turbines, pumps, site lighting, and flagpoles not connected to building services equipment.
(18) Mine elevator shafts and structures.
(19) Ground signs.
(20) Oil or gas beam pumping units and derricks.
(21) Bungee jumping and zip line structures, and miniature golf courses.
(22) Retaining walls, bridges, walkways or stairs not associated with a building or building egress. (OBC 101.2)