Appendix CC — FIRE HYDRANT LOCATIONS AND DISTRIBUTION
Section CC105
California Fire Code (Title 24, Part 9) · 2022 edition · updated 2026-09-10 · California
CBSC: official editions, supplements and errata
Italicized text is a California amendment to the model code, as printed in the official publication.
CC105.1 The average spacing between fire hydrants shall not¶
exceed that listed in Table CC105.1.
Exception: A deficiency of up to 10 percent shall not be allowed when existing fire hydrants provide all, or a por- tion, of the required fire hydrant service. Regardless of the average spacing, fire hydrants shall be located such that all points on streets and access roads adja- cent to a building are within the distances listed in Table CC105.1.
CC105.2 When public or private water mains are not avail-¶
able to supply fire flow [not within 1,000 feet (304 800 mm) of the proposed building], the following alternatives shall be used:
1. Building(s) shall be protected by an automatic sprin- kler system
Exception: Portable (relocatable) buildings, as defined in California Education Code Section 17742.5(e), which requires that portable buildings be designed and constructed to be relocatable over pub- lic streets, shall be designed and constructed for relo- cation without the separation of the roof or floor from the building and when measured at the most exterior walls, shall have a floor area not in excess of 2,000 square feet (186 m 2 ). Such portable buildings shall be separated from other structures in groupings not to exceed 9,100 square feet (845 m 2 ) in building area (pursuant to Table 503, California Building Code, for Type V-B buildings). Further area increases shall be as approved by the local fire authority having juris- diction and the state fire marshal.
The water for sprinklers may be supplied by the domestic system, a pressure tank, a gravity tank or other means in accordance with NPFA 13. Water tanks shall be installed in accordance with NFPA 22. (See the California Building Code, Chapter 9.)
2. When the adequate fire flow is not available and the water for sprinklers is provided from a source other than a public water supply, the amount of water to sup- ply the system shall be calculated using the area/den- sity method or the room design method as delineated in NFPA 13. The calculated duration of water flow to sprinklers shall not be less than 15 minutes to 10 heads.
3. The sprinkler system shall have a water flow alarm monitored by an approved central, proprietary or remote station service or a local alarm which will give audible and visual signals at a constant attended loca- tion.
4. When this alternative is utilized and the calculated water duration to a sprinkler is less than NFPA 13 rec- ommendations, the area increases and fire resistive substitutions allowed in Chapter 5 of the California Building Code shall not be permitted.
Copyright © 2022 by, or licensed to, International Code Council, Inc. (ALL RIGHTS RESERVED); licensed to California Building Standards Commission pursuant to License Agreement. No further reproductions is authorized. Any unauthorized reproduction or distribution is a violation of the federal copyright act and the license agreement, and subject to civil and criminal penalties thereunder.
APPENDIX CC—FIRE HYDRANT LOCATIONS AND DISTRIBUTION
TABLE CC105.1 NUMBER AND DISTRIBUTION OF FIRE HYDRANTS
| FIRE-FLOW REQUIREMENT (gpm) |
MINIMUM NUMBER OF HYDRANTS |
AVERAGE SPACING BETWEEN HYDRANTSa, b, c (feet) |
MAXIMUM DISTANCE FROM ANY POINT ON STREET OR ROAD FRONTAGE TO A HYDRANTd |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,750 or less | _1 _ | 500 | 250 |
| 2,000-2,250 | _2 _ | 450 | 225 |
| 2,500 | _3 _ | 450 | 225 |
| 3,000 | _3 _ | 400 | 225 |
| 3,500-4,000 | _4 _ | 350 | 210 |
| 4,500-5,000 | _5 _ | 300 | 180 |
| 5,500 | _6 _ | 300 | 180 |
| 6,000 | _6 _ | 250 | 150 |
| 6,500-7,000 | _7 _ | 250 | 150 |
| 7,500 or more | _8 or moree _ | 200 | 120 |
For SI: 1 foot = 304.8 mm, 1 gallon per minute = 3.785 L/m. a. Reduce by 100 feet for dead-end streets or roads. b. Where streets are provided with median dividers which can be crossed by fire fighters pulling hose lines, or where arterial streets are provided with four or
more traffic lanes and have a traffic count of more than 30,000 vehicles per day, hydrant spacing shall average 500 feet on each side of the street and be arranged on an alternating basis up to a fire-flow requirement of 7,000 gallons per minute and 400 feet for higher fire-flow requirements. c Where new water mains are extended along streets where hydrants are not needed for protection of structures or similar fire problems, fire hydrants shall be
provided at spacing not to exceed 1,000 feet to provide for transportation hazards. d. Reduce by 50 feet for dead-end streets or roads. e. One hydrant for each 1,000 gallons per minute or fraction thereof.
APPENDIX CC-4 2022 CALIFORNIA FIRE CODE
Copyright © 2022 by, or licensed to, International Code Council, Inc. (ALL RIGHTS RESERVED); licensed to California Building Standards Commission pursuant to License Agreement. No further reproductions is authorized. Any unauthorized reproduction or distribution is a violation of the federal copyright act and the license agreement, and subject to civil and criminal penalties thereunder.
CALIFORNIA FIRE CODE – MATRIX ADOPTION TABLE
APPENDIX D – FIRE APPARATUS ACCESS ROADS
(Matrix Adoption Tables are nonregulatory, intended only as an aid to the code user.
See Chapter 1 for state agency authority and building applications.)
(Not adopted by the State Fire Marshal)
| Adopting Agency | BSC | BSC- CG |
SFM | HCD | DSA | OSHPD | BSCC | DPH | AGR | DWR | CEC | CA | SL | SLC | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adopting Agency | BSC | BSC- CG |
T-24 | T-19* | 1 | 2 | 1/AC | AC | SS | 1 | 1R | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Adopt Entire Chapter | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Adopt Entire Chapter as amended (amended sections listed below) |
|||||||||||||||||||||||
| Adopt only those sections that are listed below |
|||||||||||||||||||||||
| [California Code of Regulations, Title 19, Division 1] |
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| Chapter / Section | |||||||||||||||||||||||
- The California Code of Regulations (CCR), Title 19, Division 1 provisions that are found in the California Fire Code are a reprint from the current CCR, Title 19, Division 1 text for the code user’s convenience only. The scope, applicability and appeals procedures of CCR, Title 19, Division I remain the same.
Copyright © 2022 by, or licensed to, International Code Council, Inc. (ALL RIGHTS RESERVED); licensed to California Building Standards Commission pursuant to License Agreement. No further reproductions is authorized. Any unauthorized reproduction or distribution is a violation of the federal copyright act and the license agreement, and subject to civil and criminal penalties thereunder.
APPENDIX D-2 2022 CALIFORNIA FIRE CODE
Copyright © 2022 by, or licensed to, International Code Council, Inc. (ALL RIGHTS RESERVED); licensed to California Building Standards Commission pursuant to License Agreement. No further reproductions is authorized. Any unauthorized reproduction or distribution is a violation of the federal copyright act and the license agreement, and subject to civil and criminal penalties thereunder.
APPENDIX D
FIRE APPARATUS ACCESS ROADS
The provisions contained in this appendix are not mandatory unless specifically
referenced in the adopting ordinance or legislation of the jurisdiction.
User note:
About this appendix: Appendix D contains more detailed elements for use with the basic access requirements found in Section 503, which gives some minimum criteria, such as a maximum length of 150 feet and a minimum width of 20 feet, but in many cases does not state specific criteria. This appendix, like Appendices B and C, is a tool for jurisdictions looking for guidance in establishing access requirements and includes criteria for multiple-family residential developments, large one- and two-family subdivisions, specific examples for various types of turnarounds for fire department apparatus and parking regulatory signage.
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