Parking Garages and ASCE 7-10 Section

12.7.2 Effective Seismic Weight

Posted on 2015-09-17 (SKGA)

Topics: 2012 IBC, ASCE 7-10, Seismic Provisions Join Our Mailing List

ASCE 7-10 Section 12.7.2 requires 25 percent of the floor live load to be included in the
effective seismic weight in areas of storage. Normally live load doesn’t need to be included
because when a building vibrates during an earthquake, only that portion of the mass or
weight that is physically tied to the structure needs to be considered as “effective.” Hence,
live loads (e.g. loose furniture, loose equipment, and human occupants) need not be
included. However, storage loads, may develop inertial forces, particularly where they are
densely packed. Have you ever wondered about cars in parking garages and whether or not
their mass or weight needs to be included? We wanted to share the following question we
recently answered on this topic.

Q. We have a mixed-use building with seven levels of parking and a 30-story residential
tower above it, where parking is used by the residents. For determining the effective
seismic weight of the structure, ASCE 7-10 Section 12.7.2 provides an exemption for
“public garages and open parking structures”, where 25% of floor live load need not be
included. Since our parking structure is primarily for private residents only, do we need to
consider 25% of the live load for determining the seismic weight of the building?

A. "Mechanical-Access Open Parking Garages" and "Open Parking Garage" are terms
defined in 2012 and 2015 IBC Section 202. “Private Garage” is a new definition in the
2015 IBC in Section 202.

2012 and 2015 IBC Section 406.3 classifies private garages and carports as Group U
occupancies and imposes a limit on the area of a private garage. According to 2012 and
2015 IBC Section 406.4, a parking garage that cannot be classified as a private parking
garage is to be classified as a public parking garage. So, even though the parking garage in
your building is for private parking, for the purpose of the building code, it is considered a
“public parking garage”. As a result, you do not need to include 25% of the floor live load
in the effective seismic weight. The code does not intend for the motor vehicles to be
included in the effective seismic weight because they are not fixed to the structure and as
such do not develop inertial forces.

At this point, you may be asking the question, why do you need to include 25 percent of the
floor live load in private parking garages, but not for public garages or open parking
structures? The answer is that, unlike public garages and open parking structures, private
garages are often used for storage of items other than vehicles. It seems like we all know
someone who cannot park in their garage because it’s filled to the brim with “stuff”.