Any California PowerWalls installed been killed/altered because Fire Code changes?

[jboy210]

Hi,

Does have a PowerWall installation upcoming that has been altered because of the new California fire code changes for battery systems over 20 kW?

I am hoping this much ado about nothing.

 

[ewoodrick]

Fire code changes generally only impact new installations. That's why there are still so many buildings without sprinklers.

 

[jjrandorin]

Hi,

Does have a PowerWall installation upcoming that has been altered because of the new California fire code changes for battery systems over 20 kW?

I am hoping this much ado about nothing.

You might not get feedback on this for a while, because from what I am being told by tesla myself is that, because they pulled my permits already, and got approval for the plan (12/09/2019), those are the codes that my plan needs to follow.

You will need to have someone who has an install, who has not had their permitting process completed yet (with permits being pulled next year). So, you will likely need to re ask this question the 2nd half of january or even february. You also will need to get response from someone in your general permitting area, because different jurisdictions may interpret the issue differently..

At least, this is how I have read about this issue.

 

[aesculus]

At least, this is how I have read about this issue.

This seems to be what I understand too. Install on 1/2. If it fails the inspection I will report back here.

 

[wwhitney]

My take is that the spacing requirement does not apply to buildings covered by the California Residential Code, namely detached single and two family dwellings. The basic argument:

- 2019 California Residential Code (CRC) R327.2 requires stationary battery storage systems to be listed to UL 9540. The Powerwall 2 lists UL 9540 Certification on its spec sheet. No spacing requirements are imposed by R327.

- Section 102.5 of 2019 California Fire Code (CFC) exempts buildings subject to the CRC from most of the CFC, other than a couple enumerated requirements. For the text, see this post: Northern California PW installs BUMPED to 2020!!

Cheers, Wayne

 

[Patrick66]

My read of the code is that under 50kW Tesla should not be impacted. It will take a bit more wall space with 4+ PWs though.

it would kill using Model S/X modules for DIY backup power though.

 

[boaterva]

Weird that this (above) is the case. I’ve seen several posts before this one in the past saying all new PW installs were toast under the new guidelines. Too bad someone didn’t understand residential was exempt at the levels involved (as I’m understanding this).

 

[Patrick66]

Weird that this (above) is the case. I’ve seen several posts before this one in the past saying all new PW installs were toast under the new guidelines. Too bad someone didn’t understand residential was exempt at the levels involved (as I’m understanding this).

If the Powerwalls were not UL9540 it would be very difficult to comply. It will make a few applications difficult though, like adding batteries for ongoing elevator operations in a power outage or buffering demand in a parking garage for EV chargers.

The biggest impact I see is datacenters that were wanting to go to Lithium batteries for backup. There aren’t going to be many ways around the code change there.

Specific to the City of San Francisco, apparently there are some more stringent requirements, but I have not been keeping track there.

 

[Vines]

This is happening now in the County of Santa Clara and Los Gatos AHJ. They are enforcing a hybrid of requirements, and using CFC section 1206 to justify it. They even retroactively applied the code to a previous approved permit submission when requesting an As-Built revision to the permit.

Most of the other jurisdictions are interpreting the code correctly, but there is always that one department or person. See the details here.

Santa Clara County retroactively Changing ESS Rules

 

[jboy210]

Just to answer my own question, there were no issues with installing 2 Powerwalls in Feb 2020 in Alameda County. Inside wall of garage, no bollards or other items from draft specs.