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205 Comments

1. Good day.
   Is there a regulation that prescribes periodic structural inspection of existing buildings?

   Pleas take not that the selection buttons for selecting ‘Newer Comments’ or ‘Older Comments’ work the wrong way round.
   Thank you.

2. The National Building Regulations govern all construction in South Africa. If you go to Part 1, General Principles and Requirements you will see that the class of occupancy of shops is F1 (large) and F2 (small). Throughout the regulations there are references to the classes of occupancy where they differ. In terms of drainage there are additional SANS, and in terms of land zoning, this falls under the local authority bylaws. Good luck with your research. Unfortunately I don’t have time to do it for you.

3. Hi I am mapping shopping malls in the Greater Durban Area and have to predict possible future location for a new mall as part of a university project (GIS and Remote Sensing module).

   May you please provide me with the regulations that govern the construction of shopping centers/malls for instance, how close it can be from the drainage systems, land zoning rules etc.

   Thank you.

4. Useful information to assist me in my work

5. Very useful information

6. Hi there, I own a pet parlour alongside a fast food restaurant. Do you know what the building/health regulations are in this regard? This is in the Tshwane region. Thanks for your help

7. Kobus unfortunately only your local authority can answer this question because it depends on zoning requirements. You will, in any case, need approved plans.

8. Good day. We have been building our house, and I mean building it ourselves, myself, my wife and our two sons are the labour involved in this project. So far we have mainly worked over week ends and after hours. Unfortunately, we have a neighbour who is not at all happy with the fact that we are building in front of her, thereby partly obstructing her view, and she has begun complaining about our after hours noise to other neighbours and the local authority. As we can only work at these odd hours, if we want to complete our house any time soon, we are at a loss as to how to proceed. Have you got any info on our situation?
   Regards

9. Hi Jaco, These are the paragraphs that I think you are looking for:
   Section B6 – Installation of cables, 3.11 Backfilling, 3.11.2 For high voltage cables (1 kV to 11 kV) a coloured plastic marking tape shall be installed 400 mm above the cable. The tape shall be yellow, marked with the words “ELECTRIC CABLE/ELEKTRIESE KABEL” in red. These markings shall not be more than 1m apart from centre to centre.
   AND Section 4.1 Installation Depths, 4.1.1 Cables shall be installed at the following minimum depths below final ground level: Up to 11kV : 8OOmm
   The full document can be downloaded here: download-regulations Scroll down to “General Electrical Specification PartA and PartB”

10. Please can you tell me what is the minimum depth of main electrical cable to house in the ground?{the trench or ditch for cable}

11. How many houses can I build on 2 ha of agricultural land without subdividing the property and doing town planning? I heard a rumor that there is a way to have a maximum of 7 households and this is enough to start our eco-community. Local government is impossible to reach, Madibeng, and I can’t find anything online. Any advice please!?!

12. Hi Guys,
    We are a prefab house company in China. My client asked me to make school design. Our house’s life span is over 50 years, is made by our foam cement board, wall panel thickness is 90mm-140mm, it’s totally fireproof, waterproof, and can resist 150km/hour wind and 8-9 grade earthquake. So can you tell me if we do the project, our house is qualified or should make some test.
    Thanks for your kind reply
    Henry Zhang

13. Hi Candice, All the rules are exactly the same as those that apply to a brick and mortar house. You need plans done by a “competent person” and they must be submitted to the council in the normal way. Then you will have to declare a “competent person” who will oversee the build. Some timber frame house builders have plans that they include with the house when you get them to supply and erect the house, but these will need to be adapted according to your site, and site plans will need to be included. If it is a new house then you will also have to register the house with the NHBRC and pay the required fees (or apply for a exemption if you are owner building). By law this has to be done with all new homes. This is briefly the process for a timber frame house. Please feel free to ask more questions anytime.

14. Can anyone help with what are the building regulations with building a wooden home? Like the Americans do… Its 13m x 8m.
    Do we have to have plans? any sort of certificates?
    Please need some urgent advice or help on this topic.

    Thanks

15. Hi Cathy, An emergency exit is just that—an emergency exit—and cannot be locked at any time. If you have a mechanism that prevents unauthorised entrance and allows free exit in an emergency then that is the way it is supposed to operate.

16. In an office building or factory, can the emergency exit door be locked if there is a mechanism for opening it in the event of an emergency?

17. Ask your local authority.

18. Hi,

    I am looking for vacant property in midrand or randburg to erect a funeral parlour.

    How can I find out if the land area is zoned for funerals parlours or not?

19. Kevin you don’t necessarily have to link it to the house, unless of course the local authority won’t approve plans for a second dwelling on the property. I suggest you ask them before you have plans drawn up by a competent person.

20. Hi,

    We are looking into maybe building a granny flat type building in the back of our yard.

    I’ve seen that something like that needs to be linked to the main house. Is that true? Since where we want to build it, isn’t close to the house?

    Can we link it with a porch to the garage that’s to the side of the proposed new building?

    Thanks in advance

21. Manfred, the National Building regulations and Standards Act is available for download on this site, HERE.
    The only place you will find the latest SANS is at the SABS.

22. Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,

    I am working as Building Instructor in a Vocational Training Centre in Namibia and would be grateful to receive Building Standards and latest developments in the field of building construction to enhance the Quality of our Training delivery.

    Sincerely

    Manfred Petruttis

23. Anzebet a toboggan is what you use on a toboggan track. You would then have such a track at a theme park or whatever. A toboggan is NOT a bobsled run above, below or on the ground! It is what you use on … You will need to consult a competent person – probably an engineer – for advice. This is not covered in the building regulations.

24. A Toboggan is a bobsled run….above ground. There is already one in Cape Town. It wil be akin to a Theme Park…bob sledding, with restaurants etc.

25. Anzebet, a toboggan is a “narrow sledge for sliding over snow” and not something that could be adapted to incorporate restaurants, toilets etc. I have no idea what you are talking about. Contact your local authority for assistance.