Introducing the 7th Edition FRSA-TRI Tile Manual

Manny Oyola, Jr., Technical Manager, Eastern USA, Eagle Roofing Products

After a few years of concerted effort by dedicated FRSA and TRI Alliance volunteers, the 7th Edition Florida High Wind Concrete and Clay Tile Installation Manual was referenced as a standard by the Florida Building Commission in December. Like the 8th Edition Florida Building Code (2023), the tile manual will become  effective at the end of this year. It will provide roofing contractors throughout the state outside the HVHZ  performance-based standards for installing tile roof systems.

First, there were many small changes to update the language or align with current standards. For instance, in the new edition the self-adhered membranes section was simplified, removing references to testing application standards that were a part of the 6th Edition (outlined in red below). The 7th Edition (outlined in blue) requires the same 90-day UV testing and references FM 4474 and UV 1897 for wind uplift testing.

ASCE 7-22

For the 8th Edition Florida Building Code (FBC), the Commission adopted the windspeeds published by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). While the new standards included adjustments to wind speeds in Florida, there was, fortunately, a return to simplified roof zones. ASCE 7-16 had forced the implementation of as many as six roof zones (noted in circled red numbers in the graphic at the top of the next page). In 2020, when ASCE 7-16 was being considered for adoption by the Florida Building Commission, FRSA fought hard to keep ASCE 7-10 current and to stay away from the overly complex (and, we felt, unnecessary)
wind zones proposed in ASCE 7-16. It was close, but FRSA’s position was not recognized by the Commission and ASCE 7-16 was adopted. We have been living with the six wind zones for the past three years. When ASCE 7-22 goes into effect at the end of
the year, it will bring with it a return to simplified wind zones (the three zones circled in blue in the graphic at the bottom of next page).

Table One Removed

Table One from the 6th Edition was not included in the 7th Edition. It is important to note that the decision to remove the table does not eliminate any system that is able to pass the tests required for Florida Product Approvals. As a result of this modification, the design flowchart was edited to remove prescriptive references to two-ply hot mop systems. For more discussion
about tile-related prescriptive versus performance based code, see Mike Silvers’ article Tile Underlayment- Where We Are and How We Got Here. 

 

Wait, There’s (a Lot) More

To help industry members get a grasp on the changes in the 7th Edition Tile Manual and for an introduction on how to use the manual in the field, we put together the “FRSA-TRI 7th Edition Tile Manual” seminar (CILB-0614438), which includes an hour of general CE credit. The course includes many other tile manual topics and goes into more depth than I can include in this article. We have also created a “Tile Hip And Ridge Installation” seminar (CILB-0614439) that discusses proper hip and ridge installation methods. Hip and ridge installation failures were certainly an issue as a result of Hurricane Ian, so if you are installing tile systems in Florida, I encourage you to attend both of these seminars July 12-14 at the FRSA Convention in Kissimmee.

 

Manuel “Manny” Oyola, Jr., Eagle Roofing Products, holds a roofing contractors license and is an active member of the Tile Roofing Industry Alliance (TRI) and the Palm Beach County Roofing & Sheet Metal Contractors Association, the local FRSA Affiliate. He
is also an active member of FRSA’s Codes Committee and Chairs the Codes Subcommittee, serves as Vice President on FRSA’s Executive Committee and participates on the FRSA-TRI Manual Review Committee. Manny teaches roof tile courses for TRI and FRSA.