BCIN exam practice questions, Unit A: Compliance, Administration and General Requirements.

Ten free practice questions on compliance, administration and general requirements, for the Ontario Building Code (BCIN) exams House 2024 and Small Buildings 2024, which the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) sets and Humber Polytechnic delivers. We group the Part 9 material both exams share into seven study units of our own, and this is Unit A. These are original questions written by TicketPrep from the 2024 Building Code and MMAH's syllabi, not questions from an exam. Each has four options and one correct answer, as every question in our bank does, and each is labelled with the exam or exams whose syllabus it is on. One of the ten is an Advanced question, from the harder tier of the bank. Answer each one before opening the explanation. No account, no email.

01The questions

1. Direct response · Sub-topic A-1.01 · House and Small Buildings

   An owner plans four projects on a residential lot. Which one is a designated structure, and so falls within the Building Code Act's definition of a building?

   1. A tower carrying a wind turbine generator rated at 2.5 kW in the rear yard.
   2. A dish antenna with a 4 m² face area mounted on the house roof.
   3. A garden retaining wall with 900 mm of exposed height beside a public sidewalk.
   4. A solar collector with a 6 m² face area mounted on the house roof.
   Show the answer

   D. Correct. Div. A 1.3.3.5.(1)(f) designates a building-mounted solar collector once its face area reaches 5 m², so a 6 m² collector on the roof is a designated structure and is treated as a building.

   Why not the others

   A. A wind turbine support structure is designated under Div. A 1.3.3.5.(1)(g) only where the generator is rated at more than 3 kW; a 2.5 kW unit falls below that.

   B. A building-mounted dish antenna is designated under Div. A 1.3.3.5.(1)(h) only at a face area of 5 m² or more; at 4 m² it is below the threshold.

   C. A retaining wall next to public property is designated under Div. A 1.3.3.5.(1)(a) only when its exposed height is more than 1 000 mm; 900 mm does not qualify.

   Source: 2024 Ontario Building Code, our Unit A: Compliance, administration and general requirements; Div. A 1.3.3.5.(1)(a), (f), (g) and (h)

2. Scenario · Sub-topic A-1.03 · House and Small Buildings

   A designer submits an alternative solution to a Division B requirement whose SA-1 attribution lists only safety (OS) objectives. The reviewer also asks for proof that the alternative protects the building from fire (OP1) as well as the usual construction happens to. Is that proof needed?

   1. Yes: an alternative must match every benefit the acceptable solution provides.
   2. Yes: an OP1 objective is always attached wherever an OS objective appears.
   3. No: performance is compared only in the areas of the attributed objectives.
   4. No: objectives play no part once an alternative solution is proposed.
   Show the answer

   C. Correct. Div. A 1.2.1.1.(1)(b) requires an alternative solution to reach at least the level of performance of the acceptable solution, measured against the objectives and functional statements SA-1 attributes to it. Note A-1.2.1.1.(1)(b) confirms that if none of those is OP1, the alternative need not give a similar OP1 benefit.

   Why not the others

   A. Equivalence is measured only in the areas set by the objectives and functional statements attributed in SA-1 (Div. A 1.2.1.1.(1)(b)). A side benefit linked to an unattributed objective, such as OP1, need not be matched.

   B. Objectives are attributed provision by provision in SA-1; no rule pairs OP1 with every OS objective. The comparison under Div. A 1.2.1.1.(1)(b) uses only what SA-1 lists for the requirement.

   D. The reverse is true. Div. A 1.2.1.1.(1)(b) measures an alternative solution against the attributed objectives and functional statements, and Div. C 2.1.1.1. requires the proposal to identify them.

   Source: 2024 Ontario Building Code, our Unit A: Compliance, administration and general requirements; Div. A 1.2.1.1.(1)(b); Note A-1.2.1.1.(1)(b); Div. A 2.1.1.2.

3. Direct response · Sub-topic A-2.01 · House and Small Buildings

   A designer sizing the heating system for a new house looks up the outside winter design temperature in SB-1, which lists more than one January design temperature for each location. Which value does the Building Code direct the designer to use?

   1. The January 1 % value, since a colder figure is always the safer choice.
   2. The lowest temperature on record for the location.
   3. The mean of the two January values listed for the location.
   4. The January 2.5 % value listed for the location.
   Show the answer

   D. Correct. Div. B 1.1.3.1.(1) requires climatic values to come from SB-1, and Div. B 1.1.3.1.(2) sets the outside winter design temperature as the January 2.5 % value for the location.

   Why not the others

   A. Div. B 1.1.3.1.(2) names a different January value as the outside winter design temperature; the colder one-percent figure is not the one it asks for.

   B. SB-1 design temperatures are statistical values, not the record low, and Div. B 1.1.3.1.(2) points to one particular January design value.

   C. Div. B 1.1.3.1.(2) does not blend the SB-1 figures; it names one January value, the 2.5 % figure, as the outside winter design temperature.

   Source: 2024 Ontario Building Code, our Unit A: Compliance, administration and general requirements; Div. B 1.1.3.1.(1) and (2); Note A-1.1.3.1.(2)

4. Direct response · Sub-topic A-2.02 · House and Small Buildings

   A factory-built house made of modules certified under CSA A277 is placed on a new basement built on site, and its basement stair is then built on site. What must the inspector check against the Building Code rather than accept on the strength of the certification?

   1. Every part of the house, since the certification covers only the materials.
   2. Nothing, since the certification covers the whole house once it is set.
   3. The basement, the stair, and how the modules are set and secured.
   4. The basement and the stair, but not how the modules are set and secured.
   Show the answer

   C. Correct. Div. B 9.1.1.9.(1) deems the certified plant work to comply, but Div. B 9.1.1.9.(2) keeps two things under the Code: anything made on site rather than in the plant (here the basement and the stair) and the site installation of the building itself. All three are checked.

   Why not the others

   A. Div. B 9.1.1.9.(1) deems a manufactured building made to CSA Z240.2.1 or CSA A277 to comply, so the certified plant work inside the modules (framing, joists, trusses) is not re-checked against the Code. Only the work done on site is.

   B. The certification reaches only what was made in the plant. Div. B 9.1.1.9.(2) keeps work made on site, such as this basement and stair, and the installation of the building on its site under the Code.

   D. Setting and securing the modules is part of the site installation, which Div. B 9.1.1.9.(2) also keeps under the Code; only the plant-built work is deemed to comply under Sentence (1).

   Source: 2024 Ontario Building Code, our Unit A: Compliance, administration and general requirements; Div. B 9.1.1.9.(1) and (2); Note A-9.1.1.9.

5. Direct response · Sub-topic A-3.01 · House and Small Buildings

   At a framing inspection of a new detached house, the inspector asks the site supervisor for the site documents. Which of these must be kept on the site?

   1. A copy of the permit drawings certified by the chief building official.
   2. The permit itself, held at the municipal office until final inspection.
   3. Only the posted permit; drawings may stay at the builder's office.
   4. The designer's latest unstamped revision of the drawings.
   Show the answer

   A. Correct. Div. C 1.3.2.2.(1) requires the person in charge of construction to keep on site at least one copy of the permit drawings and specifications, as certified by the chief building official (or a designate) to match the permit application, with any changes that official authorized, plus any Commission authorizations and Minister's rulings the permit relied on.

   Why not the others

   B. Div. C 1.3.2.1.(1) requires the permit holder to keep the permit, or a copy, posted in a conspicuous place on the property throughout construction, not held at the office.

   C. Posting the permit is required, but Div. C 1.3.2.2.(1) also requires a certified copy of the permit drawings and specifications to be kept on site.

   D. Div. C 1.3.2.2.(1) asks for a set of drawings that the chief building official (or a designate) has certified as copies of those submitted with the permit application, with authorized changes. An uncertified revision does not meet that.

   Source: 2024 Ontario Building Code, our Unit A: Compliance, administration and general requirements; Div. C 1.3.2.2.(1); Div. C 1.3.2.1.(1)

6. Direct response · Sub-topic A-3.04 · House and Small Buildings

   A supplier asks the Minister to approve, by ruling, the use of an alternative building material in Ontario. Which of these could support that approval?

   1. Approval of the material by one Ontario municipality's chief building official.
   2. Approval of it across the whole of another province, under that province's law.
   3. A favourable evaluation report from an accredited testing laboratory.
   4. Approval of the material in one city of another province, under a local by-law.
   Show the answer

   B. Correct. Div. C 2.4.2.1.(2) allows a Minister's ruling only where it is consistent with a Building Code Commission decision on a dispute, an approval of the material throughout another province or territory under its law, or an approved revision of the national model codes.

   Why not the others

   A. A single municipal acceptance is not one of the bases in Div. C 2.4.2.1.(2); an approval elsewhere must cover all of another province or territory.

   C. A laboratory report may support an alternative solution under Div. C 2.1, but it is not one of the bases on which Div. C 2.4.2.1.(2) lets the Minister approve a material by ruling.

   D. Div. C 2.4.2.1.(2) needs an approval covering all of another province or territory under its law; a single city's by-law approval is not enough.

   Source: 2024 Ontario Building Code, our Unit A: Compliance, administration and general requirements; Div. C 2.4.2.1.(1) and (2)

7. Direct response · Sub-topic A-4.02 · House and Small Buildings

   An owner will renovate a detached house so that it holds two dwelling units, a new basement unit and the existing unit above it. Both are Group C. How does Div. B Section 9.41 treat this work?

   1. Section 9.41 does not apply, because the major occupancy stays Group C.
   2. It applies, and its rules replace the other Parts of the Code for the new unit.
   3. It applies only where the change appears with a 'Y' in the change-of-use table.
   4. It applies: one suite becoming two is deemed a change in major occupancy.
   Show the answer

   D. Correct. Div. B 9.41.1.1.(1)(b) applies Section 9.41 where construction converts one Group C suite into more than one, and Div. B 9.41.1.1.(2) deems that conversion a change in major occupancy for the Section. Under Div. B 9.41.1.1.(3) its requirements are added to those of the other Parts.

   Why not the others

   A. Div. B 9.41.1.1.(1)(b) names this case: one Group C suite converted into more than one Group C suite triggers Section 9.41 even though the group does not change.

   B. Div. B 9.41.1.1.(3) makes the Section's requirements additional to the other Parts that apply to the construction; they do not replace them.

   C. The table entry is only Clause (a) of Div. B 9.41.1.1.(1). Clauses (b) to (f) add other triggers, including one Group C suite becoming several.

   Source: 2024 Ontario Building Code, our Unit A: Compliance, administration and general requirements; Div. B 9.41.1.1.(1)(b), (2) and (3)

8. Scenario · Sub-topic A-3.01 · Small Buildings only

   An owner wants to build a freestanding one-storey storage shed of 14 m² gross area behind her house, with a laundry tub connected to the water supply and drainage. Does the shed need a building permit?

   1. No: it is under 15 m² and one storey, so it is exempt.
   2. A permit is needed for the plumbing only, not for the shed itself.
   3. No, provided it stands more than 3 m from the house.
   4. Yes: the plumbing takes it out of the shed exemption.
   Show the answer

   D. Correct. Div. C 1.3.1.1. exempts a shed from the permit requirement and from the Code only if it is 15 m² or less in gross area, one storey, not attached, used only for storage serving the main building, and has no plumbing. The tub breaks the last condition, so the usual permit rules apply.

   Why not the others

   A. Size and height are only two of the conditions in Div. C 1.3.1.1. The shed exemption also requires that the shed has no plumbing; the laundry tub takes it out of the exemption.

   B. The shed exemption in Div. C 1.3.1.1. fails as a whole once there is plumbing: the shed is no longer exempt from the permit requirement or from the Code, so it is not just the plumbing that is regulated.

   C. The 3 m separation is a condition of the tent exemption in Div. C 1.3.1.1., not the shed exemption. The shed's plumbing is what decides this case.

   Source: 2024 Ontario Building Code, our Unit A: Compliance, administration and general requirements; Div. C 1.3.1.1.

9. Direct response · Sub-topic A-3.04 · House and Small Buildings

   A manufacturer proposes a new wall product as an alternative solution, but no published test method exists for showing it is suitable. What kind of testing does the Building Code accept for the documentation?

   1. Tests that reproduce or go beyond service conditions, or compare it with a proven product.
   2. Tests to the nearest referenced standard, whether or not its results are comparable.
   3. Any test the manufacturer has already run, provided a professional engineer seals the report.
   4. None: without a published test method, the product cannot be proposed at all.
   Show the answer

   A. Correct. Div. C 2.1.1.2. covers the case where no published method exists: the tests must either reproduce, or be harsher than, the conditions the product will meet in use, or else measure it against a comparable material or system already accepted.

   Why not the others

   B. Div. C 2.1.1.2. allows other test standards only where they give comparable results; a standard whose results are not comparable does not qualify.

   C. A seal does not make a test suitable. Without a published method, Div. C 2.1.1.2. looks for tests built around the conditions of use (matched or exceeded) or a comparison with a product already accepted.

   D. Div. C 2.1.1.2. exists for exactly this case: it sets how tests are to be designed when no published method exists, so the alternative solution can still be documented under Div. C 2.1.1.1.

   Source: 2024 Ontario Building Code, our Unit A: Compliance, administration and general requirements; Div. C 2.1.1.2.; Div. C 2.1.1.1.(1)

10. Scenario · Advanced · Sub-topic A-2.02 · House and Small Buildings

    A detached house is to be built on land within a flood plain. Its basement walls will face hydrostatic pressure during floods. Beyond the requirements for every Part 9 house, what does Div. B 9.1.1.8. add?

    1. Design for the flood-water pressures, and floodproofing that keeps exits usable.
    2. Only waterproofing of the basement walls and floor, as for any hydrostatic site.
    3. Nothing, provided the basement is dampproofed and has foundation drains.
    4. A lowest floor set at least 300 mm above the regulatory flood line.
    Show the answer

    A. Correct. Div. B 9.1.1.8.(1) has buildings on flood plains designed and built to good engineering practice to resist the expected vertical and horizontal hydrostatic pressures, and given floodproofing that keeps exits and means of egress sound while the flood lasts. The waterproofing that Div. B 9.13.3.1.(1) calls for where hydrostatic pressure occurs applies as well.

    Why not the others

    B. Waterproofing follows from Div. B 9.13.3.1.(1) wherever hydrostatic pressure occurs, flood plain or not. Div. B 9.1.1.8.(1) adds more: design to good engineering practice for the flood pressures on the structure, and floodproofing that keeps exits and means of egress usable.

    C. Dampproofing and drains are the ordinary measures where no hydrostatic pressure acts (Div. B 9.13.1.1.(2)). A flood plain site brings in Div. B 9.1.1.8.(1): engineered design for the flood pressures and floodproofing for the exits and means of egress.

    D. Div. B 9.1.1.8.(1) sets no floor-height figure. What it requires is design to good engineering practice for the vertical and horizontal hydrostatic pressures, and floodproofing that keeps exits and means of egress intact in a flood.

    Source: 2024 Ontario Building Code, our Unit A: Compliance, administration and general requirements; Div. B 9.1.1.8.(1); Div. B 9.13.3.1.(1); Div. B 9.13.1.1.(2)

02Answer key

03What Unit A covers

Unit A is the part of the Code that decides how everything else applies. It takes in Division A (what the Code governs, which Parts a building falls under, defined terms, and the objectives and functional statements behind every requirement), the general sections of Division B Part 1 and Part 9, Division C on design, permits, occupancy before completion, inspections and alternative solutions, the Part 11 compliance alternatives for existing buildings, and the extra rules for a change of use in Section 9.41. On both the House and the Small Buildings syllabus these lines are few, so our mock draws only a handful of questions from this unit, but they are the questions where a candidate who reads quickly picks the wrong Part, the wrong permit rule or the wrong test of an alternative solution.

MMAH publishes, for each exam, the list of Building Code Parts, Sections and Articles it covers, but not how many questions any of them gets. Unit A, its 11 sub-topics below and the right-hand column are TicketPrep's own: the column is how many questions our bank holds on each sub-topic, Standard and Advanced together, not a count from an exam. Our timed mocks draw 4 of their 70 questions from Unit A for House and 4 for Small Buildings; those weights are ours too.

04What the questions turn on

Which Part, and whether the Code applies at all

Before any requirement can be checked, a question may first ask whether the work is a building under the Act and which Parts govern it. A small structure can be pulled in by its size or its use, and a shed loses its exemption as soon as it gets plumbing, so read every condition in the stem before deciding that nothing applies.

Alternative solutions are judged on the attributed objectives

An alternative solution has to perform at least as well as the acceptable solution it replaces, but only in the areas that the objectives and functional statements attributed to that requirement name. Testing can follow a published method, or, where none exists, reproduce or exceed the conditions of use, or compare the product with one already accepted. A Minister's ruling needs one of a short list of supporting bases.

Permits, site documents and a change of use

Division C asks what has to be on site during construction, and a certified copy of the permit drawings is one of those things. Turning one house suite into two is treated as a change in major occupancy for Section 9.41, so its added requirements stack on top of the rest of Part 9 instead of replacing them.

05The other units

Both exams pass at 70 per cent of the whole paper, with no minimum for any topic, so a strong unit can make up for a weak one, but only by so much: on 70 questions, 49 right is the pass line. Each of our units has its own page of free questions:

The BCIN exam practice test page describes the full question bank. How these questions are written and checked: how our questions are made. Found a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it. TicketPrep is not affiliated with MMAH, Humber Polytechnic or the National Research Council of Canada, and no Building Code text is reproduced here: the questions cite Article numbers and explain the requirement in their own words.