Lavatory Height and Bathtub Clearance (2010 ADA Standards 606, 607)
Two rules short enough to skip and specific enough to fail a remodel that measured fine everywhere else. The lavatory limit of 34 in is to the front of the HIGHER of the rim or the COUNTER -- so a vessel sink or a thick stone top fails a fixture that was specified correctly, and the fixture was never the problem. Metering faucets must stay open 10 SECONDS, longer than most ship set. And the clearance in front of a tub runs the LENGTH of the tub at 30 in wide, extending 12 in PAST the head-end wall where there is a permanent seat -- so a 60 in tub needs 72 in of floor, which is the part that gets drawn short.
Formula and source
lavatory: the front of the higher of the rim or the counter surface is 34 in maximum above the finish floor; hand-operated metering faucets remain open 10 seconds minimum. Bathtub: clearance in front extends the length of the tub and is 30 in wide minimum, extending 12 in beyond the wall at the head end where a permanent seat is provided - so the required clearance length = tub length + 12 in with a seat, and the tub length without.
2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design, 606.3, 606.4, 606.5, 607.2, and 607.3. A US federal standard in the public domain, quoted directly.
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