Wheelchair ramp codes

This category is deliberately short, because the honest answer is that we cannot tell you your code. Ramp requirements for residential construction are adopted and amended jurisdiction by jurisdiction. Two towns twenty miles apart can differ on whether a ramp needs a permit at all, what slope is allowed, what footing depth is required, and whether an inspection is needed before you can use it.

What is stable across the country is the ADA geometry itself, which is a federal standard with published section numbers you can cite: 1:12 maximum running slope (§405.2), 1:48 maximum cross slope (§405.3), 36 inches minimum clear width (§405.5), 30 inches maximum rise per run (§405.6), landings at the top and bottom plus 60-by-60-inch clear landings at direction changes (§405.7), handrails both sides above a 6-inch rise (§405.8), and edge protection (§405.9). Many residential jurisdictions and most reputable installers use this as the benchmark.

If a contractor tells you a residential ramp "has to be ADA compliant," they are probably right about the geometry they should build to and wrong about the legal reason. If a contractor tells you the opposite — that because the ADA doesn't apply, slope doesn't matter — walk away. That is the sentence that precedes an unsafe ramp.

Call the building department before you sign anything. Ask three questions: does this project require a permit, what slope and landing requirements apply, and is an inspection required. Get the answers, then put them in the contract. Where permits are required, reported costs run $50–$300.

How to choose

Call your building department first

Permit, slope, footing and inspection rules are local. A ten-minute call is the only authoritative source for your address.

Use ADA §405 as your written specification

Even where it doesn't legally apply, citing the section numbers in your contract gives you an enforceable, unambiguous standard.

Check HOA rules in writing before you build

Covenants can restrict visible exterior structures. Get any approval in writing — verbal approval from a board member is not approval.

Put the inspection in the contract

If your jurisdiction requires inspection, final payment should follow the passed inspection, not the last screw.

Beware anyone who says code doesn't matter

A builder dismissing slope requirements because it's a private home is telling you what kind of ramp you're about to get.