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I'm... kinda confused by the window example. I can go down to the hardware store and buy pet-resistant screen door mesh that can protect against a hundred pound dog lunging and clawing for thirty-plus minutes, or chicken-wire grid that block less air intake and is designed to protect a chicken coop against invasive predators for weeks at a time; both will cost less than thirty bucks. Even if we presumed Safety Above All, there are simple solutions that would be as or more effective and allow much better airflow (and be compatible with boost fans).
As I made clear in a comment below, the window example would only apply in a situation where you had a casement window where the sill was less than 3 feet above the floor and more than 6 feet above the outside ground, which is basically nowhere. I don't think I have ever been in a building that has such a window. I don't even think I've been in a building with a double hung window that would meet these requirements, but at least in that case you'd be able to adjust it so the top part slides down and the regulation wouldn't apply.
I have a bow window containing four casement windows each of which meets these requirements. This is a replacement window; there used to be a triple-window -- two double hung and one fixed window -- there, and both double hungs met those requirements. A large number of houses in my development have such windows (or a bay with two double hung and one fixed), they're not some exotic thing. Fortunately I'm in neither Canada nor New York so no guards or opening-prevention devices required.
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Such items would not meet the requirements of a window guard. It's not enough that things are safe, they have to be legibly and documentably safe according to the standards set by the building codes. You need a guard that's at least 1070mm (and no, that doesn't work out to something even in inches either; it's a little over 42 1/8 inch), doesn't pass a 100mm sphere (so the chicken wire grid is likely too coarse), and has load requirements that the mesh isn't documented to meet.
Or you spit on your hands, run up the black flag, and remove the WOCD without installing a guard.
Chicken wire comes in a couple of different sizes, but the mesh sizes available at my local hardware store are 1" and 2". Online it looks like 3" exists, but is still too fine for a 100mm sphere, which seems about the size of a small chicken you'd want to use the wire to fence.
Although even McMaster doesn't quote a load capacity, it can be fairly sturdy stuff. May still not be a good fir for this application.
I was thinking of some much wider stuff I've seen, but that must not be chicken wire.
The point is that it has to be LEGIBLY -- that is, documentably -- able to support the load in that particular application. It's not enough that it works, you have to be able to prove it works to the bureaucrats. Which with any sort of improvised solution, you can't.
That's... kind of not true in this case. Building inspectors do have four inch spheres (usually more of a cone) that they will try to push through deck/stair pickets if they have concerns; the amount of force that they are to use for this is underspecified (comes up with cable railings a lot), but I'd think that that well-fastened chicken wire (usually hexagonal; you are maybe thinking of page wire?) would utterly defeat such an inspector even if he tried to literally throw himself out the window.
Not sure that making your house look like a chicken coop is the Chad solution here though -- "fuck you, make me" is much better, as I describe above.
Ah, yes, that's the stuff I was thinking of. Or maybe welded wire fence, which seems to be similar only welded instead of knotted. Guess that's more for sheep than chickens.
A guard made of chicken wire wouldn't look any worse than some of the official monstrosities
I don't know if my area has such a rule (it appears there is one for landlords but I don't see one for homeowners), but my relevant windows are not only free, they have a convenient ledge for kids to climb up on to make their jump easier.
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