Office of the Plumbing Inspector
Olean Municipal Building, Room 212
P.O. Box 668,101 E. State St.
Olean, New York 14760 (716) 376-5683, (716) 376-5707 (fax)
307.5 Trench location. Trenches installed parallel to footings shall not extend below the 45-degree (0.70 rad) bearing plane of the footing or wall.
FIGURE 3.8 Line of loadbearing distribution plane.
Section 307.5 Trench Location (see Figure 3.8)
• At what angle from footings are trenches allowed?
A footing requires a minimum loadbearing area to distribute the weight of
the building. This loadbearing distribution plane extends downward at
approximately a 45-degree angle from the base of the footing. Water and
sewer piping may not be installed below this loadbearing plane, nor may
excavation for the installation of the pipe extend below the plane in order
to not negatively influence the load capacity of the footing, or cause the
excavation to collapse.
