On this page
Standards / SFM 12-7A-5
SFM 12-7A-5
California State Fire Marshal test method for ignition-resistant material. An extended 30-minute ASTM E84 or UL 723 tunnel protocol. Completes the 12-7A set. Not a listing and not ASTM E136.
Covers: Ignition-resistant building-material surface burning under an extended 30-minute Steiner tunnel protocol used for fire-retardant-treated wood.
Does not cover: A 10-minute E84 Class A result treated as ignition-resistant, ASTM E136 noncombustibility, an OSFM listing number, or Oregon R327’s wording copied onto a California job without reading the book.
SFM 12-7A-5 is the California test method for ignition-resistant material. It completes the 12-7A set (walls, windows, eaves, decks, then this material class). It is an extended 30-minute ASTM E84 or UL 723 tunnel protocol. It is not a listing and not ASTM E136.
Why it matters
People write “ignition-resistant siding” as if the phrase were a brand. In California Chapter 7A the phrase points at this method (or, in the 2022 book, at ASTM E2768). In Oregon it points at an extended E84 or UL 723 run in R327. The numbers are cousins. They are not the same citation.
How the test works
California’s Chapter 7A definition, as reprinted by the Town of Los Altos Hills from the CBC, states that SFM Standard 12-7A-5 is a generic building-material surface-burning flame-spread test consisting of an extended 30-minute ASTM E84 or UL 723 method as used for fire-retardant-treated wood.
The same Chapter 7A text states the conditions of acceptance for that extended run:
- Flame spread index not exceeding 25, and no evidence of progressive combustion following the extended 30-minute period.
- Flame front that does not progress more than 10.5 feet (3200 mm) beyond the centerline of the burner at any time during the extended 30-minute period.
That is a 30-minute tunnel. It is not a 10-minute interior-finish Class A.
2022 CBC 704A.3 adds an or: comply with those conditions or with the conditions of acceptance of ASTM E2768.
The method lives in California Referenced Standards Code Chapter 12-7A with 12-7A-1 through 12-7A-4. Official chapter URL on this site matches the other 12-7A pages (ICC CRSC Chapter 12-7A).
The paths
| Document | What it is | Not 12-7A-5 |
|---|---|---|
| SFM 12-7A-5 | California ignition-resistant material method | A wall-assembly flame test (that is 12-7A-1) |
| ASTM E2768 | ASTM 30-minute tunnel | The SFM number |
| Oregon R327.2 | E84 or UL 723 extended, with the same 25 / 10.5-foot idea | 12-7A-5 |
| ASTM E136 / OSFM 8175 | Noncombustible | Ignition-resistant |
| OSFM 8170 | Listing bucket | The test method |
1. California material path. Use 12-7A-5 or, where 2022 CBC 704A.3 applies, ASTM E2768. Do not swap in a 10-minute E84.
2. Oregon material path. R327 does not name 12-7A-5. It names E84 or UL 723 extended. See ignition-resistant versus noncombustible.
3. Listing path. OSFM 8170 is ignition-resistant materials. Read the listing protocol string. Listing is voluntary for most WUI products.
4. Not a wall, window, eave, or deck assembly test. Those are 12-7A-1 through 12-7A-4.
What people mix up
- Treating 12-7A-5 as an OSFM listing ID.
- Treating 10-minute Class A as ignition-resistant.
- Treating ignition-resistant as noncombustible.
- Importing 12-7A-5 onto an Oregon R327 drawing without reading R327.2.
- Coating wood on site and calling it 12-7A-5. Coatings are a finding under Oregon practice. California still wants the named test.
How to check
Open the adopted definition. Confirm 30 minutes, flame spread index, progressive combustion, and flame-front distance. If the product is listed, match OSFM 8170 and the protocol string.
This site’s 8170 rows are material-class records, not a 12-7A-5 certificate.
Limits
This page does not host the SFM text. It does not stamp a permit. The Los Altos Hills page is a municipal reprint of CBC Chapter 7A language, used here because it publishes the 12-7A-5 definition in full. Confirm the adopted California book for the lot.
Related records
ASTM E2768, ASTM E84, OSFM BML, siding.
Sources
- Town of Los Altos Hills, CA Building Code for Exterior Wildfire Exposure (CBC Chapter 7A reprint of the 12-7A-5 definition)
- 2022 CBC Chapter 7A (SFM) (ICC / California)
- California Referenced Standards Code Chapter 12-7A (ICC)
- 2023 ORSC Section R327 amendment (Oregon BCD)
- ASTM E2768 (ASTM International)
Is SFM 12-7A-5 a listing?
No. 12-7A-5 is a test method in the California Referenced Standards Code. OSFM category 8170 is the listing bucket for ignition-resistant materials. A listing ID is not this method number.
Is 12-7A-5 the same as ASTM E2768?
No. 12-7A-5 is the SFM ignition-resistant material method, described as an extended 30-minute E84 or UL 723 protocol. ASTM E2768 is ASTM’s 30-minute tunnel method. 2022 CBC 704A.3 allows Chapter 7A conditions of acceptance or ASTM E2768. Read the adopted section.
Does a 10-minute E84 Class A pass 12-7A-5?
No. The method is an extended 30-minute run. A 10-minute interior-finish Class A is a different job.
Does Oregon R327 use 12-7A-5?
No. Where R327 is adopted, ignition-resistant material is defined with ASTM E84 or UL 723 extended to 30 minutes. The amendment does not name 12-7A-5.