50 Issues Found Including Foundation Depth & Habitable Room Violations
Foundation footing 14 inches too shallow, bedroom only 3 feet wide, conflicting scales, and specification vs drawing conflicts—all surfaced before permit submission.
The Project
A California ADU project submitted for plan review against the 2025 California Building Code. InspectMind analyzed the complete drawing set including architectural, structural, and specification documents—identifying critical deficiencies in foundation design, code compliance gaps, specification vs drawing conflicts, and extensive document coordination errors that would have caused immediate permit rejection and potentially dangerous construction.
Sample Findings
18" foundation depth with 8" clearance to grade results in only 10" below exterior grade—14 inches short of the 24" minimum specification requirement.
Detail specifies 2.5" diameter machine bolt for 3.5" wide wood members—physically impossible as the hole would remove most of the wood section. Likely typo for 1/2" diameter.
Section drawing shows bedroom at 3'-0" width and living room at 6'-2"—both violate CBC Section 1208.1 requiring 7' minimum dimension for habitable spaces.
Title block shows 1/4"=1'-0" but graphic scale bar indicates 1/8"=1'-0". Dimensions would be half or double depending on which scale is used.
Shear wall schedule specifies 5/8" anchors but specification requires 3/8" diameter for existing slab-on-grade conditions—66% larger than allowed.
Footing schedule shows f'c=2500 psi but CBC Section 1904.1 requires minimum 3000 psi for R-3 foundations. Notes also conflict with 4500 psi requirement for S2 exposure.
16" minimum shear wall width with 8' height creates 6:1 aspect ratio—significantly exceeding the code-allowable 3.5:1 maximum per SDPWS.
Notes specify moisture-resistant gypsum for bathrooms, but CBC Section 2509.3 explicitly prohibits this behind tile in tub/shower areas—requires cement board.
Issue Categories
Structural & Foundations
Foundation depth, shear walls, reinforcement placement, anchor specifications
Code Compliance
Concrete strength, 2025 CBC violations, seismic data, nail specifications
Document Coordination
Scale conflicts, cross-reference errors, outdated code citations, typos
Specifications Conflicts
Drawing vs spec anchor sizes, epoxy products, nail types, material grades
Architectural
Habitable room dimensions, skylight curbs, tile backer requirements
Multi-Discipline
Structural, Architectural, Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing coordination
Value Delivered
"The foundation depth issue alone would have required excavation rework. Having AI systematically check our specs against the drawings caught conflicts we would have missed in a traditional review—saving weeks of back-and-forth with the jurisdiction."
— Project Team