Guardrail - Space between two of them

[cgstrucg]

Hello,

I have a dwg. which shows 2 spans of guardrails having 3" of gap between them. Now because of some reason we have to increase the gap to 5" I have gone through the OSHA codes but I wasn't able to find anything on gaps between 2 guardrails in OSHA. Although 5" is pretty less, is there any requirement which states maximum between 2 guardrails.

Attached dwg. for clarity.

Thanks

 

[SlideRuleEra]

Looks like OSHA's interpretation is:

...a maximum opening of four inches between the two guardrails would ensure compliance with 29 CFR 1910.23.

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[Canuck65]

I am not familiar with specific OSHA regulations, but generally when public has access, any openings between 4" and 8" are considered dangerous. Less than 4" is ok, greater than 8" is ok (for industrial applications where the general public is not around) Between 4" and 8" are the dimensions where heads and necks can get trapped. I would not exceed 4".

 

[JStephen]

I don't see anything in the current OSHA requirements that would address it, that would allow either a larger or smaller or any gap.
A related question: A floor hole that you can fall through must be protected- so how big must that be to fall under the criteria?
The interpretation above quotes a section of the rules, but I can't find that requirement in the current rules, either.