I just did an inspection on a home that had a Pre-fab gas log fireplace in the living room. They created a bump out on the exterior of the home to allow for the fireplace and a storage area on the inside of the home. All the interior work is fine. Above the fireplace they added windows roughly 8’ wide that fill the void on the gable end. Lets in light. Very nice. My problem is on the exterior of the home where they vented the fireplace. Since the bump out they created on the exterior is roughly 7’ high they ran the flue pipe three feet above the bump out roof. This flue is 22" away from the gable end. I believe that they should have run the flue pipe above the gable end which would mean that the flue would have to run another 12’ up the side of the house to get 3’ above the upper roof line. The reason they didn’t do this was that they didn’t want the flue pipe showing through the windows in the living area above the fireplace. I think its wrong , any gas appliance vent termination closer then 8’ to a wall must terminate at least 2’ above the roof edge.
The realtor questioned this because she had talked to the homeowner and they said that this was okayed by the installer. I told her that if they can provide all the documentation necessary for this type of install with a written affidavit from the installer then it was okay with me.
I hope I made this clear for everybody. Any input would be great.
I tried uploading the picture but I can’t figure out how to reduce the size on my easy share program to fit into the confines of this board,
Like David said,
You’re correct with all your numbers.
They made a ‘cosmetic’ decision to terminate above the bump out and thus did not comply with current accepted construction standards (i.e. code ). They will be unable to produce the letter (affidavit) you requested if the do any research at all…
Hi Guys,
Received a call from my client and she was told by the seller that when they put the flue pipe in for the gas logs, the code was not like it is now so that the flue should be grandfathered in. The install of the fireplace was 1998. Any information would be a help.
Let me explain this in another language. This is the basic chimney rule: [size=4]The bottom of the vent termination must clear the roof penetration point (the upper edge) by at least 3 feet; further, the bottom of any fireplace vent termination must clear anything within a 10 foot radius by at least 2 feet. This includes: the peak of the house, parapet, dormer, chimney or spire.[/size]
I agree but its not up to me to convince the owner. I’m just stating the facts for the buyer and let them sort the details out in the contract of the sale of the home.
). They will be unable to produce the letter (affidavit) you requested if the do any research at all…
And nice illustration by the way, where did you get those?