fireplace codes?

[acftmech]

hey guys, i live in texas. a guy i work with just had some fireplace damage and had the insurance co. look at it. it turns out he has to fix it himself.

anyways, the insurance guy said that even if they would cover it they couldnt because the top of the fireplace wasnt 2 feet above the highest peak of the house? Something about wind blowing smoke back through your house.

So this kinda got my attention, so i looked at mine. Mine isnt 2 feet above highest peak and started looking around the naborhood... some are some are. Im probably going to call a "insurance co." not mine (wink) and ask them if they heard of this and find out what the codes are, but wanted to see if anybody else has heard of this?

Thanks!

[majakdragon]

The chimney must be a specific height above the highest peak of the home due to drafting. If the chimney is not at this height you can suffer from down drafts. Down drafts cause a negetive pressure within the chimney and pushes the smoke down into your home. As wind crosses the roof it rolls, if the chimney is not high enough above this rolling it will back up into the home. Even though the insurance company doesn't mention trees, they can cause the same problems.

If you buy a fireplace, the installation instructions tell you how high the top of the chimney must be above the highest peak to ward off down drafts.

To find out if there is a specific code covering fireplaces I would call your local code office. Some states and/or cities may have their own that may differ from other states and cities.

Good luck