Chimney & Fireplaces/recent house fire

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Expert: - 1/13/2008


Question
I recently had a fire in a house that I rent that appears to have stated just to the left of the fireplace.  Just to preface, my fireplace has an insert that appears to go into the chimney, there is another layer of brickwork in front of the chimney(brick), the fire began in between these two layers of brick.  It appears that when the house was constructed, there was a piece of plywood against the chimney and 2X4 framing in between the the layers of brick.  My question is should this have been constructed in this manner, if not what is the protocol for framing in this instance?  Should there be any wood at all between these two layers of brick?  The owner of the house is planning on tearing down the fireplace and rebuilding the fireplace, how should I encourage him to build this fireplace so we do not experience another terrifying event?

Answer
Billy,

I can understand how terrified you and your family must have been during this unfortunate event. There are certainly appropriate clearances to combustible material that should be meet in every hearth installation. I would concur that removal and replacement of the current system would be a good thing. I would recommend that the owner contract with a professional to rebuild and or install your replacement hearth product. Good luck.

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Randy Brooks

Expertise

Inspection of Masonry, Pre-cast Tilt-up, and Factory Built Fireplaces as well as Free Standing & Insert, Gas, and Wood Appliances. We also provide Hearth Fire Loss Investigations, Litigation Support, Consulting Services, Flue Sweeping, Installation and Repair. Additionally, I’ve been a chimney sweep for 23 years, service and install hearth appliances as well as being recognized by the Superior Court of California as an expert witness.

Experience

Brooks Chimney Sweeping Since 1989 Ojai, CA Owner / President www.brooks-hearth.com

Organizations
NCSG, MEMBER,(National Chimney Sweep Guild), Member since 1990, Board of Directors representing Region 6, (CA, NV, AZ, UT, OR, WA, ID, WY, MT, AK and HI,) 2004-2011, ethics committee chair, 2004-2005, executive committee member, Vice President, 2006-2008, President, 2008-2011. CSIA, BOD (Chimney Safety Institute of America,) Board of Directors, ethics committee chair, 2004-2005, executive committee member, Secretary, 2005-2006, Vice President, 2006-2008, President, 2008-2011. HPBA, MEMBER, (Hearth, Patio, & BBQ Association,) since 2002. NFPA Member, (National Fire Protection Association) Since 2009. Technical Committee member for the 211 Standard.

Education/Credentials
California State Licensed Contractor, C61-D34, #750710. http://www2.cslb.ca.gov C.S.I.A., (Chimney Safety Institute of America,) Certified Chimney Sweep, #2580. Held since 1990 re-certified in ‘93, ‘96, ‘99, ‘02, ‘05, '08,'11. http://www.csia.org F.I.R.E. (Fireplace Investigation, Research & Education Service,) Certified Inspector, #FP-006. Held since 2000, re-certified in ’03, ‘06. http://www.f-i-r-e-service.com Fireplace Investigation, Research & Education Service,) Advance Expert Consulting & Witness, certificate, ’05 N.F.I. (National Fireplace Institute,) Certified Gas & Wood-Burning Specialist, #133851. Held since 2002, re-certified in '05,‘08. http://nficertified.org

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