Expert: Randy Brooks - 12/28/2007

Question
I am in a downstairs-upstairs condo situation.  Whenever the upstairs neighbor starts a fire in his fireplace, I am getting noxious smoke in my condo, both in my living room and in my basement.  He recently had a video inspection of his chimney (these are 20 year old town homes), and since the video (allegedly) shows no obvious holes in his chimney lining, he maintains this gives him the green light to continue burning wood in his fireplace.

We share a common enclosure where his chimney tube and mine are inside the same wooden enclosure.  

He maintains that a video inspection gives him a green light to start burning wood, and he is expecting us to take whatever measures are necessary to eliminate his smoke from entering our living space. (things like installing a fan in our fireplace, cracking a window, paying for an inspection of our half of this duplex chimney system, etc…)

I maintain the following:
1.   It is his responsibility to implement whatever corrective actions are necessary for him to willfully burn wood in his fireplace, to ensure that it does not result in polluting our living space.

2.   We do not use our fireplace; I have no intention of rigging my condo (read spending money) to eliminate his smoke from entering my living space; if he insists on burning wood, he must take any corrective measures to ensure that his smoke does not enter my living space.

3.   He uses his fireplace for aesthetic reasons only; it is not a primary source of heat, we both have heat pumps that provide warmth for our homes.

4.   His decision to burn wood … knowing that it results in filling our living space with noxious smoke … constitutes a willful malicious act; is there any recourse that I have to force him to stop burning until and unless he corrects the systemic problem?

No matter what physical reasons for his smoke entering my home … or where the actual problem resides (his half or my half of this duplex housing/chimney system) … there is a definite cause and effect here: he lights a fire, I get smoke in my house.  Can the Fire Inspector tell him to cease and desist?  I’m really concerned about the health risks involved to me and my Family (we have a two year-old son).


Answer
Robert,

First of all, you are not using your system, close the damper. If your factory built fireplace has glass doors, close them and tape the gaps between the glass and frame. Now that we have at least stopped smoke entry at these locations, lets talk about the solution. You will need to address your HOA an request an NFPA-211, level II inspection which should include both systems within the common structure. "Google" fireplace inspections and be certain to contract with an inspector that know how to perform this inspection, simple running a camera through the flue is not a level II inspection, You should be able to obtain the manufactures installation instructions to assist in the inspection. You are experiencing a combination of stack effect and cross over draft. The flue pipes may not be installed far enough apart or there could be a decorative shroud that isn't listed for these fireplaces installed at the top, any number of things. Good luck.