Attic Concrete Chimney Fire Blocking Old Homes

The bottom block stops the fire from getting into the wall.

Attic concrete chimney fire blocking old homes.

The metal factory built hearth systems are found mostly in houses built after the 1950s. Most masonry chimneys are made with bricks though there are also block chimneys. Short circuits the fire blocking if for instance you install a soffit without separating it from the wall cavity fire is free to travel up the stud bay through the soffit and into the joist bays. A small amount of efflorescence is common.

By old we mean houses more than 60 years old. Fire blocking designed to slow down the spread of fire from one floor of your house to the next. The allure of a home with a past and especially a historically relevant past can be hard to resist. Some could be caused by rainfall soaking into the brick.

Typically inspectors are looking for fire blocking in the gaps between the foundation wall and the framed wall of your basement specifically at the top of that wall area. The chimney crown is the cement part on top of the chimney. Look carefully at old windows on old homes for signs of staining mold or other damage. But more likely and more serious the problem is moisture in warm air from inside the house condensing on the interior of the chimney during cold weather.

You can see that the very purpose of the chimney crown is to keep rain out. Chimney inspection diagnosis and repair role of pyrolysis in increasing future fire hazard in a building how to inspect diagnose and repair chimney problems and safety hazards extensive photo illustrated guide to. Guide to fire stopping at chimney passage through building floors what are the fire stopping or fire block details needed where a chimney passes through building floors. Doing this correctly can get tricky depending on the complexity of the building.

The drywall that is your ceiling is a form of fire blocking. If fire blocking or stopping is not in place the space between each of the wall studs acts like its own high velocity chimney. Types of fireplaces in older homes. But if the amount of efflorescence on your chimney is excessive it may be cause for concern.

But imagine what happens if you do put a solid piece of wood at the bottom and top of the wall in between all of the wall studs in this house. The bricks go up around the tile flue liners but at the top you need something to stop the rain and snow from just falling in around the tiles.