Firewall In Condo Attic

If there is a firewall in your attic the fire rating should be printed on the.

Firewall in condo attic.

And that is true condos have fire protection between units for a reason. In tha attic there were firewalls between the units. Also the units were converted to condos townhomes in 2007 and the builder made significant updates but again the attic was not changed. For example if there is a middle located townhome with adjacent units on either side you will have 1 hour of fire separation at each side.

The first picture below illustrates a portion of a townhome unit s firewall in an attic that is totally sealed off to provide 1 hour of fire protection on both sides. I checked with a couple other inspectors and the general concensus was the firewall was missing. Because of this the condominium association wants a fire barrier put in if any work is done in the attic. It didn t seem right though as it was just such a huge oversight.

The international residential code requires that in townhomes and duplexes each unit needs to be separated from the next by fire walls. Arriving at a condo development with many small buildings each building with two levels and housing 10 or 12 units i was met by the buyer who already lived in a different building and the seller. The firewall should extend into the attic separating your attic space from the attic above the neighboring units. I did find a hole punched in the drywall that i believe goes through to the next unit.

Material needed to fix a firewall at home. In addition each unit needs to be self supporting where the collapse of one unit will not damage the neighboring unit. I dont inspect a lot of condos but this morning i did one. I believe this is a breech in the firewall and should be repaired.

Looked at a job air sealing and adding some insulation in a condo. I guess im just looking for.