Decks and fire code

Hi All, We live on the top two floors of a townhouse, and the lower floor has a deck in the back (24’x12′) that is currently made of very old, crumbly treated wood. I’m looking to replace it, but I’m a bit confused about the fire code having gotten two different opinions from an architect and a contractor. According to the architect, the city only requires that the 3 feet near the property line be made of non-combustible material, and the rest can be made of anything (like IPE wood, comopsite, lumber, etc.). The contractor says it all has to be non-combustible.  Does anyone have any experience with this?

TIA,
Art
p.s. I’d normally just do it with wood and three feet of stone, but we have an inspection coming in a few months and I’d hate to throw money away

acmeanvil

in Building Code 13 years ago

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dazednconfused2 | 12 years and 10 months ago

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glad to help

deancollins | 12 years and 10 months ago

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wow jimhill, very cool, i’d never read about the terrace/deck comparison before this post.

I was always wondering how the terrace was legally installed in the early 90’s for our apartment by a previous owner (i know it was approved as saw some documentation years ago).

Now i know why we have wood within the 3ft of the neighbor (i thought maybe was affected by recent dob changes).

pigthree | 13 years ago

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Since you have only gotten opinions from an architect and contractor, why not go with Jim who seems to know the ropes?

dazednconfused2 | 13 years ago

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I’ve seen it interpreted either way.  To be sure, I would file a preconsideration with the DOB.

acmeanvil | 13 years ago

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Yes, that’s exactly what I’m describing. Is it then 20% of the total roof area of the building (that is, the top of the building as well as all the setbacks), or just 20% of the individual setback on our floor?

dazednconfused2 | 13 years ago

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So you’re in the top two floor of a four-story building with rear setbacks?  The third floor (the lower floor of your duplex) has access to the roof of the second floor, directly below you and sticking out another 10 feet?  And the second floor has a similar relationship to the first, except with 15 foot of roof accessible at the rear?  And the first floor has direct access to the garden?   Sounds to me like you’re building a roof terrace on top of a rear setback.  If there is enclosed interior space below what you’re calling a deck, then it’s a terrace, not a deck.  In which case the 20% rule would apply, not the 3′-0″.

acmeanvil | 13 years ago

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Thanks! To explain exactly – the first floor of the building  is 50 ft deep, the second floor is 35 ft deep, and our two floora are 25 ft deep. The deck is on top of the remaining 10 ft in the back. There’s nothing on the roof of the building (it’s slanted). I guess in this case if I want to be conservative then the 3′ rule keeps me safe?    Yes, I figured already anything that isn’t stone, glass, or metal is considered by the dob to be like gunpowder…   Thanks again,  Art

dazednconfused2 | 13 years ago

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If it truly is a deck, not a terrace built over a roof, then the structure and decking within 3′-0″ of the property line needs to be non-combustible.  Beyond that, it doesn’t matter.  And by the way, Ipe is treated no differently than any other wood.  It is combustible.   If it is a terrace, then it can all be wood, but cannot exceed 20% of the roof area.  Usually you can get the DOB to accept the terrace as part of the entire roof, so that would be 20% of the combined roof area.