[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council
of the Borough of Prospect Park 10-13-1981 as Ord. No. 1006,
approved 10-13-1981. Amendments noted where applicable.]
No person, firm or corporation shall install
or operate a heating unit for fixed primary or supplemental heating
using any form of combustible material, including but not limited
to coal, wood, wood or coal by-products, gas or oil heaters in the
Borough of Prospect Park without complying with the terms of this
chapter. This chapter applies to units installed after the date of
passage.
No person shall install a fixed supplemental
or fixed primary heating unit without first obtaining a permit from
the Building Inspector for such installation. The Building Inspector
shall help the applicant by providing advice on how to comply with
the terms of this chapter. The heating unit shall not be operated
until it is inspected and approved, upon completion, by the Building
Inspector and/or the Fire Marshal. No separate permit shall be required
for any installation in new construction which is covered by a permit
issued under the various building codes of the Borough of Prospect
Park. In such case, no separate permit shall be required under this
chapter; however, all other provisions of this chapter shall be complied
with and applicable to said installation.
[Amended 12-14-1993 by Ord. No. 1147,
approved 12-14-1993[1]]
There shall be a permit fee as fixed and amended
from time to time by resolution of the Borough Council,[2] which shall include the cost of inspections.
Before a permit is issued, the following information
is required to be submitted by the applicant:
A.ย
Manufacturer's data and specifications relating to
the heating unit. If the manufacturer's data is not available, a written
opinion by a person with not less than two years' full-time experience
in the heating business may be submitted.
B.ย
Proposed material to be used under the heating unit,
description of flues and the description of all materials, including
walls and ceilings, within four feet of the location of the unit.
C.ย
All clearances from the unit and flues to any part
of the structure within four feet of the location.
D.ย
A statement, signed by the owner, saying that the
owner understands that the flues must be inspected regularly and cleaned
not less often than once each year.
Clearances from combustible materials shall
be maintained of not less than the following:
A.ย
Factory-built fireplaces shall have hearth extensions
where the floor is of other than noncombustible material.
B.ย
Hearth extensions shall be of a noncombustible material,
such as brick, concrete, metal, stone or tile, of a height or design
such that floor covering, such as carpet, will not be placed on or
even with the hearth extension, but in no case shall the thickness
be less than 3/8 of an inch.
C.ย
Hearth extensions shall extend not less than 16 inches
in front of and not less than eight inches beyond each side of the
fireplace opening.
The flue pipe shall be of suitable size and
of a minimum double-wall construction and comply with all applicable
laws and ordinances. No other equipment shall be connected to such
chimney. The chimney shall be constructed as to prevent the leakage
of smoke or flue gases. The chimney pipe shall be straight and short
as possible with no more than two ninety-degree bends. Three sheet-metal
screws shall be installed at each connection, and overlapping joints
shall be made with the male end toward the stove.
Flues shall be designed to prevent the escape
of smoke or products of combustion and to withstand corrosion. When
a stove connects to a masonry chimney, the flue and chimney shall
be of the double-walled type, designed to prevent overheating of adjacent
wall areas.
In determining whether a proposed installation
meets the requirements of this chapter, the Building Inspector may
consider Federal Housing Administration specifications, including
FHA minimum property standards FHA Number 30, Chapter 813, and including
reports of testing laboratories.
No coal shall be burned in a stove designed
or rated for burning wood only. All wood to be burned shall be dry.
Pine or other wood with a high concentration of pitch shall not be
burned, except as a part of a fire using hardwoods for at least 4/5
of the fuel.
The owner or some person acting on his behalf
shall examine each chimney and flue at least once each six weeks during
the heating season and once before the start of each heating season.
Flues and chimneys shall be cleaned at least once each year.
Any person, firm or corporation violating any
provision of this chapter shall be fined in the discretion of the
District Justice up to a maximum of $300 for each offense, and a separate
offense shall be deemed committed on each day during on or which a
violation occurs or continues.
Nothing contained in this chapter shall lessen
any standards set forth and previously adopted by reference thereto
by the Borough when it adopted the National Fire Standards Code and
the Building Codes and Building Maintenance Codes.[1]
References to standards or distances in this
chapter are to the National Building Code, 1976 Edition, and UL 127,
Factory Built Fireplaces, 1971 Edition.