Fire Separation Assembly
Not a Firewall
To the Editor:
Regarding the June '99 item on
"Firewall Details" (On the House):
According to the BOCA National
Building Code, the intent of a firewall,
or party wall, is to create separate
buildings. To accomplish this, a firewall
must be of noncombustible construction,
on an independent footing and
foundation, and structurally independent
to afford collapse on either side.
Perhaps the author was referring to a
"fire separation assembly," which separates
hazards from people but does not
create separate buildings. If that is the
case, the article and illustrations are
correct.
Kelly Reynolds, President
Kelly P. Reynolds & Associates
Chicago, Ill.
Thank you for the clarification; the intent
of the article was to illustrate construction
of a "fire