My concrete hearth is under construction!!
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Simonkenton
Minister of Fire
Well, down here in Dixie, it is laissez-faire. Or, caveat emptor. You are left to your own devices.
I am diligent, I look up the specs. I built the fireplace pictured to the left, and I have installed 7 wood stoves, never had a problem.
My neighbor up here in the NC mountains is what we call a half-back. He is a New York Yankee who moved to Florida, then moved half the way back to North Carolina.
Frank is a know it all Yankee from Buffalo New York.
He had moved down to Ft. Lauderdale at age 20. At age 54 he moved up here to NC. Had never used a wood stove.
The big log cabin Frank bought had a pre fab fireplace. Frank told me he was going to install a free standing wood stove into the fireplace.
Being the nice guy that I am, I got onto google, and bought him this book for 20 bucks.
http://www.amazon.com/Jay-Sheltons-Solid-Fuel-Encyclopedia/dp/0882663070
Though this book was, at that time, about 20 years old, it was a wealth of info about wood stoves. It had about 20 pages on the fire dept. codes on wood stove installation, especially including installs into an existing fireplace.
Frank thanked me for the book, this was in August.
He went ahead and installed his wood stove.
Come late October of that year, the second time he lit up his wood stove, he charged it up with wood and went down into the town of Marshall to go to work.
Two hours later, his house burned down.
I read the report from the Fire Department, it said "Improper installation of wood stove."
A week later, I said to Frank, the Know-it-All Yankee, "Did you ever get a chance to read that wood stove book I bought you."
He replied, "No, I never got a chance to read that book you gave me. It burned up in the fire."
If you look up the word "ironic" in the dictionary, you will see Frank's picture.
So, for diligent guys like me, no government inspection is needed. For know-it-all Yankees, or else, for dumb-ass Southern hillbillies, government inspection is needed.
I am diligent, I look up the specs. I built the fireplace pictured to the left, and I have installed 7 wood stoves, never had a problem.
My neighbor up here in the NC mountains is what we call a half-back. He is a New York Yankee who moved to Florida, then moved half the way back to North Carolina.
Frank is a know it all Yankee from Buffalo New York.
He had moved down to Ft. Lauderdale at age 20. At age 54 he moved up here to NC. Had never used a wood stove.
The big log cabin Frank bought had a pre fab fireplace. Frank told me he was going to install a free standing wood stove into the fireplace.
Being the nice guy that I am, I got onto google, and bought him this book for 20 bucks.
http://www.amazon.com/Jay-Sheltons-Solid-Fuel-Encyclopedia/dp/0882663070
Though this book was, at that time, about 20 years old, it was a wealth of info about wood stoves. It had about 20 pages on the fire dept. codes on wood stove installation, especially including installs into an existing fireplace.
Frank thanked me for the book, this was in August.
He went ahead and installed his wood stove.
Come late October of that year, the second time he lit up his wood stove, he charged it up with wood and went down into the town of Marshall to go to work.
Two hours later, his house burned down.
I read the report from the Fire Department, it said "Improper installation of wood stove."
A week later, I said to Frank, the Know-it-All Yankee, "Did you ever get a chance to read that wood stove book I bought you."
He replied, "No, I never got a chance to read that book you gave me. It burned up in the fire."
If you look up the word "ironic" in the dictionary, you will see Frank's picture.
So, for diligent guys like me, no government inspection is needed. For know-it-all Yankees, or else, for dumb-ass Southern hillbillies, government inspection is needed.
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True that ignorance knows no bounds, though I wish all southerners were diligent. Unfortunately we see a lot of uninspected disasters here installed by bubbas with little regard for instructions or safety. A single-wall stove pipe stuck out the window is what comes to mind. Foolishness doesn't stop at a state line.
Simonkenton
Minister of Fire
Well, genecop, interesting you should ask. Frank racked in $160 K in insurance cash. He had paid $127K for the house, but it was in pretty rough shape when he bought it, he had put in $33K in repairs and remodeling. So, he got back his $160K.
But, he still had his five acre lot, a very nice lot on top of the mountain with views, etc. Also, still had his septic tank, valued at $2,500, and he still had his well, valued at $6K.
Lot was worth at least $60K. Frank made a killing on that fire.
He came back and built a giant 3,700 square foot log palace, which he sold several years later for $427 K. Made some money on that deal too.
You know, when a businessman, who is having trouble with his business up in New York City, has a disastrous fire and his business burns down, and he gets a big insurance check, they call it "Jewish Lightning."
Are you suggesting that Frank's fire was not accidental? If so, I am "shocked, shocked!!"
I can tell you that, in my little town, I talked to a dozen people who assertively said that Frank torched that house.
Well, I was Frank's next door neighbor, had helped Frank to remodel that house, and indeed I was the one who discovered the fire and I called 911.
I also called Frank at work and told him of the fire. When he got to the house, I saw his eyes as big as saucers. He yelled to me "My wedding ring and 3 shotguns are in there" and I had to hold him back, he was going to go inside and try to rescue that stuff.
So, I am sure that the fire was an accident. But, maybe Frank is a wily Yankee and a very good actor. Who knows?
ps Six months later, he got divorced. Seems, Frank had a stacked blonde girlfriend the whole time. Maybe that wedding ring wasn't as important to Frank as he led me to believe.
Frank was of Polish ancestry. Maybe we had some "Polish Lightning" in the North Carolina woods.
But, he still had his five acre lot, a very nice lot on top of the mountain with views, etc. Also, still had his septic tank, valued at $2,500, and he still had his well, valued at $6K.
Lot was worth at least $60K. Frank made a killing on that fire.
He came back and built a giant 3,700 square foot log palace, which he sold several years later for $427 K. Made some money on that deal too.
You know, when a businessman, who is having trouble with his business up in New York City, has a disastrous fire and his business burns down, and he gets a big insurance check, they call it "Jewish Lightning."
Are you suggesting that Frank's fire was not accidental? If so, I am "shocked, shocked!!"
I can tell you that, in my little town, I talked to a dozen people who assertively said that Frank torched that house.
Well, I was Frank's next door neighbor, had helped Frank to remodel that house, and indeed I was the one who discovered the fire and I called 911.
I also called Frank at work and told him of the fire. When he got to the house, I saw his eyes as big as saucers. He yelled to me "My wedding ring and 3 shotguns are in there" and I had to hold him back, he was going to go inside and try to rescue that stuff.
So, I am sure that the fire was an accident. But, maybe Frank is a wily Yankee and a very good actor. Who knows?
ps Six months later, he got divorced. Seems, Frank had a stacked blonde girlfriend the whole time. Maybe that wedding ring wasn't as important to Frank as he led me to believe.
Frank was of Polish ancestry. Maybe we had some "Polish Lightning" in the North Carolina woods.
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