I've got a two-story balloon frame house that is gutted. I have to install fire blocking between studs in the wall cavity. Do I install the fire blocking wherever there is a floor, or wherever there is a ceiling? (Or both?)
Balloon frame fire blocking
fireblockingframing
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Best Answer
Blocking is required wherever a fire or draft can pass from horizontal plane to a vertical plane or vice versa. In otherwords, where the wall meets the floor and the floor meets a ceiling. If fire can pass through one section and travel to another, it needs to be blocked. The 2012 IRC code says that a 16" section of fiberglass insulation will suffice as fireblocking. If you are insulating the outside walls as it is, you will be covered.