Firestop in Mass Timber Construction 

I remember when I first hear about mass timber being adopted into the 2021 IBC. There was a lot of confusion and fear. I remember being in Virginia at the ICC Code hearings teaching and when I walked the booths there were people talking about how bad mass timber was. The were fear mongers trying to scare people about the risk of fire.   

Then I wandered around a bit more and found the Tall Timber booth. Being a firestop geek, I asked lots of question about the fire tests. I mean LOTS of questions, pointed fact seeking queries.  What I received in return were facts, figures, data and HOLY cow…information supporting why this should be approved.   

Now don’t get me wrong, I am not saying it’s the perfect construction material, but it’s not this big scary fiery inferno the fear mongers made it out to be.   

It’s a really interesting option with a long list of benefits. It’s not perfect for every construction project, but if you say not to mass timber because you are scared; please get educated. Ask questions. There are so many fabulous resources if you want to know more.  I will be at the Mass Timber Conference next week. I will be learning more. Meeting more amazing people and seeing how I can support projects and teams who want to build better.  If you cant make it and want a resource to lean on please visit this website https://www.woodworks.org or reach out the team for support.