Wantage Township City Zoning Code
§ 13-14.7
Outdoor Wood Furnaces.
a.
General regulations for outdoor wood furnaces.
1.
No person shall, from the effective date of this subsection, adopted December 8, 2011, construct, install, establish, operate or maintain an outdoor wood furnace other than in compliance with the applicable subsections of this section.
2.
No person shall, from the effective date of this subsection operate an existing outdoor wood furnace unless such operation conforms with the manufacturer's instructions regarding such operation and maintenance, and the requirements of this section regarding fuels that may be burned in an outdoor wood furnace as set forth in paragraphs b,6 and b,7.
3.
All new outdoor wood furnaces shall be constructed, established, installed, operated and maintained in conformance with the manufacturer's instructions and the requirements of this subsection. In the event of a conflict, the requirements of this subsection shall apply unless the manufacturer's instructions are stricter, in which case the manufacturer's instructions shall apply.
4.
The owner of any new outdoor wood furnace shall obtain a permit to operate an outdoor wood furnace and submit the following documents:
(a)
The manufacturer's owner's manual or installation instructions to the building department prior to installation.
(b)
Provide a location plan.
(c)
A signed affidavit in a form provided by the Township of Wantage stating that the new outdoor wood furnace is being installed to the specifications stated for the unit being utilized and acknowledging the township, county and State regulations for operation of the unit and potential for fines if operation does not meet township, county and State regulations.
5.
All new outdoor wood furnaces shall be laboratory tested and listed to appropriate safety standards such as UL, CAN/eSA, ANSI or other applicable safety standards and meet emission limits of EPA OHH Phase 2 Program.
6.
Nuisance. If an existing outdoor wood furnace is, through the course of a proper investigation by local or State authorities, creating a verifiable nuisance, as defined by ordinance or law, the owner shall be required to take the following steps at the direction of the building department or code enforcement officer of Wantage Township:
(a)
Modifications made to the unit to eliminate the nuisance such as extending the chimney or relocating the outdoor wood furnace or both, as specified in this subsection.
(b)
Cease and desist operating the unit until reasonable steps can be taken to ensure that the outdoor wood furnace will not be a nuisance.
(c)
Demonstrate that the outdoor wood furnace is installed in compliance with manufacturer's instructions.
7.
The sale or transfer of any property with an existing outdoor wood furnace shall be required to obtain a permit to operate as defined in paragraph a,4 of this subsection. The furnace unit shall be removed or rendered inoperable until an inspection of the furnace is conducted and operation of the furnace in accordance with manufacturer instructions is verified.
b.
Lot size, setbacks, operation, and chimney height. Outdoor wood furnaces shall be constructed, established, installed, operated and maintained pursuant to the following conditions:
1.
The minimum lot size for a new outdoor wood furnace is 10 acres.
2.
The minimum setbacks for a new outdoor wood furnace are 500 feet from any structure not located on the subject lot or adjacent property building envelope, whichever is greater, and a minimum of 300 feet from any property line.
3.
No outdoor wood furnace shall be located within 800 feet of the property lines of a school, daycare, medical facility, park or public building.
4.
The location of any new outdoor wood furnace shall not be located in front of the primary residence. For corner lots, this limitation shall apply to both residential structure sides facing a roadway.
5.
The outdoor wood furnace shall be located on the property in compliance with manufacturer's recommendations and or testing and listing requirements for clearance to combustible materials.
6.
Fuel burned in any new or existing outdoor wood furnace shall be only natural untreated wood, wood pellets, corn products, biomass pellets or other listed fuels specifically permitted by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.
7.
Use of outdoor wood furnaces is prohibited between April 15 and October 15.
8.
The following fuels are prohibited in any new and/or existing outdoor wood furnaces:
(a)
Wood that has been painted, varnished or coated with similar material and/or has been pressure treated with preservatives and contains resins or glues as in plywood or other composite wood products.
(b)
Rubbish or garbage, including but not limited to food wastes, food packaging, food wraps.
(c)
Any plastic materials including but not limited to nylon, PVC, ABS, polystyrene or urethane foam, and synthetic fabrics, plastic films and plastic containers.
(d)
Rubber, including tires or other synthetic rubber-like products.
(e)
Newspaper, cardboard, or any paper with ink or dye products.
(f)
Any other items not specifically allowed by the manufacturer or this provision.
9.
Chimney heights for any new outdoor wood furnace model.
(a)
The chimney of any new outdoor wood furnace shall extend at least two feet above the peak of any residence not served by the outdoor wood furnace located within 500 feet of such outdoor wood furnace.
(b)
If located more than 500 feet from any residence not served by furnace, the stack height shall be in accordance with manufacturer's instructions but in no case be less than five feet above the peak roof line of the furnace unit.
10.
Outdoor wood-pellet furnaces that are specifically designed to burn wood pellet fuel, corn or other biomass pellets with metered fuel and air feed and controlled combustion engineering shall be installed per the manufacturer's recommendations.