Building Code Dekalb County Atlanta, Ga for building deck additio

[Paul C.]

I live in Dekalb County Atlanta, Ga and am thinking of extending the deck to approximately double the size, but I'm nervous I may be running into an issue. The area where I would like to extend the deck has my 2 big AC units. Am I allowed to build over these as long as I leave a couple of feet of room for ventilation? I tried to look at my county code and did not find anything, but it also mentions the international building code which was hard to search for this exactly. Any help is much appreciated!

[Bradley Behr]

If you are worried more about "should I do this because I don't want to harm my condensing unit" then an easier source of information is your manufacturer's recommendations, which may be listed online or available for download.

If you are worried more about "I want to do it regardless of performance issues but just need to know if I am allowed" then a quick phone call to the code enforcement office Monday or Tuesday (whenever they decide to open) will be better than anything anyone here can tell you (unless, of course, someone in DeKalb County had the same issue they researched).

When you call, all you need to do is ask to speak with code enforcement and then ask: "When it comes to building a deck, are there any rules about required clearances above air conditioner condensing units?"