WATERVILLE — Sparks from a wood pellet stove exhaust pipe caused a fire Monday that damaged a 200-year-old house at 44 Church St., fire Chief David Coughlin said Tuesday.

Coughlin said the fire at the home of Tom and Kathy Hayes damaged the living room on the second floor where the couple lived.

The first floor, where their daughter and her family lived, was damaged by water, according to Coughlin.

“It actually started kind of on the outside of the building,” he said of the fire.

He said the exhaust pipe from the pellet stove on the second floor went through a wall to the outside of the house.

“Sparks came out of the pellet stove exhaust,” he said. “Under the exhaust pipe was an area exposed without siding. Sparks landed in an area where there was insulation and combustible materials. It appears a fire smoldered there for a while.”

The wind was blowing and swirling in that area, and the fire got between the first and second floors, Coughlin said.

About 35 firefighters from five towns worked at the scene Monday.

Coughlin said most of the damage on the second floor was from smoke and heat and he thinks a lot of the family’s belonging will be salvageable but will need to be cleaned. The house is insured.

He said he believed the family stayed with friends or relatives Monday night and were hoping to get back into the house Tuesday.

Amy Calder — 861-9247

acalder@centralmaine.com