Lesson 5

Look at these home photos carefully to see evaluate their FireWise preparedness…what have the owners done that is good, what needs improvement, how does the neighborhood fir into the big picture?

Good job:  Screened in porch is good, screening under the deck might be good (although some experts now recommend NOT doing this because the screening can trap embers), wide driveway is good, green grass is good.
Needs work: Clean the roof, get the duff out from base of trees, remove some trees from back of house, make sure area under steps is free of burnables.
Neighborhood issues: It looks like trees are dense and continuous around this house. If the crowns are dry – perhaps in fall – fire could spread through the neighborhood.

Good job: Roof looks clean, there’s little vegetation next to house, there are no trees overhanging the house.
Needs work: Replace wood shake roof, rake needles from under trees.
Neighborhood issues: It looks like trees in the area may be well spaced; that would be good. If pine litter is continuous throughout the neighborhood, that should be removed, probably every spring.

Good job: House has a clean roof, there’s little vegetation next to house, there are no trees overhanging house, there’s a green lawn.
Needs work: Water the lawn a little more.
Neighborhood issues: There may be a road above the house; that would be a good fuel break, although trees could be thinned a bit to reduce crown continuity. Just hope no one lives on the steep hillside above this property.

Good job:House has a clean roof and a green lawn, there’s no vegetation close to house, house has shingle roof.
Needs work: Get rid of the wood latticework below deck. Make sure there’s no flammable stuff under there. Replace bark chips below deck with rocks.
Neighborhood issues: It looks like trees and surface fuels uphill from the property are continuous and fairly dense, so a fire on this property could easily spread through them. In addition, if a fire occurs uphill, burning materials could roll down to the base of this house.