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© Buildwise, LLC

Publication Review

Title: Firewise Construction
Author: Peter Slack, Colorado State Forest Service, FEMA
File: Free Guide, PDF
Cover: 60.9 KB, 1 page
Chapter 1: 114 KB, 8 pages
Chapters 2-3: 173 KB, 10 pages
Chapters 4-6: 562 KB, 24 pages
Audience: For homeowners, builders and architects.

Review
A guide to fire resistant construction for building in the mountains and within wildland/urban interfaces. Interestingly written by an architect who is also a firefighter.

Issues covered include:

• Chapter 1 - Introduction
  • Table of contents
  • What is the wildland urban interface?
  • Fire suppression and increased fuels
  • How can we protect buildings?
  • Fire intensity and duration related to the fire resistance of a house
    
• Chapter 2 - Fire Behavior: Fuels, Topography and Weather
  • Wildland fires and burning structures
  • Vegetation is the fuel for wildland fires
  • Fire duration and fuel
  • Fire behavior and slope
  • Fire behavior, ignition of fuels, mechanisms of heat transfer
  • Convective lifting
  • Indirect convective heating, radiant heating
  • Direct contact or impingement
  • Weather
• Chapter 3 - Building Site Location
  • Topography and vegetation: fire behavior and intensity
  • Aspects
  • Dangerous topographic features
  • Natural barriers and buffer zones
  • How this affects building location and design decisions
• Chapter 4 - Building Design
  • Simple vs complex forms
  • Aspect ratios
  • Vents, eaves,soffits, decks
  • Decks
• Chapter 5 - Building Materials and Components
  • Ratings
  • Roofing
  • Siding
  • Windows and glass
  • Doors
• Chapter 6 - Summary
  • References and additional information

Detail drawings include:

• Chapter 1
  • Photo of house close to trees - bad
  • Evaluating fire hazard chart
• Chapter 2
  • Slope angle chard
  • Diagrams showing how heat and fire spread in different situations
• Chapter 3
• Aspect of slope diagrams
• Natural barriers diagram
• Defensible space diagram
• Chapter 4
  • Diagrams showing how building form effects ignition, heat traps
  • Diagram of aspect ratio and reduction of ignitable area
  • Diagram/details of ignition resistant construction practices, vents, soffits, decks, etc.
• Chapter 5
  • Various photos of materials
  • Diagram of windows, heat transfer, size and type
    

Related Links

Firewise
Resource library and other information about wildfires

Institute for Business and Home Safety
Features downloadable brochures about natural hazards including wildfires.

National Database of State and Local Wildfire Hazard Mitigation Programs
A good place to find local programs and information about wildfire mitigation

Rocky Mountain Wildfire Information
Database of information about wildfires and prevention