Fire-Hardening, Rebuilding #LA Fires, (updated Feb. 2025)
- David Kelley
- Nov 4, 2021
- 3 min read
Updated: Oct 7
California is prone to flooding, fires, earthquakes and the coastal areas can receive near hurricane winds. In 2022 alone, the state had over 7,000 wildfires that burned over 360,000 acres and over 700 structures were destroyed. But there are ways to protect your home from fire-damage and many of them are now required by the California Building Code if you build within a Fire Zone.
Code Required items in a Fire Zone:
Fire-resistant siding and enclosed soffits: Cement board siding, such as James Hardie siding and soffit panels is an excellent choice, as it is a long-lasting, durable product that is non-combusitble and meets WUI requirements.
Ember-resistant vents: These vents do not allow the passage of embers during a fire event. I recommend VulcanVent, because they have an additional layer coated with intumescent paint that expands and closes off the vent when exposed to heat and flames.
Roofing: Needs to be Class "A" rated. Nearly all manufacturers can provide this, but I recommend GAF Timberline HDZ, as they have some of the strongest warranty protections in the industry.
Dual-Pane Tempered Windows (and skylights): Nearly all window manufacturer's offer dual-pane tempered windows (only one pane is required to be tempered to be compliant with WUI codes) but I recommend tempering both panes, as it is more safe from both sides of the window, and prevents accidental "cracking" of one of the panes.
Exterior Doors: Need to either have an exterior surface that is non-combustible, ignition resistant, solid-core, or be 20 minute rated. Many manufacturers can meet this rating.
Exterior Decking: This question comes up a lot. All exterior decking in a fire zone must be either ignition resistant, fire-treated (by the manufacturer with tests and ratings, not by the home-owner), or non-combustible. This means a minimum of 2x6 Douglas Fir, Redwood, Cedar, Ipe (and other similar hardwoods) or composite deck boards that have been tested and listed in the Building Materials Handbook by the State Fire Marshall.
It has been about a month since the #LAFIRES and although the assessments are still ongoing, it is reported that over 16,000 structures have been damaged or destroyed, with 29 deaths so far.
The devastation is jaw-dropping and the individual loss to the families and occupants who lived there is nearly unfathomable. My heart goes out to all those who have suffered from the fires, and I have donated as much as I can to the American Red Cross for their tireless efforts in helping those in times of distress.
As I was looking at the seemingly endless pictures of all the devastation, I came across this post of a house that didn't burn down, even though it was surrounded by destruction in all directions. You can even see the melted aluminum wheels of the SUV in the neighbor's driveway, and the fire damage on the concrete, but the house did not burn down. It was posted by the architect, Greg Chasen, who designed the house.
I looked at it, awestruck at first, but then I started reading the comments in which the architect described that he used a Class A ipe deck, tempered glass windows, enclosed soffits, positioned landscaping away from the house, installed a fire-rated roof, and a concrete wall at the perimeter of the property. Nearly all of these things (except the concrete wall at the perimeter of the property) are current requirements of the California Building Code for construction in a Fire Zone as defined by Calfire.
This gave me a sliver of hope, as it was verifiable evidence that the fire codes do indeed work! However, there is still an ongoing investigation into the cause of the fires, and there might be further requirements for water tank capacity, but as an architect, it gave me a lot more confidence to literally see a concrete example of a home that made it through the fires.
There is still much work to be done in order for LA to rebuild in those areas, and perhaps there will be more code changes that arise from the investigations, but based on my experience and to the best of my knowledge at this time, all of the fire code requirements that are part of the California Building Code (Chapter 7A) are currently being implemented and enforced throughout all jurisdictions in Marin County as requirements for all homes built in fire zones. So, you can be sure that the same fire codes that kept this home from burning down are being implemented as standard practice at California Modern.
Sincerely,
David M. Kelley, AIA
More Useful Links:
Comments