Protect Your Home from Wildfire | Top 3 Tips

Summary

Eric Lovegren, Community Mitigation Manager for Eagle County, discusses strategies to reduce wildfire risks in the Sky Legend community, Colorado. He highlights the importance of ember exposure mitigation, creating defensible space, managing vegetation, and home hardening. Lovegren also emphasizes the need for community preparedness, including evacuation planning and insurance coverage discussions, to build fire-adapted and resilient communities.

Takeaways

• 🏠 **Home Hardening**: Protect your home from ember exposure by hardening it against wildfire threats.
• 🔥 **Ember Mitigation**: Install metal screening to prevent embers from entering the attic space through vents.
• 🌳 **Vegetation Management**: Manage both native and landscaping vegetation around your house to create a defensible space.
• 🛑 **Fuel Identification**: Identify and address all potential fuel sources on your property, including trees, shrubs, and built structures.
• 🧱 **Ignition Resistance**: Use fire-resistant materials like cement fiber board for exterior walls to mitigate flame exposure.
• 🚫 **Avoid Combustible Materials**: Remove combustible vegetation near exterior walls to prevent fire ignition from embers or sparks.
• 🌿 **Landscaping Choices**: Opt for non-combustible landscaping materials or fire-resistant plant species to reduce fuel for wildfires.
• 🏡 **Defensible Space**: Create a defensible space by managing vegetation and ensuring a non-combustible surface extends from your foundation.
• ⚠️ **Emergency Preparedness**: Sign up for a notification system to be alerted of wildfires and other emergencies in your area.
• 📝 **Evacuation Plan**: Prepare an evacuation plan that prioritizes people and pets, followed by essential documents and irreplaceable items.
• 🏢 **Insurance Coverage**: Discuss with your insurance provider to ensure you have adequate coverage to rebuild in case of a total loss from a wildfire.
• 🔍 **Risk Assessment**: Consider signing up for a free wildfire risk assessment to understand and reduce wildfire risks on your property.

Q & A

Who is Eric Lovegren and what is his role in Eagle County?

Eric Lovegren is the Community Mitigation Manager for Eagle County. He is responsible for discussing community wildfire risks and mitigation strategies to reduce the threat of wildfires in the area.

What is the primary concern when a wildfire approaches a home?

The primary concern when a wildfire approaches a home is the arrival of burning flying embers, which can land on the structure and potentially ignite fires.

How can a gable vent contribute to the risk of a wildfire spreading in a home?

A gable vent can bring large burning embers into the attic space of a home, increasing the risk of fire spreading within the structure.

What is the recommended mitigation strategy for gable vents to prevent ember entry?

The recommended mitigation strategy is to install an eighth of an inch metal screening behind the gable vent to prevent embers from entering and causing damage.

What are the two types of fuels that a wildfire looks to consume?

A wildfire looks to consume vegetative fuels, such as trees and shrubs, and built fuels, which include the house and everything that goes into it.

Why is the use of cement fiber board on a wall considered a good mitigation strategy against potential flame exposure?

Cement fiber board is extremely ignition and fire-resistant, making it a great mitigation strategy against potential flame exposure as it reduces the risk of the wall catching fire.

What are the potential weak points in the exterior of a building that can be identified in the script?

Potential weak points in the exterior of a building include wood siding and windows, which are more susceptible to catching fire compared to materials like cement fiber board.

What is the purpose of having a non-combustible surface like gravel or rock extending from the foundation of a house?

A non-combustible surface prevents fire from moving along the surface towards the exterior wall and stops embers from collecting and igniting the home.

Why is it a bad idea to plant combustible vegetation like Juniper and Sagebrush near exterior walls?

Planting combustible vegetation near exterior walls is risky because it can catch a spark and ignite, potentially bringing fire to the wall and increasing the risk of the home catching fire.

What is the recommended action to mitigate the risk of fire from vegetation around a home?

The recommended action is to remove combustible vegetation like Juniper and Sagebrush and replace them with hardscaping or fire-resistant species of plants to reduce the risk of fire spreading to the home.

What steps should homeowners take to prepare for potential evacuation due to a wildfire?

Homeowners should sign up for a notification system like ecalert.org to be aware of emergencies, and when it's time to evacuate, they should prioritize getting people and pets to safety first, followed by essential documents and irreplaceable items within a 20-minute timeframe.

How can homeowners ensure they are adequately covered to rebuild in the event of a total loss from a wildfire?

Homeowners should have a conversation with their insurance provider to ensure they have adequate coverage to rebuild in case of a total loss from a wildfire.

What resources are available for homeowners to reduce wildfire risk on their property and within their community?

Resources available include free wildfire risk assessments through Eagle County or local fire districts, cost share assistance, and community-level fuel reduction projects and prioritization to create fire-adapted and more wildfire-resilient communities.

Outlines

00:00

🏠 Home Wildfire Risk Mitigation

Eric Lovegren, the community mitigation manager for Eagle County, discusses the risk of wildfires and how to mitigate them at the property level. He highlights the importance of hardening homes against ember exposure, managing vegetation for defensible space, and preparing families for wildfire emergencies. The video provides practical tips, such as using metal screening for vents, choosing fire-resistant building materials, and creating non-combustible surfaces around the home. It also emphasizes the need to remove combustible vegetation and replace it with fire-resistant landscaping to prevent fire from spreading to the home's exterior walls.

05:01

🚒 Emergency Preparedness and Wildfire Insurance

This paragraph focuses on the importance of emergency preparedness and insurance coverage in the face of inevitable wildfires. It advises residents to sign up for local notification systems to stay informed about wildfire emergencies and to prepare for quick evacuations by securing people, pets, and essential items within 20 minutes. The speaker also stresses the need for homeowners to review their insurance policies with providers to ensure adequate coverage for rebuilding in case of total loss due to wildfires. The paragraph concludes with a call to action, encouraging viewers to seek more information on wildfire risk assessments and community-level support for fuel reduction projects to create fire-adapted and resilient communities in Eagle County.

Keywords

💡Community Wildfire Risk

Community wildfire risk refers to the potential for wildfires to affect a community and the dangers they pose. In the video, Eric Lovegern discusses the unintentional invitation of wildfires onto properties and how to mitigate this threat. This concept is central to the video's theme as it highlights the importance of understanding and reducing the risk of wildfires in residential areas.

💡Ember Exposure

Ember exposure is the process by which burning embers from a wildfire can be carried by the wind and land on structures, potentially igniting fires. The video script mentions the need to harden homes against ember exposure by using metal screening on vents and managing vegetation. This is crucial in preventing wildfires from starting on properties due to embers.

💡Defensible Space

Defensible space is the area around a structure that has been cleared of combustible materials to slow the progress of a wildfire and provide safety for firefighters. The script discusses creating defensible space by managing vegetation around the house, which is essential for reducing the risk of a wildfire reaching and damaging the home.

💡Vegetation Management

Vegetation management involves the strategic removal or modification of plants and trees to reduce fire hazards. In the video, Eric talks about managing both native and landscaped vegetation to mitigate wildfire risk. This includes removing combustible vegetation and replacing it with fire-resistant species, which is a key strategy in wildfire prevention.

💡Cement Fiber Board

Cement fiber board is a building material known for its high resistance to ignition and fire. The script mentions that part of the wall in the video uses cement fiber board as a mitigation strategy against potential flame exposure. This material is highlighted as an effective way to protect homes from the direct impact of wildfires.

💡Wood Siding

Wood siding is a type of exterior wall cladding made from wood, which is highly combustible. The video script points out that wood siding, along with windows, can be weak points in a building's exterior armor against wildfires. This is an example of a material that increases the risk of a structure catching fire during a wildfire.

💡Gravel Rock

Gravel rock is a non-combustible surface that can be used to prevent fire from spreading along the ground towards a building. The script suggests using gravel rock as a barrier to prevent embers from collecting and igniting a home, illustrating its importance in creating a fire-resistant landscape around homes.

💡Combustible Vegetation

Combustible vegetation includes plants and trees that can easily catch fire and contribute to the spread of wildfires. The video discusses the need to remove combustible vegetation like Juniper and Sagebrush to reduce the risk of fire. This is a critical step in managing the fuel that wildfires can consume.

💡Notification System

A notification system is a method of alerting people about emergencies, such as wildfires. The script mentions signing up for a notification system at ecalert.org to receive alerts on mobile devices. This is essential for timely evacuation and response to wildfire threats, demonstrating its importance in community safety.

💡Evacuation

Evacuation refers to the process of leaving a dangerous area, such as during a wildfire. The video script provides guidelines for what to do when it's time to evacuate, emphasizing the importance of prioritizing people and pets, followed by essential items. This concept is crucial for personal safety and effective emergency response.

💡Insurance Coverage

Insurance coverage is the extent to which an insurance policy will compensate for losses. The video script suggests having a conversation with an insurance provider about adequate coverage to rebuild in the event of a total loss from a wildfire. This is an important consideration for homeowners to ensure they are financially prepared for potential wildfire damages.

Highlights

Eric Lovegern is the community mitigation manager for Eagle County, discussing wildfire risk and mitigation strategies in the Sky Legend community in Gypsum, Colorado.

Wildfires can be invited onto properties unintentionally through ember exposure and vegetation management.

Hardening homes against ember exposure involves creating defensible space and managing vegetation around the house.

Burning flying embers are the first to arrive as a wildfire approaches a home.

Gable vents can be a weak point in a home's defense against wildfires, allowing embers to enter the attic space.

Mitigating ember entry through vents can be achieved by installing an eighth of an inch metal screening.

Wildfires consume fuels, which include both vegetative and built materials on a property.

Cement fiber board is highly ignition and fire-resistant, making it a good mitigation strategy against flame exposure.

Wood siding and windows can be weak points in a home's exterior, making them potential fire hazards.

Using non-combustible surfaces like gravel or rock can prevent fire from moving along surfaces towards the exterior wall.

Woody shrubs near exterior walls can catch a spark and ignite, posing a fire hazard.

Removing combustible vegetation and replacing it with fire-resistant species can help mitigate fire risks.

Maintaining native grasses low within 30 feet of a structure is recommended for fire prevention.

Decks and other attachments to the building should be considered part of the home in terms of fire risk.

Junking Juniper and using ignition-resistant landscaping can help reduce fire hazards near the home.

Being notified of a fire and knowing when to evacuate is crucial, starting with signing up for a notification system like ecalert.org.

Evacuation should prioritize people and pets first, followed by essential items like prescriptions, paperwork, and irreplaceable items.

Homeowners should discuss insurance coverage with their providers to ensure they are adequately covered to rebuild in the event of a total loss from wildfire.

Wildfire disasters can be mitigated by taking steps to reduce wildfire risk on properties and within communities.

Free wildfire risk assessments and resources are available through Eagle County and local fire districts to help create fire-adapted communities.

Transcripts

hello I'm Eric lovegern I'm the

community mitigation manager for Eagle

County and we're here in the sky Legend

community in Gypsum Colorado to talk

about Community Wildfire risk and ways

that people unintentionally invite

wildfires onto their property in ways

that we might mitigate that threat

through hardening homes for Ember

exposure through creating defensible

Space by managing vegetation both native

and landscaping around your house and

then finally how you might better

prepare yourself and your family for the

inevitable return of wildfire to our

community so let's take a look at this

place and jump right into it so as a

wildfire approaches this home the first

thing that will arrive will be burning

flying Embers so we want to pay

particular attention to where those

Embers May land on the structure so

we'll look at the roof and work our way

down and we see here we have a gable

vent in this wall now that's designed to

bring air into the house and with it it

will bring large burning embers into the

attic space so we mitigate that by

providing a eighth of an inch metal

screening behind it so anything that

gets through isn't big enough to do any

damage so we want to look at all of the

fuels on the property both the home

itself and the vegetation surrounding it

so anything that burns is fuel and

that's what we're going to work on

looking at next so a wildfire looks to

consume fuels and in the case of this

house and this community there are a

variety of fuels present we have

vegetated fuels in the form of trees and

shrubs and then we have built fuels in

the form of this house and everything

that goes into it and they're not all

created equal so in this situation part

of this wall uses a cement fiber board

which is extremely ignition and fire

resistant and that is a great mitigation

strategy against potential flame

exposure to this wall but then we have a

small section here that has wood siding

and a window on it which are both

potential weak points in the exterior

armor of this building

so going with a gravel rock

non-combustible surface that extends out

from your foundation like this is a

great idea to prevent fire from moving

along the surface towards the exterior

wall or from Embers collecting in there

and igniting the home but in this case

we've planted a bunch of Woody shrubs in

here that could catch a spark and ignite

bringing fire to the wall and as we turn

the corner here into the side yard we'll

notice that there's a bunch of native

grasses and sage and other shrubs mixing

with Juniper that has been planted here

most likely to hide the HVAC and other

utilities back here in an effort to to

beautify the home but what has happened

is we've we've essentially stacked a

bunch of gasoline on a stick next to

this wood wall inviting fire in its many

forms to come here and ignite this home

so we mitigate by removing combustible

vegetation like Juniper and Sagebrush

and unpotenty and other Woody shrubs

replacing with hardscaping and other

kind of perennial type growth or or fire

resistant species of plants so now let's

take a look look at what's going on

behind this house as we see this owner

has already identified that having

combustible vegetation near exterior

walls

represents a potential fire hazard so we

want to continue this work out past the

initial five feet looking at removing

some of these Woody shrubs getting them

out and Away promoting healthier green

vegetation and keeping native grasses

low within 30 feet of a structure as

well and by low I mean less than six

inches

we also want to look at any kind of

attachment to the building so here we

have a large deck extending out over

this Gully

and a good thing to think about when

you're looking at your own home is that

if it's attached to your home it's part

of your home so my recommendation here

would be to junk the Juniper and go with

a much more ignition resistive type

Landscaping which could be perennial or

annual type flowers or it could be a

more native shrubs that have that are

deciduous in nature and have a higher

moisture content and and don't provide

as much fuel next to this built fuel

that is this home so now that we've done

everything humanly possible to prepare

this home and surrounding area for fire

we need to start talking about the

people who live in here and there's the

first thing is being notified of of the

fact that there is a fire and it's time

to evacuate which starts with signing up

for a notification system in this County

it's

ecalert.org and you'll be able to go in

there and sign up all of your mobile

devices and and be aware of all kinds of

emergency that are happening especially

Wildfire emergencies and when it's time

to evacuate a good rule of thumb when it

is time to evacuate is to start with the

piece and start going through making

sure you have people and pets first then

the second order of business is

prescriptions and paperwork pictures

passports other Priceless items that

can't be replaced all need to go with

you in about a 20 minute time frame so

that you know you can quickly exit the

area to a safe point and let

firefighters and emergency responders

come in and engage the fire

should the worst happen and you return

to a complete loss of your home and

property well it's an important thing to

remember that home values and

construction costs and everything

basically has gone up in price so it

would be a good time before the fire to

have conversation with your insurance

provider about are you adequately

covered to rebuild in the event of a

total loss from Wildfire wildfires are

inevitable in Colorado but Wildfire

disasters are not there are many steps

you can take to reduce Wildfire risk on

your property and within your community

if you would like more information about

how you might sign up for a free

Wildfire risk assessment through Eagle

County or with your fire district please

visit the sites below there's a variety

of resources available to help you

beyond just providing you the

information we can provide cost share

assistance we can help you on a

community level with fuel reduction

projects and prioritization and together

we can begin to create fire adapted

communities in a more Wild fire

resilient Eagle County