Here are more areas to learn about when building a fire-resistant house. This
month we will share details about windows and doors.
Windows
Windows are the weakest link in your house, as they offer fire an opening into your home. Extreme heat alone is enough to shatter glass or trigger combustibles inside your home without the blaze even entering your house.
Choose insulated double glazing with tempered glass for all windows. Single glazed windows will crack from the blaze and expose the home to the fire. Double glazed windows will take twice as long to break, with the outer layer breaking first; tempered glass is heat-treated making it about four times stronger.
You can also consider fire safety glass, which holds together even when it’s cracked by heat. When it comes to size, smaller windows are preferable to larger ones.
For window frames, steel framing is the most flame-resistant option, followed by aluminum, with vinyl as the least resistant. Acrylic skylights are susceptible to melting, leaving a hole in the roof, so are to be avoided. The safest option is to install roll-down metal fire doors from your roof overhang or along the side recesses that can be automatically released and secured with a latch. They’ll protect all windows and doors and act as an important extra layer of defense protecting your home.
Doors
Doors act as another access point into your home for wildfires. Wood doors provide only about 20 minutes of fire protection.
Instead, doors with a metal core (and covered in any material you’d like) or fiber-cement will stave off a fire for much longer. Garage doors are a key access point too. Metal panel doors are your best approach, but you’ll need to make sure these doors are very tightly fitted to prevent embers from sliding under.
By Elisa Garcia, Garcia Architects
In coming months, Elisa will highlight siding, decks, fencing, landscaping, sprinklers, power, and house styles to consider when rebuilding a fire-resistant home. Elisa Garcia has been an architect for several years. Her firm, Garcia Architects, has offices in Los Angeles and Santa Barbara.
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