By Brad Kinney (Cabins 71/72)
A couple of months ago I reached out to our Fire Captain Jeff Willis requesting advice about fire prevention around our cabins. He sent out Battalion Chief Malby to walk our property. I am very thankful because we had numerous fire hazards. We have been working on the entire list since. As one of the final steps yesterday Monday, as Fire Water tankers are flying right by our house, we are spraying on this Fire Poly 75e to ALL wood that will extinguish flames if contact is made. I have a photo and phone number for that liquid that comes in a 5-gallon bucket. We bought 25 gallons. I also took a video of us applying it and a video of us doing a fire test.
I also raked 10 big bags of flammable pine needles this morning and hauled them to the dump. Piles are flammable so they need to be removed from the property. Call me paranoid but there is a wild forest fire just one wind shift away from heading to Big Bear!
Here is a list of other recommendations we discussed that we have now completed:
Thin out trees to allow embers from a forest fire to pass through rather than get trapped....and remove branches within 10 feet of structures.
Native Serviceberry shrubs and trees are very flammable and explode like a bomb and should be cut way back or removed if close to structures.
Fill all holes in your cabin with caulking, mortar, or whatever to prevent embers from entering the attic or house. We chinked our entire house with foam backing rod then traditional Portland cement grouting. Looks great and prevents embers from nesting.
Remove scrap piles, move firewood as far away as possible, remove dead growth from trees, needles, and leaves under shrubs, and arrange everything to prevent embers from piling and igniting that will catch things on fire and the fire will escalate up.
Rake pine needles and leaves from everywhere. Just watch fire videos and see the forest floor on fire. That is how my friend's house burnt down. The wind blows burning needles across the ground until they pile against the wood siding of your home and catch fire. Rake all flammable debris that has accumulated against the house.
Enter your attic, crawl space, underdeck storage, garage, and sheds and see if you can see “light shining through” air gaps where embers can fly in. Fill them. Seal them with caulking, wood, or cement.
Trim and haul all low branches close to the ground on bushes and trees so they can be raked out to dirt.
Dense shrubs have a center core that fills with dead leaves and becomes your worst nightmare because embers love to land there and catch fire that again escalates. trim lower branches then reach in and pull all dead leaves out by hand, with a blower, or a hose. May take all three.
Pinecones, driftwood, wood railings, wood decks, wood stairs, firewood piles, umbrellas, and outdoor furniture are all flammable. Envision a fire coming now and move things accordingly in advance to avoid running out of time and wishing you should have.
Application of a Fire Retardant is an extra step but does not guaranty your cabin won't catch fire. Items 1-9 will also need to be addressed for better protection. Firefighters appreciate a defensible home and are more likely to defend a property that is resisting flames and easy to access rather than an overgrown neglected cabin.
I did these steps for applying fire retardant:
DEBUG, spray commercial bug spray to entire house, bugs and spider webs are flammable and you do not want to seal them in.
WASH, apply Simple Green to entire house and wash off with spray nozzle. It's amazing how dirty cabins are.
CHINK [fill] all cracks and holes with foam backing rod then grout or caulk.
SPRAY, Mask windows with paper and tape and spray fire retardant on anything and everything that can burn!
Embers will find holes to get into your flammable house and burn it down from the inside out if you let it! Buy a rechargeable electric backpack 4-gallon sprayer for these 4 steps and it will go smooth and quick.
Keep in mind, September is usually the warm-up to the real fire season which is MID OCTOBER until first rain. With all the political issues, reports of arsons, crazy nuts cases, and this nightmare 2020 year, I urge my neighbors to take extra steps immediately for many reasons. Mainly to keep your Bearadise getaway safe!
Brad Kinney 71/72
Cabins at the Dam