Epping Victoria???
Browse Forums General Discussion Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 22Feb 09, 2009 1:24 pm Jo K 'chelle, we have concrete tanks which could be a good option as well. Thanks Jo, We'll have to look into it. We've still got a bit of time until we have to decide exactly what we will get. Are the concrete tanks a lot more expensive? 'chelle We have a hand-over date...15/10...but I won't hold my breath! http://people-in-glass-houses.blogspot.com/ Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 24Feb 09, 2009 2:00 pm iTalk Yes Sharee. The police came over her workplace (Childcare Centre) and told them to be in alert if anything goes wrong. According to the CFA website, there is a couple of small controlled fires in Whittesea and there was a false alarm in Doreen, other than that I don't think there is anything to worry about around that area, so they are probably just being cautious. Sure is a horrible time isn't it Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 25Feb 09, 2009 8:08 pm Quote: Stainless steel are good but we would need to get a crane to lift it in whereas poly can be rolled in. A sprinkler above the tank to keep it cool and wet may be enough. Stainless steel? Maybe it depends on what size you're talking about but I surely couldn't afford a SS tank - just one sheet in the kitchen costs an arm and a leg! Having recently purchased a 100 000 plus L tank for our place I can probably say that it would not likely be any better than a poly tank. Reason being is that these days the steel tanks are assembled on site (no crane required) and they have a plastic liner inside which is what actually holds the water. So in a really bad fire the liner would probably melt as well as any poly tank! You can see the type of tank I'm talking about in the picture below.... Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Oh yeah I was just having a joke about the SS, I realize you probably meant steel. Concrete tanks seem to be the way to go as far as fires are concerned! With our place I reckon having a sprinkler system on the roof would be a brilliant idea, water flows down the gutters and back into the tank - unless you blocked the drains to keep the gutters filled of course. Really I have no idea because I would tend to take flight rather than stay and fight, and I certainly wouldn't leave Hubby behind on his own! Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 26Feb 09, 2009 8:20 pm We were very upset with my parents-in-law during the last lot of fires in the Ovens Valley - they elected to stay and defend their house. Silly old buggers. It's just a house, nothing that isn't insured and can't be replaced...
Sure they had a fire plan, but a couple of 70-year-olds on an acre, battling a raging fire coming through the pine plantations behind them? ....who do you think would win? Our bushfire plan is a no-brainer. We have our few irreplaceable valuables where we can grab them quickly, so it'd be kids in the car first, then that stuff if there's time, then just get the hell out! By the way, I've always kept the following in a safe custody lodgement at the bank: Birth certificates Marriage certificate Passports Copies of insurance policies Our wills That way they're in fireproof storage and we can get them any time we need them. My wedding and engagement rings are also in there at the moment, since they're too big for me and I can't wear them. Must get those re-sized... At least I don't have to worry about them being lost or stolen in the meantime. Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 27Feb 09, 2009 8:31 pm kek, "get the hell out" isn't enough.
What if your normal route is blocked and you have to use a different road? Where do you go? What's Plan B? Plan C? You said you are a 3 car household... Where will you meet if you get seperated? If you don't know.... someone could go back towards danger to look for someone else. Your husband or son could go back to look for you when you are actually already safe...... have a plan!!!! Mobile phone towers will most likely be knocked out... you will not be able to communicate if you get seperated. I know I sound like a broken record... but "grab stuff and get out" is not a plan! You can all yell at me, but I want you to be safe!!!! I leave you to fend for yourself, figure things out yourself. Terrence Malick Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 28Feb 09, 2009 8:40 pm Joles all the points you made are valid in my books. Our property has two exits (two driveways), then there would be a choice of going left to the main road or right which would take us some back way but potentially end up on the main road or another main road. We do have a chainsaw, we used to have a winch on the main car.
Where to go, well no idea, either towards town or towards another town - depends on the fire doesn't it. In some ways no amount of preperation will tell how well you will fare when it comes down to the crunch, it depends how different people deal with such decisions on the spot - a person who might normally flee at the thought of fire could for some reason decide to stay and fight until it's too late, I guess that proves your case in point, to make a through plan and stick to it! Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 29Feb 10, 2009 12:02 am Hi Phoenix,
Thank you for creating this very important topic/thread. And thanks to everyone for sharing their thoughts and knowledge. I hope this will make people think/ decide to create a fire plan and any contingencies (eg. where they will stay, where to seek assistance etc) in an event of a fire. After reading this thread/topic it made me realise how important it is to have a fire plan. I hope people will begin to fully understand the importance of having a fire plan as I surely have. Lets hope their will be significant rain in the near future. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of the bushfires. Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 30Feb 10, 2009 6:41 am Jo, you're right and we have all that covered - I just meant that we have no intention of hanging around hosing down the house and so on, we'd just lock up and go. This is essentially an urban area and a small block, so putting in tanks and pumps and things you might do on a large property further out just isn't relevant.
One thing I'm going to do now is to progressively have all my old photos stored in digital format. Then a copy can be stored elsewhere and that's one less thing to worry about.... it'll take me quite a while, but I'm working on it already. Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 31Feb 10, 2009 7:50 am kek One thing I'm going to do now is to progressively have all my old photos stored in digital format. Then a copy can be stored elsewhere and that's one less thing to worry about.... it'll take me quite a while, but I'm working on it already. It's anal retentive...but I have everything stored and scanned digitally - three copies one at home, one at work (in a cupboard in my office), and I'm now going to do an additional for storage either at my brother's place/or a friends. mmm....donuts Homer Simpson 1956- Links: Site Costs Ready Reckoner | H1 Addiction Medical Advice | Château TDL: The Backyard Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 32Feb 10, 2009 1:11 pm Fire Insurance your house, keep all valuable documents in a carry case ready to go. At the first mention of fire/ember attack, evacuate to a safe area, even if the fire is not headed your way.
If you are on a hill or mountain, you are in a very dangerous situation with the increased wind speed. I would never stay and fight a fire. I was hoping we learnt from the Canberra fires. My heart goes to all those that lost loved ones, absolutely tragic. Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 33Feb 10, 2009 2:23 pm Hi All
I haven't even thought about a fire plan, thanks for the food for though! One thing that hubby installed in the new house was emergency lighting. Good for fire and also blackouts! We have one outside our bedroom door and one outside the boys bedroom doors. They have battery back up that lasts about 90 mins and is recharged when the power goes back on. My best wishes to all Victorian Homeone members Anne Grandview 36 on Beautiful Bribie Site Start Dec 5th 2007 Projected completion May 12th 2008 NOPE Handover 24th June 2008 Moved in 11th July 2008 Wating on one final thing - Still - Oct 2009 Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 35Feb 11, 2009 8:31 am I think one think that has been forgotten is that sure it may be your plan to leave but a lot of people had this plan and with the speed that the fire advanced they were not able to action it. The smoke made leaving in a car one of the most dangerous ideas.
I think its probably worth having 2 plans - one the ideal - ie leave and one the essential if forced to stage. This means that you have in place fire fighting technics, equipment etc and have an idea what to do. Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 37Feb 12, 2009 5:28 pm I just have to say thank you to everyone here for talking about this. It's been a very tragic but valuable lesson to us all and really there is no excuses now for everyone not to have at least some plans of action.
I have been "going to do" this for years and just never got around to it which is pathetic really. I am embarressed to even admit that I don't even have an extinguisher or fire blanket in either of my properties. One of them is a unit on the 2nd floor with one exit, which I have often wondered what would happen in an emergency, and the other is in a major bushfire prone area in the Blue Mtns. After reading this thread I have started formulating our action plans, and am about to get in the car and visit Bunnings for some fire extinguishers and a collapseable ladder. I am also going to make a fire box which will be left in a cupboard at our holiday home and will contain fire resistant clothes, battery torches, hoses etc . Hubby and I have just talked tonight and decided as a starter that we will not stay and fight, we will leave if we can. We need to sort out the details further as to where we will go to etc - this will be talked about as soon as we are both back home together. Once again, thank you to everyone who have contributed to this excellent thread. Please everybody, act now not tomorrow and review your own fireplans. Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 38Feb 12, 2009 8:40 pm Having lost pretty much everything once - you know what I reckon - personal health and wellness rates way higher than anything.
Sure have a plan - but making sure you are safe is the most important thing. Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 39Dec 31, 2010 8:32 am Excellent thread, glad I found it! Today being 40 degrees in Melbourne, and horrific winds, I thought it was time to start working on a bush fire plan. It's terrifying looking out onto open paddocks thinking how possible and fire would be in the area. Living on the edge of a new estate has so many advantages... at the same time we're so exposed. Has everyone else put together a bush fire plan? If so, please share Re: Does anyone have a fire plan??? 40Dec 31, 2010 8:45 am You beat me to it, Erin... I knew there was a thread here somewhere. Today's weather conditions duplicate those on Black Saturday, although we've had good rainfall over recent months. That was one scary day. We'd only moved into our new home six or seven weeks earlier and there was a real possibility that the fires would reach us. Thanks to the awesome efforts of the CFA, a fire that started in the Plenty Gorge, only about 800m from us, was kept away from houses - although it did burn for two weeks and took out (I think) 130-odd hectares of bush. We'll be watching the CFA website for updates, and if things start to look at all doubtful, laptops, backup drives, photos and anything irreplaceable will be loaded into our cars and we'll just leave. We were loaded up and ready to go last time, but luckily that wasn't necessary. We also have a meeting place in case we need to evacuate and somebody isn't home at the time. We are tossing up between a Jarrahdale radiant wood fire (the Pioneer) and a convection wood fire (Innovator or Countryman) but cannot decide on which type of wood fire is… 0 5251 Need some advice. Living in a townhouse with one common wall, recently we have discovered that the fire separation wall is incomplete and on further investigation, support… 0 3863 Not back peddling at all. You seem to have issues with comprehension my friend. Guy fcked up, he's considering being dishonest with his bank and hiding it. It will end… 21 14261 |