Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Nov 10, 2013 9:39 am A worthwhile read for anyone at risk of bushfires: http://www.smh.com.au/environment/-2x8gx.html A friend lost their house at Winmalee/Yellow Rock. A scary story. They had an asset protection zone, water tanks, pumps and rows of sprinklers. Their house was an older timber house and difficult to defend. The fire was at ground level and like a blowtorch due to winds at 70-80km/h. Humidity was down to an astonishing 9% according to their home weather station. The fire was hot enough for the window glass to melt. Build thread: here Land Nov 12, Contract 6/07/13, Consent 15/08/13, Start 20/09/13, Slab 25/09/13, Frame 4/10/13, Brick 21/10/13, Roof 2/11/13, Lock-up 17/12/13, Handover 3/3/14 Re: After the fires - building in the Flame Zone 2Nov 10, 2013 10:36 am Great read. Thanks Thoughts go to those that have to rebuild their lives. (& deal with red tape) Re: After the fires - building in the Flame Zone 3Nov 10, 2013 2:11 pm Another fire tale (with some lessons learnt); no loss of property thankfully..... My parents place backs onto the reserve south of Newcastle where a fire took hold a couple of weeks ago (RFS were referring to it as the "Gateshead Fire"). Their home is a relatively new build and was built to BAL requirements. They also got recommendations from the local RFS as to what else could be done to protect their property. Now that a real fire has torched the reserve it's shown how the fire systems worked and where deficiencies are in the system. A couple of photos.... Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Embankment down the side of the driveway with some Lantana on fire. (Sports field above was the staging area for the helicopters) Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Firebreak between homes on the right and reserve on the left. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Out the back gate into the reserve. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ The fire coming closer. Firewater tank on the right and one of the fire monitors on the property boundary shooting back into the reserve. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ NSW RFS have it all under control..... Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ .....until a flare-up a bit later on. Pipes mounted under the gutter have a lot of spray heads to drop a wall of water to try and protect against embers. Lessons learnt: 1) Importance of the firebreak. Every so often when mowing the yards, they will go out into the reserve and maintain the firebreak with the ride on mower. It keeps the area clear of plants and the grass cut right down low - no fuel, no fire. As you can see in one of the photos, the RFS guys are just hanging around on the grass watching the fire. 2) Amount of water used. The property has a fair bit of water capacity on site (tanks of water for gardens, ponds, pool, etc) with all tanks able to be pumped back to the concrete firewater tank. Once the fires were out and the RFS had left, approx. 80,000 - 90,000 L of water had been used just fighting the firefront that backed onto their place and their neighbours. Change: More storage is going to be installed. 3) Appropriate clothing. While there are 4 fire pumps and hoses there ready for use, neighbours and family who turned up to help arrived in shorts and t-shirts (totally understandable being a hot day). What no one had thought of was to have fire fighting clothing in the shed to be used. Change: Shopping trip planed for fire fighting clothing. 4) Power. 3 of the 4 fire pumps are electric (with 1 petrol), and the pumps to shift water around are also electric. Power went out in the suburb about 4pm but the house does have solar and a battery backup, so power on site lasted to about 10pm. The biggest issue when power eventually went out was no lights outside. Change: Outside floodlights are now being changed to LED's and they will be on a dedicated circuit with at least a 10 - 12hr backup. ----------------------------------------------- http://pab34newdigs.blogspot.com.au/ ----------------------------------------------- Re: After the fires - building in the Flame Zone 4Nov 10, 2013 4:21 pm PAB_34 Another fire tale (with some lessons learnt); no loss of property thankfully..... My parents place backs onto the reserve south of Newcastle where a fire took hold a couple of weeks ago (RFS were referring to it as the "Gateshead Fire"). Their home is a relatively new build and was built to BAL requirements. They also got recommendations from the local RFS as to what else could be done to protect their property. Now that a real fire has torched the reserve it's shown how the fire systems worked and where deficiencies are in the system. A couple of photos.... Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Embankment down the side of the driveway with some Lantana on fire. (Sports field above was the staging area for the helicopters) Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Firebreak between homes on the right and reserve on the left. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Out the back gate into the reserve. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ The fire coming closer. Firewater tank on the right and one of the fire monitors on the property boundary shooting back into the reserve. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ NSW RFS have it all under control..... Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ .....until a flare-up a bit later on. Pipes mounted under the gutter have a lot of spray heads to drop a wall of water to try and protect against embers. Lessons learnt: 1) Importance of the firebreak. Every so often when mowing the yards, they will go out into the reserve and maintain the firebreak with the ride on mower. It keeps the area clear of plants and the grass cut right down low - no fuel, no fire. As you can see in one of the photos, the RFS guys are just hanging around on the grass watching the fire. 2) Amount of water used. The property has a fair bit of water capacity on site (tanks of water for gardens, ponds, pool, etc) with all tanks able to be pumped back to the concrete firewater tank. Once the fires were out and the RFS had left, approx. 80,000 - 90,000 L of water had been used just fighting the firefront that backed onto their place and their neighbours. Change: More storage is going to be installed. 3) Appropriate clothing. While there are 4 fire pumps and hoses there ready for use, neighbours and family who turned up to help arrived in shorts and t-shirts (totally understandable being a hot day). What no one had thought of was to have fire fighting clothing in the shed to be used. Change: Shopping trip planed for fire fighting clothing. 4) Power. 3 of the 4 fire pumps are electric (with 1 petrol), and the pumps to shift water around are also electric. Power went out in the suburb about 4pm but the house does have solar and a battery backup, so power on site lasted to about 10pm. The biggest issue when power eventually went out was no lights outside. Change: Outside floodlights are now being changed to LED's and they will be on a dedicated circuit with at least a 10 - 12hr backup. Great post PAB_34, glad you're parents were so well prepared, appears it saved them their house. So many people don't have that level of protection, especially those older houses that were never BAL rated. Really feel for those who lost everything. Re: After the fires - building in the Flame Zone 5Nov 10, 2013 6:56 pm Great post pab! Interesting the things you world never think of yourself unless you lived through it ie firefighting clothes <!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?t=62083">viewtopic.php?t=62083</a><!-- l --> Re: After the fires - building in the Flame Zone 6Nov 10, 2013 8:40 pm The essential clothing to have ready includes cotton overalls, cotton shirt/t-shirt, cotton trousers, sturdy leather boots, towels, hat and gloves. Goggles are also important. When I was in the RFS 20 years ago, I used yellow leather riggers gloves. Avoid any synthetic clothing. Use wool / cotton. You can get light (merino) woollen base layers in hiking shops. The idea of the overalls is that they provide an extra layer of protection with an air gap between the clothing you are wearing underneath. The extra layer helps to shield radiant heat. Have the kit all in one place and check it periodically. Avoid cheap work boots. The soles can fall apart. Make sure you have read the following fact sheets and have a bush fire survival plan: http://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/dsp_content.cfm?cat_id=1150 A lot of people who live close to the bush are complacent and have no idea what to do. If you live close to the bush make sure you know what to do. This is particularly important if you are facing the bush at the top of ridges or gullies. Also be aware that grass fires can move incredibly quickly. Keep important documents and photos where you can grab them quickly. If you know fire is close by or approaching, have your car pointing out your driveway. Seconds can be important if you need to leave amid the chaos and smoke. Build thread: here Land Nov 12, Contract 6/07/13, Consent 15/08/13, Start 20/09/13, Slab 25/09/13, Frame 4/10/13, Brick 21/10/13, Roof 2/11/13, Lock-up 17/12/13, Handover 3/3/14 Hi All It has been a few weeks since my last update. The build has been progressing well. No major issues to report. 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