Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 3 Western Australia, Series 3
Volume 4
Number 2 March-April, 1955 Article 8
3-1955
Protect your home against bush fires Protect your home against bush fires
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Recommended Citation Recommended Citation
(1955) "Protect your home against bush fires," Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 3: Vol. 4: No. 2, Article 8.
Available at: https://researchlibrary.agric.wa.gov.au/journal_agriculture3/vol4/iss2/8
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O
NCE again this year bush fires have swept through Australia, leaving in their wake a trail of loss a n d destruction; once again rural dwellers are courageously setting about the task of rehabilitating their properties and rebuilding their homes. Letters received by t h e Building Research Liaison Service have asked what special precau- tions c a n be t a k e n to protect a house against bush fire, a n d in this article an a t t e m p t is m a d e to answer the question.A study by the Divison of Forests Pro- ducts, C.S.I.R.O., of t h e houses destroyed in t h e disastrous Beaumaris fire in J a n u - ary, 1944, revealed t h a t t h e greatest h a z a r d to guard against is t h e entrance of sparks a n d flying embers through open- ings, such as eaves, ventilators, open windows, a n d the space under the house.
Where this occurred, t h e fire started inside t h e house, which was speedily destroyed, regardless of the material of its external walls. Brick a n d stone houses fared no b e t t e r t h a n timber houses.
The problem facing the home builder is to protect himself against this hazard, while still retaining t h e living comfort derived from adequate ventilation, and while still providing access under t h e house for regular inspection against t e r m i t e a t t a c k .
The following represent t h e modifica- tions to n o r m a l building practice which are recommended in order to reconcile these apparently conflicting requirements:
Timber houses, and, in fact, all houses supported on stumps, should be close-boarded below floor level.
Adequate under-floor ventilation should be provided by woven wire vents, a n d a n access door should be provided.
All wall ventilators should be of the woven wire type or else they should be covered by a fine wire mesh. Large ventilators in gable ends should be eliminated a n d replaced by a number of scattered small ventilators with fine mesh openings.
Eaves may be open for maximum ventilation, but the openings should be covered with | i n . wire netting.
Badly fitting Marseilles p a t t e r n tiles should be avoided. Close-fitting sheet roofing is preferable, and the joints should be sealed.
The spaces under corrugations of sheet roofing a t eaves, ridges, hips and valleys should be covered with fine mesh wire netting.
Fly-wire protection should be given to all door and window openings.
I n addition to t h e above, the following r a t h e r obvious precautions must be taken:
Keep trees and shrubs clear of the walls, and stacks of fuel well clear of the build- ing or stored in properly constructed sheds.
Consideration should also be given to the use of a non-combustible material, such as bricks (where available), concrete blocks, or e a r t h wall construction for the walls. The last-mentioned material has long been used sucessfully for houses and farm buildings in many country areas, a n d where the right type of soil is readily accessible, and self-help labour is avail- able, it can be a very economical form of construction.
(Compiled by the Building Research Liaison Service P.O. Box 2807AA, Mel- bourne, to which enquiries for further in- formation on this subject may be ad- dressed.)
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Journal of agriculture Vol. 4 1955
