The workshop County in Monterey County highlights fire -proof house strategies for security

While we immerse ourselves deeper into the dry season, we learn more about what it takes to do fire -proof houses in Monterey County.

KSBW recently had the opportunity to take part in a workshop that was organized by a local non -profit organization in a newly built, fired house on Highway 68.

“Most people don't know how important it is to harden their houses and prepare for disasters, especially in California,” said Robert Dotson, a resident of Monterey County. Dotson joined other members of the California Arts and Sciences Institute to provide a local non -profit organization with the aim of providing educational experiences when they toured the family designed by designer Ashley Yeates. The dangers that forest fires are available throughout California are just one of the reasons why Dotson says that he has to learn more about the protection of his house from the worst. He knows the taste of the loss only too well.

“I had a family (and) property near the paradise that was destroyed,” said Detson.

According to Yeates, the design of a fire -hardened house begins with the fundamental work such as the elimination of the area and the insurance company that not many trees or brushes surround the house, but then it becomes more detailed.

“You start with the foundation what kind of materials you put on the house, so I not only have stucco, but an additional layer of stucco based on a mineral basis, and it is fire -resistant for up to two and a half hours,” said Yeates.

The roof is a clay tile roof, which according to Yeates is also fire -proof. Some ventilation slots have color on you that swell when there is a certain amount of heat and the ventilation slots automatically closes.

This prevents embers in the air from being pulled into the attic area. In addition, there are sprinklers around the circumference with plans to add copper sprinkles and pipes on the roof. The house also uses different water features to hold the flames back.

“You can sometimes use them to help with fire, so I deliberately have a very large spa in the back of my house, and I put a lot of gravel and hardscape around the outer part of the house and a wall that will prevent the fire from jumping directly into it.”

Of course, not everyone can afford to make this kind of expensive changes or even to have the opportunity, but Dotson says that an event like this that spreads knowledge and information can make a difference for everyone.

“People – as in this specific group, mainly wealthy people – can be affected to make the changes, but they are in positions in which they can make a difference in the exchange of this information with agencies and governments, etc. that can help people prepare their houses for sustainability,” said Detson.