Wild fire

Discussion in 'General Survival and Preparedness' started by oil pan 4, Aug 11, 2018.


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  1. oil pan 4

    oil pan 4 Monkey+++

    Wild fires used to be forest fires, small localized events. Looks like things are changing. They are bigger now. Mans interference with forest grow, die, burn cycle either by decree that all fires are bad so put them out and that the fuel pile builds up to never before seen unnatural levels or deny responsible forestry to areas to protect an fake endangered species or climate change.
    So a little bit of forestry hurts the owls more than everything in site bring to a crisp?
    (This is why liberals are severe/profoundly retarded)

    So it seems we have major theatre shtf event going on in multiple areas right now and no one on here is really talking about it. That's a little odd.

    Any who, what shall we do?
    First thing is stop thinking it can't happen to you. It looks like a lot of these people evacuating live in kind of suburban neighborhood looking areas and one thing they have in common is you hear some of the people from each group of homes evacuated say "I didn't think it could happen here". Well flaketard it's here its real and it's in your face, too late to do anything about it.
    Another thing they will say is "it happened so fast", or "we thought we had [relatively a lot of time], but next thing we know the fire was on tip of us", and "we first saw it way over there then next thing we know the house next door is on fire", then the always classic "it looked like it would say over there (while standing in the burned out shell of their house)".

    What can we learn from the sheeple.
    Don't bet on the fire going where you want it, or staying away. They move way faster than anyone thought they could.
    Some of these people talk about it like they only had 5 to 20 minutes or less.
    It appears that once the fire reaches a bunch of houses the fires jump from the field or forest to the first houses, then the fire jumps from house to house, not really burning up anything between homes, because developers cram houses together stupid close there doesn't need to be anything to catch fire between homes.
    Look at the homes that burned, see how close together they are if your home looks like that, get out, there is nothing you can do or make your life buging out centric, maybe live on a boat.

    So we have a pretty good idea what won't work:
    Hope, luck or other divine intervention, we have already established that god favors the prepared.
    Packing up everything and leaving, your only chance of pulling this off is when you move out of the fire danger area when there is no fire.
    Fight the fire with a garden hose.
    Cut down the dead, dried trees and grass and weeds when you see a fire near.
    Lots of ammo.

    So your only chance of beating this thing is to always be prepared for it.

    Keep grass, weeds trees cut back, keep wood piles away from the house, keep vehicles away, keep away from neighbors.
    Look up any where on the Internet for recommendations on how to protect your home from a wild fire, they vary by region.
    Those are all kind of hands on but passive methods.
    How about active methods, install a bunch of sprinklers maybe, flood irrigation?
     
    Last edited: Aug 11, 2018
  2. duane

    duane Monkey+++

    Minnesota had a couple notable fires in the past, Hinckley fire over 400 dead and about 200,000 acres, Cloquet fire over 1,000 deaths and 250,000 acres, Baudette fire 50 or so dead, 300,000 acres burned, so it isn't all due to global warming. Fire breaks, roads, etc, and reducing understory fuel sources can limit the area of the fire, and proper fire resistant building codes, both structures and fire breaks around structures can limit structural damage, but that limits developers and the greens and their desire for wilderness areas so I guess we had better learn to live with the fires.
     
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  3. SB21

    SB21 Monkey+++

    Note to self,,,,,stock up on marshmallows,,,,:ROFLMAO:
    I did a job one time replacing damaged vinyl siding on 5 houses. One of the guys had a grill going , cooking a few steaks. The owner told his buddy to get the steaks off the grill , he was going to take a quick shower. He said he was in the shower for 5 minutes. When his buddy took the steaks off the grill , he left the lid off. The wind picked up, blew a few embers out , in that 5 minutes , the fire spread thru 5 yards , buckling up the siding on 2 sides of the 5 houses , and the porch ceiling of 1 of them. This was one of those packed in neighborhoods. This happened during a drought season , luckily everyone's grass was cut short , although mostly dead. But 5 minutes is not really a lot of time, and it could have been worse , the wind just happened to be blowing in the direction away from those houses , but another 5 minutes , and it would have been all over the houses behind them. People really don't realize just how quick fire can move , and a little change in direction with the wind and you've got a whole new ball game. Like OP4 said , don't pile stuff up around your house.
     
  4. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    This is serious where we live because we are surrounded by forest, my whole 5 acres is heavily wooded as are my neighbors. No fire hydrants out this way - so - yes, we all take this serious. We had a good scare my 2nd year here as a major fire was but a few miles from us and the entire area was packed and ready to run if given the word. Very scary. Every now and then the wife and I talk about what to grab if this happens again. Luckily, we live in a single floor, small house and we're pretty much prepped to go. Talking about this reminds me, I need a new sleeping bag...
     
  5. Zimmy

    Zimmy Wait, I'm not ready!

    Construction with stucco, brick, and Spanish tile roofing of the original inhabitants of the southwest make a lot more sense. There was usually even a wall surrounding the house and holdings that was grazed down by farm animals.
     
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  6. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    Our house is constructed from what is called 'Hardie Board' which is siding and is composed of 90 percent sand and cement which makes it very fire-resistant and our roof is metal; nevertheless, I would bet that if a forest fire got in here that it would burn to the ground, maybe not has fast as some house, but it would burn down.
     
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  7. arleigh

    arleigh Goophy monkey

    It seems people like to exempt them selves for acting on fire related issues.
    Having fought fire in my youth I am particularly versed on what it takes and my own preps in the matter.
    Thing is no one likes carrying fire fighting tools with them on a hike taking no responsibility to act on a fire whether it is theirs or not.
    Even at my age I'd fight a fire with my tools at home or in the field .
    If /when I build a new home, a great deal of thought will go into fire prevention and preparation .
    People put so little thought into the things they build and then create issues with things that were
    there before the structure .
    A corrugated steel roof is about impervious to most weather issues including fire. If there are no eves there is nothing to worry about cinders being blown up into .If metal is used at ground level there is nothing to catch fire at the base of the structure.
    If there is no folage around the house ,nothing for critters to hide in nor burn ,simple as that .
    Looks , what about the look of every thing lost to fire ? who are you trying to impress ?
    A rich man foolishly shows off wealth only to attract some one to steal it. and yes I would prefer to live in my steel barn than to live in a stick home, because I don't stare at the out side .
    About the only time I see the out side is when I'm out side and at that, I'm usually doing something more important than staring at the house . I don't care what the neighbors think . I had solar before it was fashionable ,I use a wood stove because it's more efficient . My shop is for working in and housing my tools and equipment and my vehicles are out side ,some are covered in a tarp .
    Weeds are cut all over the property and trees trimmed . This fall I will ,hopefully , get all the leaves raked again from around the house . an never ending project . i have a plan to use aluminum sheet metal around the trees with some air space so critters can still do their thing but fire is arrested at that point . still working on that.
    I am some what thankful that we hadn't had the rain we did last year , the weeds are far less abundant per the usual .
    I have water tanks and such for fire fighting in my little ranch , i yet have more plumbing to run however. I have gas driven pumps and electric if necessary for post SHTF events and there is no fire department.
    I kick my self for passing up in a portable unit .so i'm back to building my own.
     
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  8. Zimmy

    Zimmy Wait, I'm not ready!

    Sounds good to me. Ever thought about a couple of sprinkler heads on the roof? There's a lot of cooling and heat transfer in those tiny droplets.
     
  9. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    That's a good idea but we only got 1500 gallons of water in the cistern, sounds like a lot but it isn't when it comes to fighting a fire. We share a community well with 5-6 other homes. I would prefer my own well but...it costs me pennies for water now and drilling our own well would be costly since our water is about 450 feet down so... I do have fire extinguishers in house and garage and, of course, hoses everywhere...
     
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  10. Zimmy

    Zimmy Wait, I'm not ready!

    What about 300 degree fire system heads? Cooler than that and I wouldn't worry too much about heat transfer through the metal causing rafters to smoulder. They only individually flow when needed that way.
     
  11. Bandit99

    Bandit99 Monkey+++ Site Supporter+

    @arleigh "A corrugated steel roof is about impervious to most weather issues including fire."
    Overseas, in Central Asia, I saw a neighbor's home go up in flames in literally seconds due to a non-metal roof while his neighbor's metal roof did not get harmed. From that moment on, I knew I would never have nothing but a metal roof for my home...and garage too!

    "Weeds are cut all over the property and trees trimmed."
    Yes, that is a problem here as with so much grass, trees and brush - well - it is impossible to cut it all. However, there is a nothing like that near the house or garage within 50+ feet at a minimum. My driveway and turn around is huge and graveled which has been completely sprayed the last two years in a row to ensure no weeds, expensive but does the trick. I will probably only do this every other year in the future. Yes, we take fire very seriously around here...
     
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  12. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    Bad plan in areas that see freezing temps. The same can be said for roof sprinklers unless there's a way to drain them after use.
     
    Zimmy likes this.
  13. Zimmy

    Zimmy Wait, I'm not ready!

    I thought about needing a winterization process. Hopefully freezing cold and dry seasons don't overlap too much in the mountains. I don't know.
     
  14. oil pan 4

    oil pan 4 Monkey+++

    I have a metal roof and stucco.

    I'm thinking about doing a ring of sprinklers around the house and replacing some of my wood fence with metal at least up near the house.
     
    Zimmy likes this.
  15. Zimmy

    Zimmy Wait, I'm not ready!

    I don't have any of those protections except the grass is either mowed/grazed low or gone altogether due to shade for 50 yards or so out. My house is surrounded by a forest of oak, cedar elm, locust,and hackberry. None of those tend to make a forest fire type conflaguration. However, I have some storage outbuildings ripe for destruction from a grassfire.

    They are destined to be in the next fenced paddock and that should be a sorta solution.
     
  16. oil pan 4

    oil pan 4 Monkey+++

    I was watching the weather channel about the california fires and they said that zoning requires for the woods be cut back 100' feet from residences.
    Well it looks like no one abides by that rule or law in California.
    Everyone just assumes "it won't happen here".

    Being a 100% blind optimist must really be a really nice way to live, up until the moment it hits the fan.
     
    Zimmy likes this.
  17. oil pan 4

    oil pan 4 Monkey+++

    Around 1,000 acres burned about 10 miles away.
    It was close enough and big enough to where I could smell the smoke.
     
    oldman11 likes this.
  18. oil pan 4

    oil pan 4 Monkey+++

    Now that the insurance claims are made and reports are filed it burned a total of 1,800 acres.
    From what I'm hearing the fire ran into a man made pond and that gave the FD the upper hand or it may have burned for a few days.
     
    Gator 45/70 likes this.
  19. Ganado

    Ganado Monkey+++

    anyone notice Notre Dame burned down? and they have 60m pledged to rebuild it.... what a waste of money
     
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  20. BTPost

    BTPost Stumpy Old Fart,Deadman Walking, Snow Monkey Moderator

    Itis up to 90 Million and rising fast...
     
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