As the effects of climate change continue, wildfires in the U.S. are steadily becoming larger and more destructive than ever. In 2020, wildfires burned 10.1 million acres destroying thousands of homes. The Western U.S. is especially susceptible to wildfires with cities like Colorado Springs, CO, and Sacramento, CA experiencing a high risk of fire damage.
As homeowners in fire-prone states begin to rebuild, they are sure to wonder whether or not it’s possible to construct a home that will have no issue withstanding another wildfire. While it may not be possible to construct a fully fireproof house, there are many different precautions you can take to make your home as fire-resistant as possible.
Understand fire rating classifications when building your fireproof house
First, it’s important to understand fire class ratings and how they work. Fire class ratings are a way of classifying materials by their ability to support and propagate fire. They also measure how much smoke may be produced by the material, which is determined by a flame spread index.
Flame spread index is a value typically obtained by examining how a certain material responds during a ten-minute tunnel test. The flame spread index value is expressed as an arbitrary numerical value from zero to 100, where a very fire-resistant material has a rating of zero, and a very flammable material has a value of one hundred.
Class A
A Class A fire rating is the best fire rating a material can achieve. Class A fire ratings indicate a flame spread rating somewhere between zero and 25. Materials consisting of brick stone, asbestos-cement board, and rockwool often achieve a class A rating.
Class B
The flame spread rating of Class B would fall between 26 and 75. This rating is typical for slower-burning whole wood materials like cedar, hemlock, or spruce.
Class C
Class C fire rating has a flame spread rating between 76 and 200. This rating incorporates building materials like plywood, fiberboard,…