The Latest in Fire Resistant Building Materials and Tactics

When wild fires ravaged Angeles National Forest late last summer, they threatened 12,000 suburban Los Angeles homes along with it. The scene echoed the devastating California wildfires of 2003, which splayed flames across the countryside and eventually destroyed entire residential communities.

In a region prone to wild fires, many California builders are more mindful than ever when it comes to fire protecting building projects from the ground up.

Since 1985, Jack Kargodorian, owner of Builder’s Team General Contractors in Glendale, Calif., has made it his business to provide some of the most comprehensive fireproofing techniques to high-end homes in the Los Angeles area and beyond. Fully fire protecting a home, he says, is a comprehensive task that begins with the site location and goes all the way to the positioning of closet light bulbs.

Location, location
Since January 2005, California has required the defensible space clearance around homes and structures to be at least 100 feet, in an effort to protect homes, provide space for firefighters and reduce the amount of flammable vegetation. That means providing a clear area of space around a home for 30 feet; the remaining 70 feet will act as a “reduced fuel zone,” according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The organization advises that the building site includes plants that are both vertically and horizontally spaced apart—and requires all plants to be removed from below large trees to prevent fires from inching up the trunks.

Sealed with a . . .
During the construction process, many builders choose to fireproof wood frames with a flame retardant seal. Lee Volgardsen, owner of Flameshield Consulting in Palm Coast, Fla., a maker and distributor of flame retardants, works with a number of California-based builders who chose one of three products when fireproofing: Foam-, chemical- or cementitious-based products.

“Foam is the cheapest option, but in a sense you are not getting true fire protection,” says Volgardsen, adding that a foam fire-proofing will cost a builder between $3,000 and $5,000, depending on the size of the project.

Cementitious-based fireproofing is more attractive for commercial projects because most of the products are UL listed for beams and metal, Volgardsen says, and can also be the most costly. While it will ensure a structure gets anywhere from a one- to four-hour fire rating, it requires at least three crew members on site to first mix, then spray the mixtures to the wood.

“It can cost roughly around $15,000,” Volgardsen adds.

For homebuilding purposes, Volgardsen recommends the chemical application, which requires the manpower of one or two and can cost between $7,000 and $9,000.

“It’s my favorite of the three methods,” he says. “It’s a quick application and can get into parts of the wood where cement can’t be sprayed—and once it’s in the walls, it’s in there for the lifetime of the home.”

Raise the roof
When it comes to fire proofing homes in California, Kargodorian focuses much of his efforts on protecting the roof. He uses fiberglass, mat-faced panels with a specially treated gypsum core.

“It’s a fire-rated material and comes in half-inch or five-eighth inch slabs and is very similar to one hour-rate drywall,” Kargodorian explains. For flat and pitched roofs, the sheets are applied after the plywood base is installed.

The state of California also has enacted a new law that will require roofs with wood shake or shingles to be removed. The law should go into effect within the next three years, Kargodorian says.
Despite fireproofing measures, “Cedar and shake roofs are not fire resistant,” he adds.

Just venting
Some of the same measures applied to fireproofing a roof can be applied to a home’s vents, Kargodorian adds. Enclosing all eaves and soffits with a mold-resistant, gypsum underlayment—along with a fiber-cement covering—will minimize vent exposure while still allowing the room some space to breathe. The covering will reduce the amount of space provided for flames and heat to enter an attic.

Causing sparks
Kargodorian recommends builders apply spacers to outlets that have contact with wooden materials, such as bases. Additionally he suggests applying breaker locks to outlets that can never be locked for fire reasons.

It’s the little things
Some of the most basic fire resistant building tactics lie in the subtleties, Kargodorian observes. Applying dry wall to the inside of a chimney is an effective tactic that prevents a fire from rising from the bottom up. And when it comes to closets, be mindful when installing light fixtures.

“People have a tendency to put blankets on the top shelves,” he says. “Make sure to keep the shelf at least 12 inches away from the fixture—if the light it is too close, there is a danger of starting a fire.”