Tanker 463; Fire Season 2017

Tanker 463; Fire Season 2017
Photo by Bill Barr - CLICK ME!

Tuesday, October 20, 2020

Defensible Space - Home Ignition Zone 2

 Continuing from our previous post which covered Zone 1, we are going to discuss Home Ignition Zone 2 (or the Intermediate Zone). You may have heard these tips before, but it doesn’t hurt to be reminded and go over it again.

Zone 2 is 5-30 feet from the furthest exterior point of your home. Landscaping and hardscaping are key elements here – employ these to create breaks that can help influence and even decrease the spread of a wildfire. Create fuel breaks using driveways, walkways, and patios.

Keep lawns trimmed to a height of four inches or less, and remove any ladder fuels so that a surface fire can’t spread to the tops of trees. Prune your trees 6-10 feet from the ground and make sure your trees have a minimum of 20 feet space between crowns. If you are planting trees, they should be arranged so that mature crowns are a minimum of ten feet away from the edge of your home. Tree and shrubs in this zone should be limited to small clusters to allow breaks in vegetation.

If you have any, move trailers, recreational vehicles, storage sheds, propane tanks, and other combustible items or structures out of this zone. If you are unable to move them, create intentional defensible space around them – trim vegetation and use landscaping to your advantage.



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