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Avoiding Wildfire Damage: A Checklist for Homeowners

Do you know your wildfire

risk?

Learn about the history of wildfire

in your area. Be aware of recent

weather. A long period without

rain increases the risk of wildfire.

Consider having a professional

inspect your property and offer

recommendations for reducing the

wildfire risk.

Determine your community’s ability to respond to wildfire. Are

roads leading to your property

clearly marked? Are the roads

wide enough to allow firefighting

equipment to get through? Is

your house number visible from

the roadside?

Have you thinned out and

maintained the vegetation

around the house?

All vegetation is fuel for a wildfire,

though some trees and shrubs are

more flammable than others. To

reduce the risk, you will need to

modify or eliminate brush, trees

and other vegetation near your

home. The greater the distance

between your home and the vegetation, the greater the protection.

Create a 30-foot safety zone

around the house.

Keep the volume of vegetation in

this zone to a minimum. If you

live on a hill, extend the zone on

the downhill side. Fire spreads

rapidly uphill. The steeper the

slope, the more open space you

will need to protect your home.

In this zone, do the following:

• Remove vines from the walls of

the house.

• Move shrubs and other landscaping away from the sides of

the house.

• Prune branches and shrubs

within 15 feet of chimneys and

stove pipes.

• Remove tree limbs within 15

feet of the ground.

• Thin a 15-foot space between

tree crowns.

• Replace highly flammable vegetation such as pine, evergreen,

eucalyptus, junipers and fir trees

with lower growing, less flammable species. Check with your

local fire department or garden

store for suggestions.

• Replace vegetation that has living

or dead branches from the groundlevel up (these act as ladder fuels

for the approaching fire).

• Cut the lawn often.

• Clear the area of leaves, brush,

dead limbs and fallen trees.

Create a second zone at least

100 feet around the house. 

This zone should begin about 30

feet from the house and extend to

at least 100 feet. In this zone,

reduce or replace as much of the

most flammable vegetation as 

possible. If you live on a hill, you

may need to extend the zone for

FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

If you live in a forest or wildland area, you face the real danger of wildfire. Wildfires destroy thousands of homes and devastate hundreds of thousands of acres of woodland every year. 

Protecting your home from wildfire is your responsibility. To reduce the risk, you’ll need to consider

the fire resistance of your home, the topography of your property and the nature of the vegetation

close by.

This homeowner’s checklist will help learn what you can do. You should also contact your local fire

department, forestry office, emergency management office or building department for information

about local fire laws, building codes and protection measures.

Always be ready for an emergency evacuation. Evacuation may be the only way to protect your family in a wildfire. Know where to go and what to bring with you. You should plan several escape

routes in case roads are blocked by a wildfire. 

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several hundred feet to provide 

the desired level of safety.

Are combustible materials

away from the house?

Identify all combustible materials

outside the house. Stack firewood

100 feet away and uphill from the

house. Keep the gas grill and

propane tank at least 15 feet from

house. Clear an area 15 feet

around the grill. Place a 1/4 inch

mesh screen over the grill. 

Are sun decks and porches

enclosed underneath?

Any porch, balcony or overhang

with exposed space underneath is

fuel for an approaching fire.

Overhangs ignite easily by flying

embers and by the heat and fire

that gets trapped underneath. If

vegetation is allowed to grow

underneath or if the space is used

for storage, the hazard is increased

significantly.

Clear leaves, trash and other combustible materials away from underneath sun decks and porches.

Extend 1/2-inch mesh screen from

all overhangs down to the ground.

Enclose wooden stilts with noncombustible material such as concrete, brick, rock, stucco or metal.

Use non-combustible patio furniture and covers.

If you’re planning a porch or sun

deck, use non-combustible or fireresistant materials. If possible,

build the structure to the ground so

that there is no space underneath.

Are eaves and overhangs

enclosed?

Like porches and balconies, eaves

trap the heat rising along the exterior siding. Enclose all eaves to

reduce the hazard.

Are house vents covered with

wire mesh?

Any attic vent, soffit vent, louver

or other opening can allow embers

and flaming debris to enter a

home and ignite it. Cover all

openings with 1/4 inch or smaller

corrosion-resistant wire mesh. If

you’re designing louvers, place

them in the vertical wall rather

than the soffit of the overhang.

Is the roof made of noncombustible materials?

The roof is especially vulnerable 

in a wildfire. Embers and flaming

debris can travel great distances,

land on your roof and start a new

fire.

Avoid flammable roofing materials

such as wood, shake and shingle.

Materials that are more fire resistant include single ply membranes, fiberglass shingles, slate,

metal, clay and concrete tile.

Clear gutters of leaves and debris.

Are chimneys and stovepipes

covered with spark arrestors?

Chimneys create a hazard when

embers escape through the top.

To prevent this, install spark

arrestors on all chimneys,

stovepipes and vents for fuelburning heaters. Use spark

arrestors made of 12-gauge welded

or woven wire mesh screen with

openings 1/2 inch across. Ask

your fire department for exact

specifications.

If you’re building a chimney, use

non-combustible materials and

make sure the top of the chimney

is at least two feet higher than any

obstruction within 10 feet of the

chimney.

Is the house siding fire 

resistant?

Use fire resistant materials in the

siding of your home, such as stucco, metal, brick, cement shingles,

concrete and rock. You can treat

wood siding with UL-approved

fire retardant chemicals, but the

treatment and protection are not

permanent.

Have windows been treated 

to reduce the risk?

Windows allow radiated heat to

pass through and ignite combustible materials inside. The

larger the pane of glass, the more

vulnerable it is to fire.

Dual- or triple-pane thermal glass,

and fire resistant shutters or

drapes, help reduce the wildfire

risk. You can also install noncombustible awnings to shield

windows and use shatter-resistant

glazing such as tempered or wire

glass.

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