Fires all over the place.

[Doughboy]

For how many thousands of years did the aboriginals burn the forests of this country? But hey what would they know after all we made it a civilised country, didn't we? They apparently did not have any farms, yet there have been fish traps found in the Murray and Darling River systems. Most of us know so little about the ways of the aboriginal way of life.

Back to the fires. It is unfortunate that we have to build houses in areas that are prone to fires, it is sad that we can't have our mansions in the bush on our five acres of 'natural bushland setting'. Mostly it is sad that people build their perfect house on their perfect block of ground and have no idea that they are, one day, going to be faced with the inevitable burning of their own personal paradise, and these people are the people that put the lives of the men and women who fight for their property at risk.

I think that these 'hobby farmers' should be under the control of some kind of policing body to help keep them safe as most of them are city people looking for their own private place to get away from life in the fast lane. Unknowingly of course but none-the-less inexperienced in the ways of mother nature.

On the other hand there are those out there, farmers and the like, that are as prepared as can be and they are really losing out in these cases as they lose their livelyhood and have to rebuild what has probably been in the family for a number of generations. These are not the people who want government inquiries into whose at fault, they put their head down and back side up and do the hard yards to get back to normal. I salute these folks they are deserving of our admiration and our help.

Should I continue or just shut up?

Pete

[johnc]

Pete,

Should be plenty that point out the error of your logic, especially those that own a hobby farm. I tend to agree with you, they seem like a very selfish use of land, and breeding grounds for weeds in some cases. However I do think many in our area have gone to a lot of trouble to reduce fuel build up and make themselves safe.

I would point the finger at several dry years and tinder dry conditions, the fires that swept through our area from the west yesterday advanced rapidly through grass that was not very high driven by wind and heat. The fires to our north thankfully remained largely within the containment lines. I gather in fire control you can put terrain and wind/weather at the front the firefighters probably third relying on those conditions to give them a chance.

I just think the issue of fires is a lot more complex and I can just remember the '67 fires which swept through and wonder if the arrival of hobby farms make much difference to risk.

[Buzzer]

The issue of bushfires is a complex one.

Building houses amoungst bush doesn't help one bit.

The do good greenies, not allowing cool burn/hazard reduction doesn't help. When these bushfires (not wildfires,thats american) are a problem the silence from these so called greenies is deafening.

These large destructive bushfires seem to be happening every year. Why? I don't know, I live too far away, from the areas presently affected to form an informed opionion.

[journeyman Mick]

.........................When these bushfires (not wildfires,thats american)...............

"Wildfire" is the technical term that's used in the nationally recognised training package developed by the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service. I like it, it's descriptive and more precise than "bushfire". A hazard reduction burn could be a "bush" fire.

Mick

[Wild Dingo]

What I dont understand is how anyone can be so dumb as to not work out several very simple easy and cheep ways of reducing house burnout in the bush...

1) Setting up a sprinkler system on the roof of the house that would spray water for a 5 - 10mtr radius around the house they could in many cases actually save their ruddy house! Placement of the hose would be at the first run of screws along the roofline below the ridge cap (say 1mtr below) sprinklers set in every 2mtrs should do for the entire length of the roofline both sides

2) Loose the sodding gutters in the bush theyre a trash trap!

3) Have verandahs all round 2.4mtrs MINIMUM

4) Another would be to remove any large trees from within 10mtrs of the house proper this would reduce the chance of flame jump effectively putting a void barrier between the fire and the house again reducing the chances of house burnout...trees look great and give great shade but can aid a fire to reach your house

If the owners of the 5 acre hobby farm type lots did just those 4 things they would reduce the chances of loosing their property... not totally but definantly considerably

Think about it for a tic... if your house has 2.4 (or more) wide verandahs all round the perimiter and NO gutters to trap the trash you have effectively built in a 2.4mtr zone between you and the fire which may not be much but may well be enough... if then you do the sprinkler thing I spoke of you would then effectively have a further 10mtr wet buffer now loose the trees for that 10mtr area and you have a zone wherein with the sprinklers on the fire cannot get a hold... logic says it will work but most of these people dont work well with logic

There are other ways but these four are within the reach of anyone who has a 5 acre block in the bush... and its a start... of course then theres the issue of accessable water but thats where a bore a tank a creek or even the damned garden tap comes into its own.

If theres a fire wildfire bushfire whatever where the fire fighters are goin nuts trying despirately to save people and property wouldnt it be a hell of a thing if they could consentrate their efforts on the actual fire rather than trying to save other peoples property?... Ive given just a few simple ideas that could help and hopefully save your home or your life or the lives of your loved ones treasured memories or a fire fighters life.

Anyways all the best to those in Tassy and Vic who are havin a hot time of it now

[Iain]

the fires that swept through our area from the west yesterday advanced rapidly through grass that was not very high driven by wind and heat.

You omitted the two little scrotes that were seen leaving the area in a hurry on trail bikes:mad:

[outback]

One small problem Dingo. If I live in the scrub, with no gutters, where does the water come from for the sprinklers? I may want a drink occasionally too, not to mention a wash.

The gist of your post makes good sense, and I've seen these types of houses on the telly, sprinklers and all. I think getting off your bum and cleaning gutters is a better alternative, and if you don't have trees too close to the house it wouldn't need to done that often.

[woodbe]

One thing that clearly makes a difference is to remove flammable trees from close vicinity to the house. Our local CFS organised a bushfire preparation session here some time back, and they advised that a 20m tree-free zone around the house was ideal. All well and good, but it took nearly 2 YEARS to fight our way through the local council to have the worst of the trees removed.

We're never going to get anywhere until the CFS and Local Government agree on the rules and apply them without fear or favor. Fire risk should emphaticaly overule the significant tree legislation so that a simple inspection is all that is required to allow immediate action to reduce the fuel load. We went through an entire bushfire season with an application into council and going nowhere!

And that's for someone who wants to do something about it. You don't have to drive far to find timber homes buried amongst trees - they look great, but they are just another disaster waiting to happen. Even if the occupants don't care for their own safety, what about the fireies who come to try and save them?

rant over

woodbe.

[Wild Dingo]

True outback... however I hate gutters cant stand the bloody things... but all is not lost my friend I am presently in the heady throws of inventing a new way of collecting all the rainfall that hits the roof without the need for the horrid things... just gotta work out how to install the ruddy great funnel on the roof

[Iain]

Simple, just up end the roof and put an 'ole in the middle

[woodbe]

We put a neat gutter guard on the new shed, and I'm so impressed with it, I'm saving up to put it on the whole house.

It's a colorbond cover affair with many holes and a ridge down the middle of it, so leaves can't lie flat. Mostly, they just dry and blow off. Tiny leaves can stick in the holes, but this hasn't been a big problem so far, and the gutter has been sitting under a few overhanging eucalypts for over 6 months now... It's called 'AllClear' if anyone is interested, I'll dig up contact info. Don't work for them, just happy customer. YMMV etc...

woodbe.

[Malibu]

1) Setting up a sprinkler system on the roof of the house that would spray water ...

2) Loose the sodding gutters in the bush theyre a trash trap!

3) Have verandahs all round 2.4mtrs MINIMUM

4) Another would be to remove any large trees from within 10mtrs of the house ...

Love your ideas Dingo, but it's never that simple..
1) the first thing you lose is the water pressure, the second is the power. Even with tanks, you can't pump the water because the pump won't run. Petrol pump would be great, but fuel tanks have a hard time in 200 degree heat.
2) Gutters are great in fires! Fill the down pipes with rags/tennis balls/play dough, turn on the sprinklers (the ones that don't work ) and it's an instant water barrier to the roof cavity.
3) Verandahs are good, but are usually flammable too. In radiated heat, they don't offer much protection though.
4) Ever tried to get council permission to remove a tree, even for fire safety? A firm and courtious "No!" is the usual response. If you do it anyway, a firm and courtious summons will be forthcoming.

I agree with your ideas and I'm dredging up a few ideas of my own along the same lines for such an emergency... I just don't know the best way to go about it.
Bushfire is a scarey idea when you live in the bush, and my thoughts go out to all the people in the midst of them

[woodbe]

1) the first thing you lose is the water pressure, the second is the power. Even with tanks, you can't pump the water because the pump won't run. Petrol pump would be great, but fuel tanks have a hard time in 200 degree heat.

Ok, you need edumacating

Whilst a petrol pump seems counter-intuitive, it works in most cases, because when it's 200 degrees outside, you wouldn't be able to hold the hose anyway. You operate the petrol pump while it's safe for you to be outside, which is also the conditions the petrol pump will be reasonably happy with.

The deal is, that before the firefront arrives, you do your pump thing, fill the gutters, wet-down the surrounds etc.. Yes, the power will probably be out by then. You wear reasonable clothing (leave your nylons in the drawer, wear cotton and wool)

When the firefront arrives, you take shelter inside the house or wherever and wait for it to pass (not long, it arrives fast and leaves fast) Then, you need to be up and about to put out spot fires.

The pump will probably run again, but even if it doesn't, you're dealing with leftovers hopefully, and it's a case of being alert, vigilant and observant, not pouring thousands of gallons on a big fire - if that happens, it's probably too late to save the joint anyway. The protocol is to stamp out small fires as they happen and guard against ember attack.

A Diesel pump would be good, but I expect they are a lot dearer, and probably hard to hand start...

If I've left out anything, someone correct me please.

Michael