Eaves as Part of Defensible Space, Parker, CO
There are many elements of the home to consider when it comes to managing the risk of wildfires and creating defensible space around your home in Parker. The eave is one element. It’s a No. 4 consideration, which means it’s not the biggest concern but you still want to pay close
attention to it.
Your eave will overhang the house to protect it from rain and sun. It will also trap heat in some cases, and this is where one of the big problems is when it comes to wildfires. Here’s a look at what eaves do, and how you can manage them to protect your home.
How Eaves Can Draw in Wildfires
The eaves will help to trap heat in the home. This is important in the winter. You want to reduce the risk of warmth escaping outside the house to save on the energy bills. When it comes to a wildfire event, the heat is a problem. It is one of the needs for fires to spread.
Embers will be able to get into the home through the under-eave attic vents. If the embers get in, there’s a risk of fire. There are likely a lot of items that you have in the home around this area without even thinking about it.
Open-eave construction gaps between the rafter tails and blocking are also a problem. They can make the home vulnerable to embers getting in.
Managing the Eaves to Reduce Wildfire Risks
You want to look at the gaps around the rafter roof tails and the blocking. It’s important to plug these gaps with caulk as much as you can. Any gaps will allow embers to get in and settle, creating a fire that you may not notice until it is too late.
Create a soffited eave where you can when you have open-eaves. These soffited eaves are boxed-in, which makes it harder for the embers to get through.
You’ll also want to look at the vent coverings. The vents are a No. 1 priority, so you’ll have already considered them. Make sure you get the 1/8in metal mesh screens for all vents. This makes it much harder for embers to get into the home and land on something combustible.
As you would with everything around the home, make sure all vegetation is removed from below the eaves. You want to get rid of vegetation around the home anyway. It’s one of the biggest issues for embers sparking. It’s also worth removing items from inside the home close to the eaves. If embers do get in, you want to reduce the available combustible materials.
To get a quote for defensible space in Parker, contact Colorado Mastication.