Firebreaks?

[Egon]

Before starting the firebreak have you gotten any advice from some of the regulatory agencies for your area as to the design of a fire break. Fire generated wind can carry hot embers a long way.

As others have stated a dozer or good heavy tractor and implements would be the way to get it black and ready for future maintenance.

Egon

 

[woodlot]

Hey, I know nothing about building a fire break, but..., some places around here are using irrigation type set-ups to create a wall-o-water to stop approaching wildfires. Its more for protecting buildings than trees. I don't know if thats an option for you? I just thought I'd offer it as an alternative.

 

[Toiyabe]

I've read a bunch of articles/brochures on the subject.

The basic idea they all spell out is for a firebreak, at least 30' wide to create a "defensible perimeter" against the direct threat, and then keep the interior of that perimeter "lean, green and clean" to help protect against indirect threats such as wind-blown embers.

I've got a lot of work to do both on the perimeter and the interior of the perimeter. I've only had the house for a year and a half and there's been more pressing things. I figure when the next big fire hits I'll be on my own - I've got a long driveway, a hill on one side of the property and a stream on another. If I was a firefighter, I'd be very worried about getting trapped while trying to save the house.

 

[Farwell]

Don't think a brush hog will do to well if those things sticking up out of the weeds are rocks. Roundup may work for you. It would probably kill most of the weeds and may work on sage with a couple applications. I still like the dozer idea the best especially if you have a lot of rocks. I thought you had a dense growth of sagebrush, if it wasn't for the rocks a brush hog could probably have done the job.
The next critical thing you need to check on is making your eves and roof fire proof. If you got wood shingles they gotta go.
Farwell

 

[Highbeam]

"I've also got a lot of diatomaceous earth on the property,"
Really? Dead plankton skeletons? We used to get the stuff in bags for pools. I believe it was for filtration since all the little skeletons were great at trapping floaters.

 

[cqaigy]

Another nice thing about a firebreak thats pretty clean of rocks and farely leve, is you can move vehicles around your line. I.E. if you do have a fire and somebody comes out to help protect your place, you can more easily move to where you need to be.

Having been on some of those firelines, it sure is nice if you don't have to hump a load of gear to the fire. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[Cityboyfarmer]

Have you contacted your state forestry comission? They might plow your break for you for a nominal fee. I have had the Ga. Forestry Service plow my breaks and help me do my controlled burns. It cost less than $100.00 each time. Might be worth looking into.

 

[Toiyabe]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Really? Dead plankton skeletons? )</font>

Yeah, freshwater diatom fossils. Pretty common in the area - there's a layer of it that runs under a large portion of this part of Nevada, but you've got to be at the right altitude to have it at the surface. There's a commercial mine about twenty miles to the south of me.

I've thought of bagging it up and selling it as "Uncle Pete's Old-fashioned Organic Kitty Litter" at the local farmer's market. Purely for grins and giggles, of course. It's a good absorbant and filter medium. The saltwater variety also is a good insecticide (cuts up the waxy coating on insects and they dehydrate), but it can cause resperatory problems in humans.

Thanks for all the input on this subject - looks like I'll end up hiring a dozer.

 

[NevadaSmith]

Welcome Neighbor! Your land is exactly like mine, and I live in your area. Having been a firefighter here, the general rule of thumb for your firebreak is 1.5 times the fuel height. By the looks of your picture, you do not need 30'. I cleared a 10' swatch around my property with my 25 hp Kioti (two blade widths)....same type of rocks. Some of them were pretty stuborn, and when I was done I had enough rocks to build a wall around my property if I wanted to! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

The sheet grass you have will burn like gas, and any flames will go by pretty fast....almost two fast to ignite anything else. The sage is nasty stuff when it burns though...and the above formula is based on the height of the flames when sage burns. Of course, being in Reno, you have NASTY winds and the embers will travel. You will also have "burning bunnies" that will spread the fire...so you'll almost never be 100% safe. I think a 10' break will give you what you need for normal stuff...and will also aid your local firefighters in triaging your home in the event you do get a burn nearby. Also...if you clear too much...you'll really really hate the blowing dirt...as its just like powder will permiate everything.

Good luck
NevadaSmith

 

[Toiyabe]

Thanks for the reply! I was hoping that someone from the area would chime in.

How do you keep the grass from growing back? Do you mow it, or just blade it again a few times a year?

In case you're wondering, I live in Palomino Valley (between Reno and Pyramid Lake).