Prepare your property for bushfire season

 

It’s time to clear the gutters, clean up the yard, and check your fire plan, as bushfire season draws near.

 

You may think that bushfires are reserved for areas where residential suburbs meet bush land, or rural and remote areas.

 

But Bushfires are not selective about where they occur. Even suburban homes can be at risk; urban areas where houses have grassland or bush around them are targets during the warmer months.

 

If you live in a residential area where blocks of land are small and houses are close together, or live close to open spaces like parks and golf courses you too may be at risk.

 

The good news is you can minimise the risk of bushfires by keeping the areas around your property clean and clear.

Cut away tree branches that hang over your house or are closer than 10 meters to your property. Don’t forget to dispose of these branches away from your house too.

Clean up twigs and dried leaves in and around your garden that could become flammable during a fire.

Make sure your lawn is cut short, between 5-10cms high is perfect, any shorter and your grass may dry out.

Keep all plants pruned so that they don’t come into contact with any low hanging trees and that all dead leaves are removed.

Get on top of that dreaded weeding as weeds can be strong fuel in a bushfire. Either remove them or ensure they are under control.

Weed matting may also be a good investment to not only stop the weeds coming through but to hold moisture in your garden beds. Your local council may be able to offer you other tips on effective ways to rid your garden of weeds.  

Keep mulch at a distance, at least 10 metres away from your home is best as fine-based mulches can ignite easily during a fire. You can also use alternatives like pebbles, sand or rocks which achieve the same results and aren’t as flammable.

If you’re keen to lay mulch, make sure you do it after bushfire season not before. This will allow it to break down over winter. Decomposed mulch will still provide good moisture retention during summer and is less likely to ignite than more recently laid mulch.  

If your mulch is still dry at the beginning of the fire season, keep it wetted down or cover it with soil or sand.

There are also a number of other factors to take into consideration when preparing your home for bushfire season. We highly recommend you have a read of the Victorian CFA’s bushfire preparation planning kit, or contact your local state fire authority for more details.

http://www.cfa.vic.gov.au/firesafety/bushfire/preparation-planning.htm

 
November 2010