Settings
Focus mode
Focus keeps the section you are reading bright and greys out the rest of the page. Super focus adds a second, brighter spot on the part of the section you are reading. In either, ↓ and ↑ move to the next or previous section (or part, in Super focus).
How grey and dim Focus makes the sections outside the bright one. Moving it turns Focus on.
Color vision
For red-green color blindness: deutan (green-weak) is the most common kind, protan (red-weak) the next. Charts, highlights and warnings move to blues, oranges and purples that stay apart, with a cue beyond color. Photos never change. Applies to the blog and the service pages.
Your choices are saved in this browser, on this device.
Wildfire Mitigation
Embers find the gaps.
Hardening work for houses in the Peninsula hills and foothills. We fit ember-resistant vents, put up fiber-cement siding, build fire-rated decking and coat existing wood, and we photograph all of it for your AB 38 disclosure.
01Why It Matters
State fire law already applies in the foothill towns.
Woodside, Portola Valley, Los Altos Hills, Saratoga, Los Gatos and parts of Atherton sit in a State Responsibility Area or a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. State law (PRC 4291) calls for defensible space out to 100 feet there, and it describes an ember-resistant zone within 5 feet of the house, Zone 0. The state’s Zone 0 rules aren’t in effect yet, so we treat that band as best practice. Where the Zone 0 rules stand.
02Defensible Space Zones
Where embers get in.
An ember doesn’t need much. Pine needles in a gutter are enough, or an attic vent with no mesh, or bark mulch against the siding. We look at all of them on the same visit, because fixing one and leaving the rest doesn’t buy you much.
Roof Hardening
Class A roofing recommendations (installed by a licensed roofer), Vulcan ember-resistant vents, and fire-resistant soffits under the eaves.
Wall Hardening
Non-combustible Hardie fiber-cement siding in place of the wood. We flash it properly and seal the pipe and wire holes where embers get in.
Deck & Outdoor
Fire-resistant decking, non-combustible skirting, and proper clearance around the house.
Ember-Resistant Vents
1/8-inch metal mesh on every attic vent (home hardening per CAL FIRE guidance). We also install Vulcan Vent intumescent vents.
Intumescent Coatings
Coatings for exposed framing, eaves and other bare wood. They char in heat, which can improve the fire resistance of existing wood. They aren’t a WUI code compliance method.
Defensible Space
We walk the first five feet around the house (Zone 0) and list what in it could catch an ember, such as bark mulch, woody plants and stacked firewood. We coordinate the clearing with your arborist and landscaper and document it for your insurer to review.
03Our Process
It starts with a walk around the house.
Step 1 of 4: Annual Audit
-
We inspect the property against the AB 38 checklist and check Zone 0 against best practice. You get photos and a list of what we found, worst first.
-
A written proposal in phases. The highest-risk items come first, with budget options for the rest.
-
We reside in Hardie, install the vents and build the decking. Our B-2 + C-33 license covers that work within our classifications, along with coatings on existing wood (which aren’t a WUI measure).
-
When the work is done you get a photo record, the materials documentation and the Zone 0, 1 and 2 work records, for your insurer and your AB 38 file.
Schedule a wildfire audit.
If you’re in an SRA or a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, there’s no obligation, and the report is yours to keep.
