Fire Defensible space Assessment, creation and maintenance for ZONE 2

If you live in Northern California, you may be required to have defensible space on your property. Defensible space is a buffer zone between structures and wildland vegetation that aims to reduce the risk of damage.

It’s important to make sure your property has adequate defensible space so you can protect yourself and your home from wildfires. The cost of not having enough defensible space can be devastating. Not being prepared could even result in complete loss of your home.

At Grind Fire Defense, we offer free preliminary assessments that will help determine what type of maintenance you need for your property. We then create a custom plan based on our assessment findings and provide annual maintenance services to keep your home safe from wildfires.

What is a Defensible Fire Zone?

A defensible fire zone is an area around a building or structure that has been changed to reduce the risk of wildfire damage. These areas can be made in many different ways, such as removing plants, using fire-resistant materials, and installing sprinkler systems. The goal of creating a defensible zone is to make a buffer around a structure that will help stop or slow a wildfire. This can giving firefighters a better chance of protecting the area.

Defensible fire zones are usually made in areas that are at high risk of wildfire. Specifically, places with dry, flammable plants or places that have a lot of wildfires. These areas can be found in rural, suburban, or urban areas.

Defensive fire zone 2  is designed to provide the highest level of protection for the building or structure.

In the fuel reduction zone, remove flammable vegetation, with the goal of reducing the amount of fuel available for a wildfire. This involves removing trees and other vegetation that are close to the building. Trimming or pruning trees and shrubs also happens to reduce their fuel load. In some cases, it may also be necessary to clear a wider area around the building to create a buffer of non-flammable material.

Creating a fuel reduction zone helps to reduce the risk of wildfire damage and gives firefighters a better chance of protecting the building. It is important to maintain this zone on a regular basis. Overgrown or poorly maintained landscaping can increase the risk.

This space is needed to slow the spread of wildfire and improve the safety of firefighters defending your home

This Zone includes the selective thinning/separating of live vegetation not found directly under any tree canopy: ground (4”-10”), cover (10” - 24”), and shrubs (24” - 72”) to break up uniform fuels. This zone requires strategic mapping of tree removal to ensure the health of the forest and create a park-like setting.

We will be removing latter fuels (up to 6’) and utilizing selective thinning of timber to create 10’ horizontal spacing of aerial fuels. Horizontal spacing will be adjusted and catered to the slope of the property.

• Cut annual grasses and forbs to maintain a Maximum 4” height. 
• Make separation to meet continuous canopy separation. 
• Selective timber thinning. 
• Removal of later fuels.
• Remove woody surface fuels and condensed aerial fuels will be removed
• Isolate stumps from other vegetation sources (low cut stumps)
• Remove downed dead logs and wood debris
• Remove loose surface litter (twigs, bark, cones, and small branches)

Zone 0

Ember Resistant

The immediate surroundings of your buildings and structures from structure to approximately 5' out.

Zone 1

Lean, Clean & Green

Extends 30 feet from buildings, structures, decks, etc. or to your property line, whichever is closer.

Zone 2

Reduce Fuel

Zone 2 extends form 30 to 100 feet from your buildings, structures, decks, etc. or to your property line.

Zone 3

Egress and Extend

Zone 3 is an access zone, adjacent to roads and driveways.



Is your home ready for the wildfire season?

In addition to the fuel reduction zone, defensible space also includes other layers of protection. It's best to work on all zones when you can, such as a lean, clean, and green zone (zone 1) and an ember-resistant zone (zone 0). The lean, clean, and green zone is an area around the buildings where vegetation has been removed and fire-resistant building materials and landscaping elements have been used. The ember-resistant zone is designed to prevent embers from reaching the building or structure. Together, these zones work to create a defensible space system to protect your home and property.

Defensible space is an important tool for protecting buildings and structures from wildfires. By creating defensible space zones around your home and property, and implementing protective measures, it is possible to reduce the risk of wildfire damage. In addition to the reduced risk, it gives firefighters a better chance of protecting your home and other buildings. While it is not possible to completely remove the risk of wildfire damage, defensible fire zones can help to provide a greater level of protection in high-risk areas. They can also make sure you have a home and other buildings after a wildfire.

Book a free consultation with a Defensible Space Specialist today.