Hey, y’all!

If you’re building a new home or remodeling your existing place, the more you do to make your house fire-resistant, the better your chances of keeping an outdoor fire from coming indoors. Here are some ideas:

Choose fire-resistant building materials like stucco if you're building or remodeling a home.

• If you’re replacing your siding, consider stucco—a local favorite anyway—or fiber cement or another cement-based product. A non-combustible cladding material is designed to resist flames long enough for firefighters to arrive.
• You might be thinking about trading your leaky, old single-pane windows in for double- or triple-pane models to take advantage of the federal tax credit for energy-efficient home improvements that lasts until December 2010. That’s a great idea, and not just because it will save you money on your air conditioning and heating bills. An extremely hot fire can break your windows. The more layers of glass they’re made of, the less likely all panes will break.
• Choose roof shingles and tiles that are Class-A fire-rated, which makes them suitable for homes even in fire-prone areas. Treated shingles, stone-coated steel and concrete tiles are good choices. A tip: When you replace shingles with tile, you need to reinforce your roof so it can hold up the extra weight.
• Some steel entry doors are tested for fire resistance and are labeled so you’ll know they can hold off flames for times ranging from 20 minutes to 90 minutes.
• Paint additives designed to reduce flame spread come with fire ratings, and some manufacturers claim they double their effectiveness if you double the coating. These additives don’t change the paint’s color.
• For landscaping, choose low-growing, succulent plants that hold moisture. And don’t plant them too close to the house or too close to each other. In the event they do catch on fire, distance will prevent the flames from spreading.

I’ll be talking about this important topic on News-Talk 92.3 KNST from 8-11 a.m. this Saturday on the Rosie on the House show. Tune it in!

’Til next time, pass yourself a good dose of joie de vivre!

Next week: Indoor fire safety