What comes to mind when you think of the tools needed to protect your home from a wildfire? Do you think of a fire truck in front of your home with firefighters spraying flames or a helicopter emptying giant buckets of water?
According to Ed Smith, natural resource specialist, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, "Actually, you probably have the most important tools in your own garage." Smith says that it's the things that homeowners do around their homes with simple home and garden tools before a wildfire ever occurs that often end up saving their homes.
He suggested dusting off these common tools and getting to work now:
• Use a chainsaw to thin brush and trees, which will help prevent fire from moving from one plant to another and reduce fire intensity.
• Use a weed eater to mow dried grass and weeds, which often serve as the kindling to get wildfires going and help spread them to larger plants, bushes and trees.
• Use loppers to remove low tree branches that can easily catch fire from low-growing vegetation.
• Use a ladder and clean out your rain gutters of pine needles and other debris that can easily catch fire.
• Use a hammer and tin snips to cover exterior vents with wire mesh screen to help prevent sparks and burning material from entering your home.
To learn more about protecting your home from the threat of wildfire, visit www.livingwithfire.info or contact Smith at University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, 782-9960 or smithe@unce.unr.edu.
• Living With Fire is an interagency program coordinated by University of Nevada Cooperative Extension. This is the first in a series.