More on California Wild Fire Season 2016 (Los Angeles, Santa Clarita: camp, maintenance, garden)

[RosieSD]

I'm not a building contractor, so I can't give you a definitive answer. But, nothing is 100% fireproof and wild fires can reach incredibly high temperatures. In the 2007 fire here, shipping containers being used for storage and/or outbuildings in my community were severely damaged. You'd probably need to not have windows, as they are a primary way that wildfires get into structures. Also, if metal/steel were heated on the outside, the exterior might survive, but my hunch is that it would act as an oven and cook whatever is inside in a wild fire. Obviously, this is just a guess on my part; you'd need to talk to a materials engineer who could advise you. But, as I said, nothing is 100% fireproof -- even "fire proof" safes can melt in the extremes of a wild fire.

[freedomdove]

Okay, thank you. I appreciate your honest opinions.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by freedomdove

Thanks again, Rosie. I'm sorry to hear about your relative's house.

How well do you think shipping-container houses would stand up to the fires and quakes in the region? If you don't know what those are, there's an example below.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5D4WHT2F0JA

For fire it's pretty simple, remove the fuel. You want clear space and lot's of it around a structure. A non flammable structure, like brick/rock and motar with thick walls and a metal/tile roof. Idea being little/nothing to burn.
Or a berm house thats mostly underground....https://www.google.com/search?q=berm...xCBFUQ_AUIBigB ......... All weak in a major earthquake is the problem.
Joined shipping containers with a sod roof in a big clear space is a good idea. Not very attractive but could/should hold up very well to fires and quakes. But the more you join together, the more damage they will receive in a major quake. Movement will pull them apart where they are joined and the bigger/more cut out areas you have the weaker the box. You need to talk to structural engineers in the earthquake field on the matter.

[freedomdove]

Originally Posted by sourdough

For fire it's pretty simple, remove the fuel. You want clear space and lot's of it around a structure. A non flammable structure, like brick/rock and motar with thick walls and a metal/tile roof. Idea being little/nothing to burn.
Or a berm house thats mostly underground....https://www.google.com/search?q=berm...xCBFUQ_AUIBigB ......... All weak in a major earthquake is the problem.

I kind of like the idea of earth bermed houses, as long as I could bring in plenty of natural light somehow. I've even seen an underground shipping container house on youtube.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0oFJ2jbkDI

Joined shipping containers with a sod roof in a big clear space is a good idea. Not very attractive but could/should hold up very well to fires and quakes. But the more you join together, the more damage they will receive in a major quake. Movement will pull them apart where they are joined and the bigger/more cut out areas you have the weaker the box. You need to talk to structural engineers in the earthquake field on the matter.

Maybe it would be better to just have several single or double shipping containers on a piece of land instead of joining all of them together.

[RosieSD]

New fire in Santa Clarita has grown to 3500 acres in just a few hours, with evacuations. Looks nasty - hope the weather cooperates tomorrow so the fire fighters can get a handle on it. Thinking of everyone who lives in that area.

Brush fire burns more than 3,300 acres near Santa Clarita - LA Times

There's also a sizable fire burning on Camp Pendleton, but what else is new? They seem to have fires on a regular basis.

[sourdough]

more on Sand fire... InciWeb the Incident Information System: CALIFORNIA Incidents

wow....http://ktla.com/2016/07/23/3300-acre...ons-in-effect/

[CA4Now]

^^ It's only 10% contained, and apparently it's already over 95 degrees in that area right now, around noon. Horrible.

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by CA4Now

^^ It's only 10% contained, and apparently it's already over 95 degrees in that area right now, around noon. Horrible.

Yikes. Just checked the news -- it's over 11,000 acres as of 2 p.m. today. Think about that for a moment: it started around 2 yesterday, and in 24 hours it has burned 11,000 acres and is not even close to containment. Currently, 1000 homes threatened.
Sand Fire Grows to 11,000 Acres in Santa Clarita Area, Is 10% Contained; 1,000 Homes Threatened | KTLA

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by CA4Now

^^ It's only 10% contained, and apparently it's already over 95 degrees in that area right now, around noon. Horrible.

Yikes. Just checked the news -- it's over 11,000 acres as of 2 p.m., with 1000 homes threatened. Think about that for a moment: it started at 2 yesterday, so in 24 hours it's burned through 11,000 acres and is no where near containment. Hope they get a handle on it soon.
Sand Fire Grows to 11,000 Acres in Santa Clarita Area, Is 10% Contained; 1,000 Homes Threatened | KTLA

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by CA4Now

^^ It's only 10% contained, and apparently it's already over 95 degrees in that area right now, around noon. Horrible.

Yikes. Just checked the news -- it's over 11,000 acres as of 2 p.m., with 1000 homes threatened. Think about that for a moment: it started at 2 yesterday, so in 24 hours it's burned through 11,000 acres and is no where near containment. Hope they get a handle on it soon.
Sand Fire Grows to 11,000 Acres in Santa Clarita Area, Is 10% Contained; 1,000 Homes Threatened | KTLA

I also just realized that there was another fire in the Santa Clarita area a few weeks ago (Note: this is NOT the fire that is currently burning! Giant Santa Clarita fire still dangerous: 85% contained, evacuations ended - MyNewsLA.com) I wonder if the two are related in any way? Anyone know how close that fire was to where today's fire is located?