Misters As Possible Wildfire Mitigation

I did an earlier blog on this topic but it was  brief and mostly a reference to another site I thought I would revisit the subject.  When we had a wildfire audit done a few months ago the Forester left me with a suggestion. He had retired from the US Forest Service as a trainer and crew leader.  He working part time for the Colorado Forest Service doing wildfire audits. After a couple minutes I realized he had a tremendous wealth of information and one of his suggestions was to use a drip or mist system for exposed area's that were difficult to protect. He had seen it done in other parts of the country and considered a reasonable option for protection.

I did some research after he left and I have to agree with him.  Decks and exterior exposed wood are hard to protect from flying embers than can travel up to 1/4 mile.  If one lands on an exposed deck and sets it on fire the fire will travel to your home. I didn't think that the drip system would work as well as the mister.  If a mist line is run under the eves it could keep the entire area under it wet and less prone to catch fire. The only down side I can find would be if the power company cut power for some reason and you couldn't pump water from your well.  The good side is misters only take a little water so if you are on a well system using them won't drain your well and you should have plenty of water for the system to run for several days.

I consider this system as a good option to round out a home that has already done good wildfire protection.  I think it is a worthy consideration.  The company I researched has misting kits from $40-120.00 depending on length.  25 feet would be the $40.00 kit and $120.00 for the 50 foot system.  If you covered a 50 X 50 foot house it would cost $480.00 total which is pretty reasonable to protect your home.  It sets up in minutes and hook up to a garden hose.  Worth considering in my opinion.