Fire Safe Siding

Wood siding is a great choice for many other reasons though.

Fire safe siding.

Even though you may have treated your siding it doesn t mean that roof soffit or exterior trim is safe as well. Note that most fiber cement sidings require a gypsum board underlayment to reach their maximum efficacy. Typically the corners of your home are the weakest part of the structure. Pressure treated cedar roofing is treated with a superior fire retardant which is pressure impregnated into the inner cells of the wood resulting in a permanently fire resistant product.

Flame penetration through the siding occurred more readily at less complicated lap joints. It is recommended that class a or b rated siding materials be used. Also keep in mind that cladding your home in fire resistant siding won t matter if embers find their way in through cracks or other flammable surfaces so be sure to enclose eaves soffits and fascias with complementary fire retardant trim. However you should be aware that fire can still penetrate the stud cavity of your home through the joints of the siding assembly.

The national fire protection association does not cite any exterior wall coverings including vinyl siding brick and stucco as the cause of residential fires. Additionally just because the siding has been treated doesn t mean that the exterior trim or roof soffit is safe so make sure to either install separate fire resistant or treated trim as well. Concrete one of the most common building materials is also an excellent fire resistant material it is noncombustible and has low thermal conductivity meaning that it takes a long time for fire to affect its structural load bearing ability and it protects from the spread of fire. The national fire protection association s national electrical code recognizes the strong fire safe characteristics of vinyl through its approved use as a residential wiring insulator.

Testing of siding products conducted at the uc fire research laboratory showed that the siding joint is the most vulnerable part of a combustible siding assembly. Fiber cement siding is the only siding on the market to receive a class 1 a rating making it ideal for any property where the threat of fire may be a concern. In addition fiber cement is beautiful versatile and resistant to things like rot and termites as well so you can extend that peace of mind to other areas of home maintenance as well. Vinyl siding may be adequate if fire can find no route to burn too close to the house it tends to melt and slough off but all gaps and crevices beneath the vinyl must be sealed or fire could.

This is due to high surface to volume ratios.