Personally, I think that if you are going to live in an area specifically called "Fire Mountain," well, you ought to do everything you can to make your home fire resistant, and that specifically means starting with the home itself.

So here are the easy steps to follow to keep from burning down your home, your neighbor's home, or your whole neighborhood:

1. First, you need a fireplace and a chimney with a nice, warm wood fire in it.
2. If you don't have a fireplace and chimney, look around at your neighbors's chimneys and help them.
3. Second, make sure there are spark arrestors on your chimney. Spark arrestors look something like these:
   
       
   
   
4. Replace your wood roof with a more fire-resistant material, especially if you are in a rural area subject to wild fires, especially wind-driven wild fires. If you like the look of wood, there are many products on the market today that look like wood but don't burn like wood.

Failure to follow steps three and four can result in house fires like that in Oceanside's Fire Mountain area a couple of weeks ago. Oceanside Fire Department Battalion Chief Pete Lawrence said that a preliminary investigation indicated that the fire was caused when an ember from the fireplace went up and out the chimney, landed on the "heavy shake shingles on the roof," and was driven by the wind up under the shake shingles.

Fortunately, the residents were home (and never leave home with a fire burning in your fireplace) and escaped safely with their dogs.

Now, to easily help your house burn down, simply ignore steps 2 through 4.

We all like a nice, warm fire that goes snap! crackle! pop!, but when you live in an area of the country that actually has a "fire season," I have three recommendations:

1. Don't burn wood in your fireplace -- switch to gas or propane.
2. If you like the snap! crackle! pop! of real wood fires, go visit friends and let them take the liability, or buy some rice krispies and pour some milk on them.
3. Go buy a CD of fires snapping, crackling, and popping, and listen to it while you enjoy your nice gas or propane fire.

*****

This week's posts (they'll open in a new window)

1. I don't inspect heliports - 6/26/09
2. ActiveRain commenting etiquette: HELP! - 6/26/09 (Featured)
3. How to make the most of your day - 6/25/09
4. WWW (Wordless Wednesday With Words): It's nice to be taken care of - 6/24/09
5. Why we need tort reform - 6/23/09
6. Your electrical panel is not there to cause problems, it's there to prevent them - 6/22/09
7. Unsolvable problems? Look at it differently. The answer is there. - 6/22/09

Last week's posts (they'll open in a new window)

1. Is this not the most beautiful lizard you have ever seen in your life? - 6/21/09
2. A California home inspection first for me - 6/21/09
3. SST (Speechless Sunday with Text): You take my chair, I take your pillow.... - 6/21/09
4. ActiveRain brings us back together after a six-year split - 6/20/09
5. Balboa Park water lily slide show - 6/20/09
6. Viking Range refrigerator recall - 6/20/09
7. Foto Friday: It just takes a little balance. I know I can do it. - 6/19/09
8. Camera review: Canon EOS Rebel XSi - 6/18/09
9. WWW (Wordless Wednesday with Words): Takin' it easy - 6/17/09
10. How to have fun when the Realtor is late.... - 6/16/09
11. Do you have a yellow thingy? - 6/15/09

Previous week's posts (they'll open in a new window)

1. Happy Flag Day! (flags included) - 6/14/09
2. The air conditioner is still hibernating - 6/13/09
3. How does a cat know? - 6/13/09
4. "There were rodents in the attic...." - 6/12/09
5. Foto Friday: Ground squirrel invasion slide show - 6/12/09
6. It's only a fix depending on your viewpoint - 6/11/09
7. WWW (Wordless Wednesday with Words): One-month old flamingo at the San Diego Zoo - 6/10/09
8. WWW (Wordless Wednesday with Words): Bottoms up! - 6/10/09
9. Refrigerator recall - Admiral, Amana, Crosley, Jenn-Air, Magic Chef, Maytag, Performa - 6/9/09
10. The house I want to inspect, but I'm not qualified - 6/8/09

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