luxury in the Line of Fire
Winsome Construction Creates with Style, Safety & Fire-wise Techniques
by Jennifer Walton
What would it feel like to lose everything in a fire? Everything you valued, your home, belongings, and memories—that cherished painting, kids’ trophies, grandparents’ dishes, boxes of photo albums, artifacts and souvenirs you collected from your global travels, and even your pets? Perhaps you’d receive a sufficient amount from an insurance claim to begin rebuilding, and maybe you’d recover from the fear of fire and the emotional toll of loss, but more likely, you’d reflect on the safety and security you enjoyed in your home surrounded by things that held meaning. And then you’d dream of feeling that again while confronting the apocalyptic building site.
Now, how would you feel if you knew there were ways to build your luxury home with fire-resistant methods, which may cost a bit more initially but would prevent flames from burning down your house for up to four hours?
Shan Stassens of Winsome Construction built two homes side-by-side for two families who shared their lives for over 30 years, raising children, enjoying summers, and planning their retirements in these homes until the Santiam Fire in 2020 completely destroyed them. It was a culmination of a lifetime of memories reduced to ashes. “The impact of losing a home to fire cannot be overstated. As a builder, I have witnessed the profound devastation families feel when they see everything physically destroyed. It took a month for these families to access their homes, and I was there that day. This emotional connection to one’s home is universal, transcending backgrounds and professions. People invest financially and emotionally in their homes, and the loss is heartbreaking,” states Stassens.
“The impact of losing a home to fire cannot be overstated. As a builder, I have witnessed the profound devastation families feel when they see everything physically destroyed.”
–Shan Stassens, Winsome Construction
Let’s begin with fire facts as you contemplate building your new home. The statistics are sobering. Since 1950, the average number of acres burned by wildfires has steadily increased. Between 1971 and 1995, the number of acres burned increased five-fold, and the trend has continued from 1996 to 2021. Experts predict that large fires (considered 50,000 acres or more) in the Western U.S. will radically increase between 2041 and 2070. “As a native Oregonian, I don’t remember forest fires being a significant issue while growing up, but now they are a regular and alarming event,” Stassens continues. So far this year, there have been 28,798 wildfires in the Western U.S., burning 1,401,724 acres (Source: National Interagency Fire Center). States like California, Oregon, and Arizona have been particularly hard-hit with multiple large active fires.
Thankfully, the construction industry is adapting by incorporating fire-wise materials and designs as wildfires become more frequent and severe. “We are not trying to become the de facto fire construction company, but there is a significant intersection between high-quality construction and fire-wise building,” says Stassens. “People who are building homes right now should know these options are out there to make their homes more defensible, increase their homes’ and their families’ survivability, and decrease their fire insurance because they have added defensible options above and beyond code to prevent mass destruction.” So, what are the key considerations for fire-wise construction?
First, building a fire-wise home begins with a comprehensive site evaluation. Understanding typical fire behavior and identifying access and defensible space for fire professionals are critical steps. There are four zones of defensibility around a single home, starting with the area closest to the structure (0-5 feet) that should be the most aggressively managed with non-combustible building materials and ensuring the roof and gutters are free of debris, to the immediate zone (5’-30’), which focuses on landscaping and creating breaks in vegetation, outward to the extended zone (30’-100’), to disrupt the fire’s path with strategies like thinning trees, removing heavy accumulations of dead vegetation, and maintaining well-spaced trees and shrubs. Finally, the outermost zone could be adjacent to National Forest or BLM.
“We push for no crawl space. Embers are wind-driven. They can resemble a blow torch fired at your house.”
–Shan Stassens, Winsome Construction
Great architects will consider natural barriers like rock outcroppings and include them in their designs. A simple structure is easier to defend than a complex one with features like dormers, eaves, and decks.
Next, say no to crawl spaces. Ember intrusions are a major concern, and eliminating crawl spaces can prevent embers from entering the home. “We push for no crawl space. Embers are wind-driven. They can resemble a blow torch fired at your house,” Stassen explains. And naturally, fire-resistant walls, commonly known as Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF), are a popular choice, but there are other materials like cement, metal, stucco, and stone that offer fire resistance. Insulated Concrete Forms are hollow blocks or panels made of expanded polystyrene (EPS) that are stacked to create the shape of walls. Once assembled, the forms are filled with concrete, providing a strong, energy-efficient, and fire-resistant structure. “We built over 100 ICF homes; a few years ago, when the lumber prices were so high and the fires hit, we built 8-9 ICFs in one year! That was a record year for us; we couldn’t build enough of them,” he says.
The design of the roof, eaves, and attic is critical. “That’s where I really come in with assemblies of the floor, walls, and the roof. I don’t like decks. I like a slab on grade, so there are no foundation vents where embers can enter, and non-vented attics and cold roofs that don’t require air circulation can prevent embers from entering. They even make fire shutters with fusible links. When they reach a certain temperature, the links fail, and the shutter falls, so you don’t even have to be there. They also have fusible links for sprinkler systems and thermostatics,” Stassens states. In rural or isolated areas, having a back-up generator to power sprinkler systems is essential, as fires often knock out power.
“We all care about the same things, and the way we achieve our common goals is by adhering to best practices. They’re not secrets, and there’s no exclusivity involved. All homes can benefit in many ways by integrating even a couple of best practices.”
–Shan Stassens, Winsome Construction
The size of wood used in construction matters. Large timbers, bigger than 6” x 6”, take longer to burn because of their size and provide better defense. And there are the windows and doors. There is a differentiation in glazing; if you temper your glass or choose smaller panes, they have a better chance of survivability, which is the same for doors. Fire-resistant doors with steel cores and fire-resistant pre-drilled panels can further enhance protection. In addition, there are many fire-resistant siding options, such as cement, metal, stucco, or stone. “Many of these options cost more, but they align with designing and building luxury homes,” Stassens says.
However, building a fire-wise home involves thoughtful planning. Awareness, product availability, certification, and client support are all different from what they were 20-30 years ago. “When clients come to us, they might have researched online that concrete structures are a true four-hour firewall, but they are talking with us about more than the utilitarian purpose; they like the aesthetics and ethos. We have the same discussion about the trade-offs between durability, beauty, and price. We encourage tight building envelopes and the benefits of great design in high-risk fire zones. While these materials and designs often come with a higher upfront cost, they offer long-term benefits in safety, longevity, and maintenance,” affirms Stassens.
Of course, you want your home to survive, but have you ever considered it saving you? With smart design choices and defensible space planning, your home can offer vital protection against fire. These measures shield your home and can also create a safe haven for you in the direst of circumstances when everyone and everything matters.
“We all care about the same things, and the way we achieve our common goals is by adhering to best practices. They’re not secrets, and there’s no exclusivity involved. All homes can benefit in many ways by integrating even a couple of best practices,” adds Stassens. “Building homes that make sense starts with education, and once the real value is understood, these practices can become part of the process.”
