Wildfire Glass & Wildland-Urban Interface
Wildfire Safety
Ready for a wildfire? “There are three ways a home can be exposed to wildfire: direct flames from a wildfire or burning neighboring home; radiant heat from nearby burning plants or structures; and flying embers.” If a home is exposed to wildfire, so are the home's exterior windows.
“Heat from a wildfire can cause windows to break even before the home is on fire. This allows burning embers to enter and start fires inside.” Building codes exist to address wildfire areas and the wildland-urban interface.
Wildfire Glass
Strengthen insulated window glass with at least one tempered glass pane to help prevent glass breakage due to wildfires. The following is an example of a common double-pane glass package with “wildfire glass”. The tempered pane can be inside or outside. “Wildfire glass” is not available with doors because doors require tempered glass.
| Outside Glass | Inside Glass | Glass Thickness |
|---|---|---|
| Annealed LowE3 Performance Glass with Argon Gas | Tempered Clear | 3/32-1/8 or 1/8-1/8 |
Wildland-Urban Interface
The wildland-urban interface (WUI), as defined by the U.S. Fire Administration, is the zone of transition between unoccupied land and human development. It is the line, area or zone where structures and other human development meet or intermingle with undeveloped wildland or vegetative fuels.
In California, one of the acceptable requirements for exterior windows in the WUI and wildfire areas is they must be constructed of multipane glazing with a minimum of one tempered pane. The multipane glazing must meet the requirements of safety glazing in California's building code. Always check local building codes for requirements.