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Free self-check for homeowners

Home ignition zone self-check: what to do before a wildfire.

Answer plain questions about your house and the ground around it. You get a to-do list in the order that matters most: the first five feet and embers, then the roof and vents, then the yard to 30 feet, then what to choose at the next renovation, with typical costs. Nothing you answer is stored. Free from FireInspection360, the fire prevention platform built by fire inspectors.

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A red house still standing in burned brush after the 2017 Thomas Fire in California, its cleared yard, water tank and propane tank untouched. Photo: Stuart Palley for the US Forest Service.

Walk around your home and answer as you go

The questions follow the published 2025 wildfire-prepared home standard, item by item. Not sure of an answer? Say so: it goes on a list of things to go and look at.

The first five feetDo these first
Question 1 of 4

Within 5 feet of the house, and under any deck, is the ground free of plants, grass, mulch, weeds and dead leaves?Bare soil, gravel, pavers or concrete count as clear.

Question 2 of 4

Within 5 feet of the house, is there nothing that burns: no firewood, furniture, wood planter, plastic rain barrel, shed, storage box, parked vehicle or trailer?Door mats, hoses, trash bins and a grill with its propane tank are allowed.

Question 3 of 4

Does a wood or vinyl fence, gate or retaining wall stand within 5 feet of the house or touch it?A metal or masonry fence is fine.

Question 4 of 4

Are the deck and porch clear of leaves, climbing vines, wood planters, rugs, plastic covers and storage, with nothing stored under the deck?No deck or porch? Answer Yes.

The roof, gutters and ventsWhere embers get in
Question 1 of 6

Are the roof and the gutters clear of leaves and pine needles right now?Look at the roof valleys, the edges and inside the gutters.

Question 2 of 6

Is the roof covered with asphalt composition shingles, metal, concrete or clay tile, or slate, and not wood shakes or wood shingles?These are Class A roof coverings.

If the roof is barrel tile or corrugated

On the barrel tile or corrugated roof, are the open ends along the bottom edge closed with bird stops of metal or mortar?Bird stops close the gaps under the first row of tiles. Counted only when the switch above is on.

Question 3 of 6

Are the gutters and downspouts metal, not vinyl or plastic?No gutters? Answer Yes.

Question 4 of 6

Do the attic, gable, soffit, foundation and crawl-space vents have metal mesh with openings no larger than 1/8 inch, or are they listed ember-resistant vents?Plumbing vent pipes on the roof do not count.

Question 5 of 6

Do the dryer vent and other fan vents on the outside walls have a flap or louver that closes?Never put mesh over a dryer vent.

Question 6 of 6

Are the bottom 6 inches of every outside wall something that cannot burn, such as exposed concrete, fiber cement, brick, stone, stucco or metal flashing, including where a deck or patio meets the wall?Measured up from the ground and from any deck or patio surface.

Five to thirty feetThen the yard
Question 1 of 6

Between 5 and 30 feet from the house, is all dead or dying vegetation gone and the grass cut shorter than 4 inches?Out to the property line where it is closer than 30 feet.

Question 2 of 6

Between 5 and 30 feet, are tree crowns at least 10 feet apart, the lower limbs cut 6 feet up (a third of the height for a tree under 18 feet), and no branch within 10 feet of the chimney?Privacy rows of trees do not pass.

Question 3 of 6

Between 5 and 30 feet, are shrubs spaced at least twice the height of the tallest one apart (10 feet is enough), none growing under a tree, and no hedge or row of bushes?A group of shrubs under 10 feet across counts as one shrub.

Question 4 of 6

Are firewood and lumber piles at least 30 feet from the house, or inside a closed shed or outbuilding?No woodpile? Answer Yes.

Question 5 of 6

Is any propane or fuel tank at least 30 feet from the house, or at least 10 feet away with 10 feet of bare soil under and around it?No tank? Answer Yes.

Question 6 of 6

Within 30 feet of the house, is every shed, playhouse, carport or other outbuilding at least 10 feet from the house and from each other, no more than three of them, each with the same roof, vents and 5-foot clear zone as the house?Counts any outbuilding of 15 sq ft or more. None? Answer Yes.

At the next renovationWhen you replace it anyway
Question 1 of 7

Are the eaves boxed in underneath with something that cannot burn, such as fiber cement, stucco or metal, or with 2-inch lumber?Open eaves show the rafter ends from below.

Question 2 of 7

Is all the siding something that cannot burn, such as fiber cement, stucco, brick, stone or metal, and not wood or vinyl?Treated wood siding does not pass.

Question 3 of 7

Are the windows multi-pane with at least two tempered panes, or rated for 20 minutes of fire, or glass block?Tempered glass carries a small etched mark in one corner.

Question 4 of 7

Are the outside doors, the garage door included, metal, rated for 20 minutes of fire, or solid-core wood at least 1-3/4 inches thick with a metal or stone threshold?A storm door of metal in front of a wood door also passes.

Question 5 of 7

Within 5 feet of the house, are the deck's walking surface and railings made of something that cannot burn, such as metal, concrete or stone, with closed stair risers?No deck? Answer Yes.

Question 6 of 7

Are the gutters covered with metal guards that keep leaves out?No gutters? Answer Yes.

Question 7 of 7

Do two fences of wood or vinyl run side by side less than 5 feet apart?Back-to-back fences between two yards count.

Your exposureFacts, never a to-do
Question 1 of 2

How far is the nearest neighboring house from yours?Measured wall to wall, the closest point.

Question 2 of 2

Does the ground fall away steeply below the house, so the house looks down a slope?A hillside, a canyon edge or a ravine below the house.

About the home

Not counted: these only change who the list is written for and which state map it links.

What kind of home is it?

Do you own it or rent it?

Answer the first step and the list starts here: what to do first, then next, with typical costs, and what to go and look at.
This is a self-check, not an inspection. It does not decide whether your home meets any standard or code, and it changes nothing an insurer charges. Your fire department can tell you what applies where you live.

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How it works

Most homes that burn in a wildfire are lit by embers, not by the fire front.

The home ignition zone is the house and the ground around it out to about 100 feet. Research on homes that burned and homes that survived points the same way: what lights a house is mostly what is on it and right beside it. Wind carries burning embers far ahead of the fire, and they land in the places a person rarely looks: the mulch against the foundation, the leaves in a gutter, an attic vent with no screen, the gap under a deck. Beyond about 100 feet, clearing more vegetation adds little protection.

That is why the list starts at the walls. The first five feet are kept free of anything that burns, so an ember that lands there finds nothing to light. The roof, the gutters and the vents come next, because that is where embers get into or onto the house. Five to thirty feet out, the work is spacing: trees and shrubs far enough apart that a fire cannot climb from the ground into the crowns and reach the house. The last group, walls, windows, doors and the deck itself, protects against the heat of flames close by, and is cheapest to do when the part is being replaced anyway.

The spacing between houses matters as much as anything a single owner does. In a neighborhood where houses stand close together, a burning house is the next house's exposure, and the first five feet and the roof matter more than anything farther out in the yard. A shed, a fence or a deck counts as part of the house it stands next to.

The questions follow the published 2025 wildfire-prepared home standard: its first level is mostly about embers, its second about walls, windows, doors and decks. A home meets that standard only after a third-party evaluation with photos. Many fire departments offer a home ignition zone assessment, where an inspector walks the property with you; ask yours.

For fire departments

A self-check gets a homeowner started; an inspection is what verifies the work. FireInspection360 is the fire prevention platform departments run their inspections, re-inspections and records on, with violations photographed in the field and corrections sent back by the property owner.

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