A FREE Training for Mendocino County Contractors, Building Designers, and Building-Supply Providers to Help Make Our Community Safer by Learning the Best Design and Material Recommendations for Fire-Safe Homes.

The Mendocino County Fire Safe Council has booked a two-day training — March 13–14 at the Alex Rorabaugh Center in Ukiah — with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), the nation’s leading source for information and knowledge about fire hazards!

This is an opportunity for contractors, hardware and building supply stores, and building designers to help their community be better prepared for wildfires and to help their own brand. Through this training, you can learn about the basics of fire science, how and why homes burn, and the products, standards, and best practices that will help improve the safety and value of your community’s homes.  E.g., you will learn what the best advice and recommendations are when someone wants to build, buy, or retrofit to create more wildfire-safe decks, fencing, eaves, vents, or other home features.

Mendocino County is no stranger to the effects of fire.  Wildfire is a natural part of our environment, and we must learn to live with it. Because the State of California realizes this, it has begun to adjust its laws requiring wildfire preparation, just as it did for earthquakes. Insurance companies are already beginning to demand that key standards be in place to provide for favorable insurance outcomes.  Soon, residents will need to make these changes to their homes. That means there will be demand for these products and these services, which you can fill.

Every time someone makes a choice about property improvements, such as which type of fencing, gutters, skylights, mulch, etc, there are better and worse fire-safe options. You can help save lives and property by knowing the difference. Through extensive studies in both labs and real-life situations, scientists and regulators have identified upgrades that can significantly improve a home’s chances of surviving a wildfire. These include:

•  1/8” mesh on all vents
• dual-pane tempered-glass windows
• non-combustible pavers or other materials 5’ around home exteriors
• fire-resistant decking and siding materials

—and the list goes on!

The NFPA is a respected, well-established organization that provides the training required to keep you current with changing fire-safety codes and standards. This free training will put you on the cutting edge of home-hardening knowledge, allowing your business to become the best-suited to meet the needs of Mendocino County residents upgrading their homes and properties. This training is specifically geared toward products and services that your business can offer.

Benefits include:

• After completing this two-day training, your business will become a key part of the shift toward making Mendocino County more wildfire-resilient — and you will be able to advertise that fact to the community! Your customers will sleep better at night knowing their homes are better prepared to withstand a wildfire.
• You will qualify to be included in our business directory of NFPA-trained stores and professionals.  (To be created after the class).
• Our extensive countywide network of 50+ affiliated neighborhood fire safe councils (NFSCs) is made up of residents dedicated to making their homes and communities safer. We also send out a monthly newsletter, and have a Facebook outreach of well over 1,000 county residents. Many of them have had difficulty finding appropriate home hardening resources in Mendocino County and were, in some cases, forced to travel out of county or to order online. This is one of the reasons we are organizing this training.
• After you complete the training, we will help promote your business through our NFSC networks, at our Wildfire Safety Expos, and at numerous other community events countywide. These include neighborhood home-hardening assessment events where we visit homes to educate residents and their neighbors on home-hardening principles, and make recommendations on upgrade options.

This training will take place at the Alex Rorabaugh Center at 1640 S State Street, Ukiah. To commit to this free two-day training, fill out this RSVP form. You can also call us at (707) 462-3662.

NOTE: Committing to both days is required. Although we know it can be a challenge to complete the full training, we are certain it will be worth your while. This is a one-time opportunity to receive a free training that would normally cost over $300. On top of that, we will be offering a free lunch both days! Attendance is limited to 40 attendees, so RSVP soon.  Enrolling does not guarantee a place in the class, placement will be prioritzed based on your business’ total likely contact potential with Mendocino County homeowners and our goal of providing county-wide coverage potential.