The Heat is Coming!

For some Australians, moving away from the short winter days through to the longer, warmer ones is an unhappy time - less time is spent cuddled up in bed and more time is spent trying to stay cool in the relentless Aussie heat.

For most others, the warmer temperatures are a welcome change, signifying summer barbeques and dips in the pool – drying off without the need for a towel.

Regardless of your preference, there’s one thing that the warmer months’ always signal; the imminent approach of the bushfire season.

This can be particularly worrying aroud parts of Australia with heavy vegetation such as the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Kinglake in Victoria or even Kersbrook in South Australia. Changes to the Building Code of Australia (BCA) were implemented in 2011, with the hopes of increasing the protection of homes located in these areas and areas with similar bushfire issues. These changes aim to increase the stringency around the selection of windows and doors along with other building materials for projects in bushfire-prone areas, hopefully reducing the risk of loss of life and damage to property within bushfire areas.

If you design, plan or specify for a bushfire prone area, or are involved in any way with windows or doors within a bushfire prone area, there are many precautions you must take in order to maximise the safety of any current or future occupants associated with each and every dwelling. One of these precautions is the correct selection of bushfire rated window and door systems.

So what are bushfire rated window and door systems and how are they classified within the bushfire attack levels rating system (“BAL”)?

There are 6 BALs in the rating system, with each corresponding to a different level of risk and danger:

So what can be done to protect homes within BAL-rated areas?

For starters;

• Selecting an appropriate building site location,
•  Using suitable building materials,
•  Ensuring a close proximity to independent water sources,
•  Managing vegetation surrounding the building and consistently clearing debris close to the building
•  Allowing easy access to a home for emergency vehicles
•   Utilising only the most reliable, BAL rated windows and doors for high-levels of protection 

AWS has developed and tested a large range of aluminium windows and doors, that have been certified to meet the BCA requirements for compliance under the Australian Standard AS3959-2009 for windows and doors in a BAL-40 bushfire zone.

Generally speaking, great protection can usually imply lesser standards of style and design. Our Elevate Aluminium and Vantage Residential ranges of BAL-40 rated Aluminium windows and Doors deliver unprecedented aesthetic, efficiency and functionality, whilst ensuring the highest standards of bushfire protection for Australians.

For more tips on building in bushfire zones, flame zones, window compliance and to download a free BAL-40 whitepaper, visit http://www.bal40windows.com.au/ . 

You can also check out this video about BAL testing for architectural window and door systems:

---