Family loses everything in fire, then rebuilds home to thrive in disasters: 'I'm ready for it to happen again'
In 2021, when the Marshall Fire swept through Colorado, Erik Ela and his family were caught in the destruction, losing their home and everything in it. However, Ela was determined to build back better, and other communities at risk of wildfires could benefit from similar designs.
As detailed by CBS News, Ela and his family didn't rebuild in Superior, Colorado, using traditional techniques. Instead, they opted for a passive house — a home optimized for energy efficiency and clean living. Passive houses have a better chance of withstanding wildfires because they generally have a single air intake with a robust filtration system.
This system not only filters out harmful pollutants associated with respiratory conditions including asthma, but it also helps keep out embers when the intake is closed during a fire.
"In a traditional house design, embers typically get sucked inside the home through roof vents. … It's one of the reasons why homes in Los Angeles are burning from the inside out. In a home built using the passive design concept, there are very few places for embers to get caught," CBS wrote, summarizing passive home material supplier Johny Rezvani's explanation.
As Earth's temperatures have risen, extreme weather events such as wildfires and intense rainfall have grown more frequent and severe. And homeowners including Ela who have felt the wrath of Mother Nature are rebuilding differently.
Fire-resistant materials such as fiber-cement cladding — which contains recycled newspaper — and earth blocks are among the climate-resilient construction solutions.
Passive homes are also more likely to survive fires, but some builders hesitate to greenlight them because of their upfront cost. The Passive House Network estimates they are around 7% more expensive to build on average, according to CBS.
However, the long-term perks more than offset that investment. Beyond offering better indoor air quality, passive homes need much less energy for heating and cooling, meaning utility bills are significantly reduced. If your home generates more power than it needs — with solar panels, for example — some states allow you to sell that clean, nonpolluting energy back to the grid.
In Superior, only six of the 300 homes rebuilt following the Marshall Fire are passive, according to CBS. However, the Wildfire Resiliency Code Board is reexamining construction codes. As for Ela, he feels his family is better prepared for another wildfire.
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"We've experienced something that I never thought you'd experience and I'm ready for it to happen again," he said.
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