Being headquartered in Southern California, Solar Art is unfortunately very familiar with wildfires. Having warm weather and not a lot of rain isn't a good combination. When it comes to wildfires it's good to be prepared and to be safe. It's also good to take precautions against wildfires and potentially prevent them from happening. This blog has absolutely nothing to do with window film at all. We just want to spread awareness California wildfires and what to do. If you are interested in this topic, read on to learn more!
You might be wondering how energy use can lead to wildfires. Well, I’m here to tell you! Especially in the summer, power lines burn because they got too hot and can be a really big culprit in wildfires. In order to try and mitigate this from happening, electric companies try to regulate energy in certain areas to minimize the risk of wildfires. If there is a high risk time for wildfires, electric companies are shutting off power to those areas until it’s safe. You can help with this process on your own! If you notice it’s really hot and dry outside, try to minimize your energy usage to help protect against a wildfire from starting.
Water conservation goes hand in hand with energy conservation. Especially since California is often in a drought, we need all the water we can get in the wildfire season. There are a few easy things you can do in your own home to lower your family's water usage. Try switching to energy efficient dishwashers or just hand wash your dishes. If you are going to use the dishwasher there is no reason to thoroughly rinse the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. This is essentially pointless and is a waste of water. Switching from plastic, single use water bottles is also a no, no. Switch over to a reusable water bottle that you don’t have to wash out every time you use it. This will not only help conserve water, it will also lower your plastic usage. Win-win! Finally, try taking shorter showers to conserve water. A typical 10 minute shower uses around 25 gallons of water. Try lowering that number whenever possible to conserve water.
Finally, reduce your carbon footprint. Reducing your carbon footprint isn’t just good for preventing wildfires, it’s good for the environment in general. If you don’t have to use a car, don’t! Try walking or riding a bike if it’s possible. If it’s not possible, carpool whenever you can. When it comes to wildfires and heavy machinery like cars and tractors, don’t park them in dry grass. It’s also important to not spill gas or oil on grass and other vegetation. These are easy ways to help prevent wildfires when it comes to cars, machinery and carbon footprint.
Being in California, wildfires are bound to happen. It's important to know what to do if they do happen and how to be prepared. Have an emergency preparedness plan. Make sure you have plenty of food and water stored in the house. Have a first aid kit handy and make sure there is an emergency exit route out of your house. Once you have an emergency preparedness plan be sure all members of your family are aware of the plan and understand it in case it has to be implemented. It's important to not only have an emergency preparedness plan for your home but your office as well. Same thing in this situation. Make sure everyone is aware of the plan and knows what to do. You can even do an emergency drill during work hours to see what works well and what doesn’t so you can perfect it in case of an actual emergency.
I know this wasn’t like any of our typical blogs in the sense that we didn’t talk about window film once. I wrote it because I do think it’s a really important topic for people to be educated on. Especially in California, wildfires are unfortunately very common. I hope I shed some light on a few easy things you can do in your own personal light to help prevent against wildfires. Like always, if you have any questions or comments regarding this blog, give Solar Art a call, we love to hear from our readers!
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