VICTORIAN: Beauty or the Beast?
STRATEGY AND TACTICS
Know how to hand balloon-frame construction.
Above photos by Hiflsdale Fire Department.
e special hazards of afore pretty turns deadly.
Photo by Harold Larocco.
Photo by Tom Ernst.
It’s a fire chief’s nightmare, a small fire in a first-floor void space caused by an electrical short circuit. This time, it seems, there’s no cause for alarm: The ceiling is pulled and fire in the concealed space above a first-floor family room is extinguished.
Suddenly, as smoke is mechanically removed from the rest of the structure, there’s a shout from outside. The attic area has flashed over into flames and is venting horizontally from a window.
Two points of origin? Arson? Or did the fire officer sizing up the incident fail to note balloon-frame construction?
America’s infatuated with older homes, especially the Victorian. Many people are renovating and restoring their Victorian to its original beauty. And the houses are beautiful, indeed, graced by gingerbread trim, ornate windows and doors, towers, and bays.
Photos by Alexander C. Black.
The house takes its name from Great Britain’s Queen Victoria, whose reign coincided with its popularityIt was during this time—1845, to be exact—that a new building method, called “balloon framing” was developed.
In balloon framing, standardized two-by-four studs were assembled into frames using wirecut nails. The studs were continuous from foundation to roof, with the floors hung on the studs. This easy-to-Iearn, fast method of house construction replaced the complicated joinery of heavy timber framing, in which members were notched and pegged together. Balloon framing freed houses from traditional, boxlike shapes and the rigid rules of classic forms. It enabled builders to construct asymmetrical shapes, projections, overhangs, and other complex forms that are typically Victorian.
As beautiful as the Victorian homes are, their balloon-frame construction (and variations of balloon frame such as “braced framing,” which is used for larger and better work) pose unique problems to firefighting strategy, tactics, and procedures.
Fire extension
The primary cause of fireground difficulties during operations on residences of balloon-frame construction is rapid and unnoticed fire spread in the void areas. Interior wall construction used in residential Victorians and other dwellings of this time period was wood lath with plaster covering. Although plaster on lath provides good fire rating if maintained in good condition, investigations of fires in residential Victorian-stvle houses shows that wood lath enhances the upward spread of the fire. This horizontal kindling provides fuel for spreading heat and fire in nonfirestopped walls and ceilings.
Furthermore, paper-backed insulation in these walls contributes to the fire spread and intensity. Exterior siding was installed over furring strips with paper weather barrier. This furring, along with dried interior lath, becomes a ready fuel load for any fire.
A fire that starts in or near a wall must be cut off. Always plan for the worst conditions by advancing a hoseline to each floor above the fire. Start ventilation immediately because conditions will deteriorate rapidly. Check and open any walls above and in the path of fire spread, paying close attention to areas directly above the fire origin. Keep in constant contact with the crew assigned to the attic; if unchecked, the fire is sure to show up there. A simple kitchen fire or electrical short will result in fire extension if not checked immediately.
Firefighters can become spoiled by handling many incidents in dwellings with compartmentalized construction. In many cases, today’s platform construction and stricter uniform building codes help to inhibit vertical fire spread.
This isn’t so, of course, in the Victorians. Fire spread can be rapid in these old homes employing balloon-frame construction, and the elements which give the Victorian its charming character—the very inaccessible towers and bays, for instance —are the same components that lie in the direct path of upward extension.
Original or modernized?
An important consideration in fireground strategy when dealing with Victorian construction is whether or not alterations have been made and, if so, how they will affect fire spread. Original Victorians were built with 9to 12-foot ceilings. Homeowners may have added a drop ceiling to conserve heat or hide broken plaster. Duct work, electrical wiring, and plumbing may also have been run in this added void space. Construction done without permits and proper inspections may increase the chance of fire spread through walls or void spaces.
Original Victorians contain a danger area below the secondfloor bathroom. While rushing to open up this area to contain fire spread around pipe chases and wall bays, beware of heavy concrete floor construction. Floor beams have been shaved out and scrap lumber nailed into place to allow the mud floor to be poured in place. Use extreme caution when operating on or below these bathroom floors when they have been exposed to fire. Local collapse may occur suddenly.
Hesitate, and it will be too late!
Victorian residential dwellings present a special challenge to today’s firefighting forces. A safe, aggressive attack, coupled with a consistent standard operating procedure, will save these special Victorians.
- Stage additional companies or mutual aid to save time when conditions deteriorate. It’s not uncommon to have more than one saw in operation while opening up.
- Recognize and understand the many different types of residential building design and construction. Fire officers must immediately take the age and type of construction into consideration while making a size-up.
- Homeowners may alter their home without permits or proper knowledge of construction. These alterations may be hiding something that you should know. As we’re taught to handle all guns as if they were loaded, treat older residential structure fires as balloonframe construction until you prove otherwise.
- Determine any possibility of the fire’s transmittal to walls, ceilings, or void areas.
- Open up and ventilate right away before conditions hide spreading void fires.
- Have handlines in ready positions along the suspected path of the fire extension.
- Provide a sufficient number of ground ladders to afford escape in the event that conditions worsen more quickly than you anticipate.
- Balloon and braced framing provide the quickest spread of fires in void spaces, but don’t forget that any construction with wood lath contributes to rapid fire extension.
Meet the challenge and preserve the “Victorian Revival.” These beauties can be saved—if you take the proper steps to stop them from turning into “beasts.”
