In nations such as Australia, a bushfire is very common. The government has also initiated several measures and established committees and systems to look after bushfires’ aftermath. One of the major contributing reasons for bushfires is lightning. However, 10% are caused by human activities like campfires and cigarettes. Therefore, one of the important parameters that any property investor or a home buyer should take into consideration is the assessment of bushfire assessment level or BAL. It tells whether the property lies in a high-risk or low-risk area. There are several standards of BAL under the bush fire assessment. This blog takes you through the different BAL ratings and what it signifies.

What is BAL?

BAL or bushfire assessment level measures the intensity of a building’s potential exposure to bushfire, radiant heat, and direct flame contact. It is measured in increments of radiant heat and is denoted as kilowatts/m2.

It is important for every building to follow the BAL standard, which falls under the Australian Standard AS 3959-2009 Construction of Buildings in Bushfire Prone Areas. This helps to improve the protection of building elements from a Bush fire attack. It is one of the mandatory requirements, especially if you are buying a house in a fire-prone area or the woods.

BAL ratings and what does it highlights?

Bushfire Assessment
Bushfire Assessment

Before going ahead towards the different BAL indicators and what they signified, here is an important thing you need to know. The greater the distance of your property from the fire, the lower the heat flux will be and vice versa. Hence, with the lower heat flux, the construction is safe and has a lesser threat from bushfire impact. So, you must follow this chart if you are planning to buy a house in a bushfire-prone area. During the bushfire assessment process, the authorities will check your property or assets and will be defining them under the following 6 BAL ratings:

  1. BAL Low: It means there is insufficient risk to warrant specific construction requirements. If your building is more than a hundred meters from any vegetation that has been classified to be more likely prone to or susceptible to bushfire and it will more likely be BALO and will not require any special construction requirement.
  2. BAL 12.5: In this, there is a risk primarily from the ember fire which is known as an ember attack. if it potentially falls in the risk area, then BAL 12.5 is applied, and you may have to adopt special constructional methods to prevent the bushfire from impacting your property.
  3. BAL 19: The higher the level of rating, the higher the probability of that from bushfire, BAL 19 indicates moderate risk and this is basically from embers and burning debris.
  4. BAL 29: It means there is a higher risk of fire, especially from debris and heat.
  5. BAL 40: This rating falls on the higher side and indicates there is a greater probability of fire because of the ember attack and burning debris ignited by windborne embers.
  6. BAL FZ: It is extremely risky because it indicates direct exposure to the flames along with heat flux.

All this falls under the category of bushfire assessment, where the concerned authorities and people keep a check on the construction and whether or not there is a need for replacement or the addition of a few elements that can prevent the impact or adverse impact of bushfires.

How does one find the BAL rating?

It is very easy to find a BAL rating of the property. The information is easily available to the concerned authorities. You will need a bushfire assessment undertaken. You can contact the concerned authority for the same. Anyone can take the bushfire assessment, but you must know that this report must be acceptable to the building surveyor issuing the building permit.

Wrapping it up!

If you are building a home in a bushfire-prone area, it is highly recommended to contact a contractor with expertise and knowledge in this domain. Remember, bushfire impact can be very harmful and lead to several losses. It can take wildlife and human life as well. Hence it becomes important that during the construction process or at the time of buying, you must check the bushfire assessment report where the BAL rating is specifically mentioned.