Losing your home due to a fire it’s something you’ll never want to see, the costs that are involved and the heartache of beholding your own place burned to the ground it’s something you wouldn’t recommend, even to your worst enemy.
Not only terrible bushfires are responsible for burning down houses. More often fire is started simply by some technical fault in your electric system (faulty heaters, powered blankets and old, dodgy wiring…) or through a kitchen-related accident.
Even a fire in the neighbor’s house can affect and damage your home. Unless the neighbor’s fire it’s put out before spreading it can cause extensive damages.
This can leave you with smoldering ashes or a home that is not safe to live in anymore.
Homes made of adobe bricks, share the same advantages of other forms of earth construction— not only they’re durable, energy-efficient, and provide good sound insulation, but most importantly they’re also highly fire-resistant.
Since dirt doesn’t burn, a wall made of adobe bricks will have excellent fire resistance, humankind discovered this feature a long time ago.
Back in the 1800’s people realized that they would be better off by replacing their old wooden homes for ones made of mud, clay, dirt, or stone.
Now things have come full circle and building modern greener homes proves to be the way to go.
As a matter of fact, using a fireproof natural building material such as adobe bricks can save money on your insurance premiums.
If your home is in an area prone to bushfire, you’re likely to pay a higher premium, however, if you build a fire-resistant house made of adobe, your insurance company may give you a lower rate.
Learn through my articles how to make adobe bricks water proof here and advantages and disadvantages, and how many you need, and 10 best anchors for a strong house.
Scott Boyd
Effects Of Fire On Adobe Brick Integrity
So how adobe brick does all this? Fire-resistance tests have been made to scientifically prove the ability of adobe bricks to maintain their integrity during fires and extreme temperatures.
Laboratories tests proved that adobe bricks have a fire-resistance rating of four hours.
A conventional wood-frame constructed wall has a fire rating of one hour.
During tests, adobe walls withstood four hours of exposure to heat and flame before failure, while wood-frame walls only last a quarter of that time!
During the test vertical cracks started to appear on the unexposed face of the adobe wall only about 15 minutes into the test.
None of the cracks allowed a clear view through to the furnace behind it, meaning no integrity failure. The furnace was then turned off 4 hours after the start of the test.
The temperature rise on the unexposed face of the adobe brick wall at the end of the test was well below that required for failure.
If the test had been continued insulation failure might not have occurred for more than an hour later. This rate of heat transmission compares well with that for a normal clay brick wall, which has an insulation failure time of about 6-7 hours.
Fire Safety Of Your Adobe House Roof System
The roof of your adobe house is obviously a large exposed area, it’s high above the ground, out into the elements and acts of mother nature, possibly including a few antennas on it too.
Depending on where you live, wild bushfires might be a real problem, embers can travel far thanks to the wind and can easily start a fire.
You might not live in an area characterized by frequent wildfires, but there are countless other things that can spark a fire, especially during the summer.
Lighting strikes, fireworks, bonfire, or bbq embers to mention a few, without forgetting the sparks that could come from a nearby house on fire.
Fireproof or fire-resistant are both terms that can be used to describe how easily a material will burn, all building materials, including those implemented for roofing, are categorized with a rating system.
This is influenced by three factors:
- How the flames penetrates through the outside of the roof material and into what lays underneath.
- How the flames spread over the surface of the roof.
- The degree that the roof material forms embers.
Different Roof Systems For Your Adobe Home
Tin Roof
Tin roof panels are cheap, come in many precut lenths from the local hardware store or you can order an exact length up to about 50′ and have it delivered to your construction site.
The panels are very inexpensive, come in many colors, are easy to install, and last longer than asphalt shingles. I installed many tin roofs in Canada and my adobe building here in Thailand. You can read more about that here.

Asphalt Shingles
Asphalt shingles are by far the cheapest and most common roofing material around and I hate them. The old bundles of shingles weighed 66lb and the new laminated ones are about 77lb and I am too old to be humping these up ladders these days (boom trucks can’t get to all roofs, unfortunately).
Asphalt shingles are somewhat fire-resistant, in fact, they can withstand a fire burning through the wooden structure for up to 2 hours.
If combined with a fiberglass underlayment they will score an even higher rating. This type of roof covering is extremely durable, requires little maintenance with proper installation, and can last up to 30 years with lifetime or 30-year shingles.
We recommend inspecting your roof after heavy winds, to make sure no shingle blew off, as any bare spots will expose the roof to fire and water-related damages.
Clay Tiles
Clay tiles have proved to be a very safe roof covering system. Clay naturally dissipates heat and resist the flames.
Even though this material is more expensive to install than asphalt, it’s still a very affordable material to choose from.
Of course, you can make your own for free with the same adobe mud you used to make bricks. But you will have to fire them in a kiln to stabilize them to be waterproof.
Improvements to modern production methods enable clay tiles available in many colors and styles to match your adobe home decor.
Dirt And Grass Roofs
Dirt and grass roofs go back to the traditional Scandinavian green roof covered with sod over layers of bark and wooden boards.
Of course, the vegetation covering the roof is more flammable than the dirt that supports it, however, the plants could burn out and still have no relevant impact on the building itself, as we’ve mentioned earth is extremely fire-resistant.
Thatched Roofs
Thatched roofs are a traditional roofing system, still widely present all across the U.K., as well as South East Asia and some of the pacific island countries with the relative variations in the materials implemented.
Thatching consists of building a roof using dry vegetation like straw or palm branches, layered in such a way that the water will shed away from the inner roof.
As the vegetation is densely packed, it will trap air, creating insulation. This type of roof is always at risk from fire.
And if catches fire it will spread rapidly and spectacularly. As this type of roof is designed to actually repel water, it makes it very hard to extinguish a fire on them, hence prevention is essential.
Extra care must be given to:
- electrical work around the thatch
- burning yard waste near the house (watch out for flying leaf and evergreen tree branch embers!)
- bbq or fireworks, as any stray spark can quickly start a fire on your thatched roof.

Wood Shakes
Wood shakes are loved by many because of the warm and classic elegant look. And that’s probably the main reason why people choose this roofing system.
When it comes to fire protection this material is extremely prone to fire. Regardless of the way they’re cut, a wood-based roof is a dangerous fire concern for any home, not just adobe ones.
Even though the wood shake industry developed a fire retardant to apply to their roofing material, this system is banned from many governments, and depending on your geographic location you may not be allowed to use wood roofs at all.
And spraying potentially hazordous checmicals on wood shingles to install on a house made with earth just seems stupid so go natural if you choose this roofing option.
A wood roof needs plenty of maintenance, otherwise it will be brittle and may show some exposed areas.
Conclusion
When building your adobe home, the choice of the right roofing system not only is an important investment in terms of upfront costs and annual insurance premiums, but it’s also about safety.
Although adobe bricks walls are extremely fire-resistant, it’s important to consider the importance of fireproof roof materials.
Understanding the risks of fire, basic fire safety and the different types of fireproof roofing materials suitable for your adobe house will help you make the right decision and build a safe home for you and your family.