Cold Fire® Q&A With Patrick Reitz

Wildfires are devastating, and more and more are destroying homes. They're getting worse; they're spreading faster, and they're lasting longer. The good news is you can do something to protect your house from a wildfire. Wetline sprinklers are smart, dynamic, responsive sprinkler systems that help reduce wildfire damage to your home. These game-changing sprinklers automatically apply Cold Fire® when you need it most—as the fire draws near. For a deeper dive on one of Wetline’s layers of defense, Cold Fire®, here’s a question and answer with Fire Chief, Cold Fire® Consultant and Wetline advisor Patrick Reitz.

Q: Is Cold Fire® toxic?

A: Cold Fire® is a non-toxic, biodegradable plant and water based product.

Q: Does Cold Fire® expire?

A: No! It doesn’t gel, separate or expire.

Q: How does Cold Fire® work different than other fire suppression agents?

A: Cold Fire® doesn’t work like other fire suppression agents that are more of a smothering agent, taking away the oxygen. Cold Fire® not only is a smothering agent, but it is a cooling agent - it actually physically lowers the temperature of the fire, or the substrate that it’s being applied to, so it doesn’t allow fire to take hold.

Q: Are there any cool facts about Cold Fire® that we should know about?

A: Using Cold Fire®, we can take 500-degree heated steel and lower the temperature to 85 degrees in 45 seconds. Fire can’t take hold.

Q: How is Cold Fire® used as a “layer of defense” in the Wetline Wildfire Defense system?

A: That depends for each individual installation. However, we often use Cold Fire® as a wetting agent which reduces the size of water droplets, helping to enhance protection and extinguishment at the time of a fire.

Q: How much Cold Fire® is mixed in with the water?

A: At 10% Cold Fire® we have found a sweet spot. It will even continue to protect when dry, as long as it isn’t washed off (because it is a water-based product). It will literally protect for weeks at 10%!

Q: Why is it important to protect for weeks, isn’t it going to do its job at the time the system activates in the event of a wildfire?

A: Often times with wind-driven wildfires, the fire reverses itself and comes back around to areas it has previously passed. This is because fire burns in what is called a “mosaic pattern.” If the fire returns, you will continue to have great protection - even if your system has depleted all of it’s water resources. This sets is apart from other fire gels and fire suppression agents on the market.

Q: Does Cold Fire® have a color, like that red stuff that is dropped by helicopters that are fighting wildfires?

A: No! You won’t even notice it is there. When a homeowner returns home, there aren’t any red stains from Cold Fire®. It doesn’t even have to be washed off - in fact, it is better to not wash it off!

Q: Will Cold Fire® negatively impact plants, vegetation or other wild life that it comes into contact with?

A: Nope - unlike other fire suppression gels and agents, Cold Fire® is non-toxic and harmless to plants, vegetation and wild life. Cold Fire® actually has the same hazardous material rating as water. It’s a really great product - I think it is the best one out there, which is why we use it in Wetline’s systems.

Q: Will Cold Fire® damage metals?

A: No - Cold Fire® is non-corrosive, so you don’t have problems with any metal parts around your house. We haven’t seen any aluminum or other metals pit or corrode.

Q: Can Cold Fire® be applied to decks and other surfaces that will be walked on?

A: Absolutely. It’s non-slip, so we can apply it to decks and other walkways without it being dangerous to homeowners.

Q: Anything else you’d like to add before we let you go?

A: I’ll just say that Wetline Wildfire Defense has many layers of great fire protection products. I don’t want people to forget about or overlook the importance of installing ember-resistant vents and ember-resistant window laminates. We offer a really high-tech coating for windows that hold glass together in the event of a wildfire. Due to flying debris and embers, we often see glass failing and causing structures to ignite, even if homeowners have done everything else right. It’s the family of products that we bring to the table that allow us to further protect and defend your home.