Why the Hills are a different case
Two fires that reshaped the Hills
Ash Wednesday, on 16 February 1983, burned particularly in the Adelaide Hills, and 383 homes were destroyed across South Australia. The Cudlee Creek fire, which started on 20 December 2019, destroyed 84 homes and threatened Gumeracha, Lobethal, Woodside, Mount Torrens and Harrogate.
Building rules for bushfire areas
Ministerial Building Standard MBS008 sets additional requirements for designated bushfire-prone areas, and the Country Fire Service advises on development in the Bushfire Hazard Overlays. If you're re-roofing or building out there, ask whether ember protection for gutters is part of what your block needs.
Wetter, leafier gutters
The hills get more rain than the plains and are a few degrees cooler. Gutters under trees fill quickly and stay damp, and that's where a guard saves the most climbing up ladders.
Fire season starts before Christmas
Cudlee Creek began a few days before Christmas. If guards are going on, have them fitted, with the gutters cleaned out underneath, well before summer arrives.
Why embers and gutters matter
The NSW Rural Fire Service says 85% of houses lost in bushfires are lost to ember attack, and that embers can travel more than 100 m ahead of a fire. Dry leaves sitting in a gutter are exactly where an ember can catch. That's NSW research, but the physics doesn't change at the border.
NSW guidance says gutter and valley leaf guards in bushfire areas should be non-combustible and installed to AS 3959, the bushfire building standard. An older NSW guide specifies mesh with holes no bigger than 2 mm, made from corrosion-resistant steel, bronze or aluminium. In South Australia, check what MBS008 and the Country Fire Service require for your block.
Which guard, where
Metal ember mesh in aluminium or stainless steel is the one to ask about in bushfire-prone parts of the Hills. See ember guard for bushfire areas.
Leaf mesh keeps out leaves and most debris on suburban blocks with trees. See leaf guard and gutter mesh. Plastic guards are a poor choice anywhere fire is a risk.
No guard is maintenance-free. Fine dust and small seeds still get through, so plan on a check and a flush now and then.
Ask the installer
- Is this mesh non-combustible and suitable for a bushfire-prone area?
- What's the mesh made of, and how big are the holes?
- How is it fixed: under the tiles, to the roof sheets, or clipped to the gutter?
- Will you clean and check the gutters before fitting?
- What happens in the valleys, where leaves collect most?
- What maintenance will it still need?
Our take
In the Hills, we'd fit metal ember mesh and still clean the gutters underneath before every fire season. On the plains, look up first: if no tree overhangs the roof, a clean each autumn is usually enough and guards are optional. If you do fit them anywhere, choose metal over plastic.
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