New Book Exposes a Critical Blind Spot in Wildfire-Resistant Home Design: Windows and Doors

New book Wide Open to Wildfire challenges what it means to build a wildfire-resistant home, as California confronts the lessons of the Los Angeles fires.

NORTH SPRINGFIELD, VT, UNITED STATES, October 29, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Imagine spending a fortune building a home designed to withstand wildfire, specifying a fire-resistant roof, protect the vents, install fire-resistant siding and even build walls designed to resist fire for an hour.

Then cutting enormous openings into those walls for windows and doors that may never have been tested as complete systems against direct flame.

What's wrong with this picture?

Plenty, according to the authors of Wide Open to Wildfire: Are We Playing with Fire by Overlooking Windows and Doors?, a provocative new book released today on Amazon and in leading bookstores.

The book arrives at a critical moment. On October 2, UL Research Institutes released a major investigation into the devastating 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires, which destroyed more than 16,000 structures. With 175 findings and 266 recommendations, the report underscores how wildfire disasters expose weaknesses across interconnected systems.

The authors of Wide Open to Wildfire argue that a similar problem exists inside the homes we're trying to protect.

Consider California's wildfire building standards. One recognized test exposes windows to direct flame for eight minutes. Another permitted compliance test relies on multipane glazing with at least “one tempered pane”, but without requiring that same direct-flame test of the entire window system.

That omission is critical. A window is far more than its glass. The frame, seals, gaskets, hardware and thermal break all must continue working together when subjected to extreme heat. If one critical component fails, the opening can become a pathway for embers, hot gases and flame, and the window fails.

For co-author Vinny Curran, CEO of American steel window manufacturer Revyn, the issue is personal. With more than 30 years in the fenestration industry, Curran has also experienced the frightening reality of evacuating his family from their Colorado home as a wildfire approached.

"I've had to leave my home with my family because a wildfire was coming," said Curran. "Once you've experienced that, 'meets code' sounds like the beginning of a conversation, not the end of one. We've made enormous advances in protecting roofs, siding, vents and walls. Now it's time we gave windows and doors the same attention. Fire doesn't care what the brochure promises. What matters is what the entire system can actually survive."

Co-authored with serial entrepreneur and Revyn strategic investor Pete Hopkins, and inventor and engineer Kurt Houghton, Wide Open to Wildfire challenges many of the assumptions architects and homeowners make about tempered glass, fire ratings, window materials and minimum testing standards.
Written primarily for architects, the book includes a practical field guide to specifying windows and doors for wildfire-prone regions, along with a homeowner's checklist for making better-informed purchasing decisions.
Its message is not that any single product can make a home wildfire-proof. It's that every part of a fire-hardened building envelope deserves the same scrutiny.

Wide Open to Wildfire is published by Lunch Break Books and is available now on Amazon and through leading bookstores.

About the Authors
Vinny Curran has spent more than 30 years in the building industry specializing in high-end fenestration and is CEO of Revyn. Pete Hopkins is a serial entrepreneur and strategist with extensive experience building and scaling businesses. Kurt Houghton is an inventor and engineer who has spent more than 20 years developing and improving window systems.

About Revyn
Revyn is an American manufacturer of high-performance steel windows and doors engineered for exceptional wildfire resilience, energy efficiency and architectural design. Manufactured in Vermont from marine-grade 316 stainless steel, Revyn is working to advance the performance and accessibility of steel fenestration. Learn more at www.Revyn.com.

About Lunch Break Books
Lunch Break Books helps entrepreneurs and business leaders turn their knowledge, experience and ideas into powerful business books that inform, inspire and influence. Visit www.LunchBreakBooks.com.

Vinny Curran
Revyn
media@revyn.com
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