Home Smoke Detectors

Smoke Detectors Save Lives

The majority of fatal home fires happen at night when people are asleep. Contrary to popular belief, the smell of smoke may not wake up a sleeping person. The poisonous gases and smoke produced by a fire can numb the senses quickly and put you into a deeper sleep. By sounding an alarm and alerting you to a fire in time to escape, an inexpensive household smoke detector can cut your chances of dying in a residential fire in half! Smoke detectors, also known as smoke alarms, save so many lives that 39 states have laws requiring them in private homes.

Choosing a Detector

There are dozens of brands of smoke detectors for sale in hardware, department, and discount stores. Be certain that the smoke detector you buy bears the label of approval from an independent testing laboratory. Several types of detectors are available. Some run on batteries; others run on household current. Some detect smoke using an "ionization" sensor, others use a "photoelectric" system. All labeled smoke detectors, regardless of power-source or sensor-type, will offer adequate protection provided the unit is properly installed and maintained

How many?

According to the Standard on Household Fire Warning Equipment (NFPA 74), minimum protection requires a smoke detector outside each sleeping area and on every level of the home (including the basement). On floors without bedrooms, detectors should be installed in or near living areas-dens, living rooms, or family rooms.

Be sure everyone sleeping in your home cane hear your smoke detector even with bedrooms doors closed. If not, or if any residents are hearing impaired, install additional detectors inside bedrooms. There are smoke detectors for the hearing-impaired on the market. These units flash a light in addition to sounding an alarm.

For extra protection, NFPA suggests installing detectors in dinning rooms, furnace rooms, utility rooms and hallways. Smoke detectors are recommended for kitchens, bathrooms, or garages where cooking fumes, steam or exhaust could set off false alarms, or for attics and other unheated spaces where the humidity and temperature changes might affect a detectors operation.

Where do I install them?

Because smoke rises, mount detectors high on a wall or ceiling. Wall mounted units should be mounted 4-12 inches from the ceiling, and a ceiling mounted unit should be positioned at least 4 inches from the nearest wall. In rooms with high, pitched ceiling, mount the detector at or near the ceiling's highest point.

In open stair ways (no doors at the top or bottom), position smoke detectors anywhere in the path of smoke moving up the stairs. But always position smoke detectors a the bottom of closed stairways, such as those leading to the basement, because dead air trapped near the door at the top of a stairway could prevent smoke from reaching the detectors smoke sensor.

Don't install a smoke detector too near a window, door, or forced-air register where drafts could interfere witht hte unit's operation.

Installation

Most battery-powered smoke detectors, as well as units that plug into wall outlets, can be installed using only a drill and a screwdriver by following manufacturers' instructions. Plug-in detectors should be installed with appropriate restraining devices to prevent them from being accidentally disconnected from their outlets. Detectors can also be hard-wired into a building's electrical system. Never connect a smoke detector to a circuit that can be turned off at a wall switch.

Maintenance

Following manufacturer's instructions, test your smoke detector weekly and replace batteries at least once a year. Many battery-powered units "chirp" or give some other audible signal when their battery is low. Resist the temptation to barrow smoke detector batteries for other uses.

Clean your smoke detectors according to the manufacturer's instructions at least once a year. Dust and cobwebs can reduce a detector's sensitivity to smoke.

NEVER paint a smoke detector!

In the Event of a Fire

Being awakened by a smoke detector can be disorienting. How your family responds in a fire depends on how well you're prepared.

Make sure everyone knows the sound of the detector's alarm and how to respond.
Plan an escape route in advance, and include at least two ways out of each rooms -especially bedrooms.
Decide on a safe location outside your home, and instruct all residents to meet there in the event of a fire so you'll be sure everyone is out. Do not go back in the building.
Practice your escape plan at least twice a year.
Have one person call the fire department from a neighbors phone. Tell the dispatcher your name, address, the exact location of the fire, and whether anyone is still in the building. Stay on the phone until the dispatcher tells you to hang up.

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