Lisa Turner
Columnist
From time to time I write about fire, smoke, and carbon monoxide detectors because the technology is improving all the time. Felicia Mull at the Clay County Fire and Rescue department also writes reminders. There’s a good reason for this. Winter-time is the indoor fire season — and not just for fireplaces, but for entire homes burning to the ground.
According to the U.S. Fire Administration, “residential house fire is the leading property type for fire deaths (75.0%), fire injuries (77.1%) and fire dollar loss (43.4%).” Smoke detectors reduce fire deaths by half. Yet, in over 50 percent of home fires with deaths, there was no smoke detector in the home or the detector was not working.
Most of us forget about our alarms until we wake up in the middle of the night with one chirping with a low battery. For some reason, the battery gods have decided that the only time batteries will go low and cause your detectors to chirp is between midnight and 4am. Last night I was startled awake by chirping that was coming from the basement. Since I hear things and my husband does not, I’m the one to jump out of bed, my heart racing, and run around trying to determine which alarm it is. I found it and installed a new battery but it kept chirping. I’d forgotten that the newer unit have capacitors and chips in them and they have to be reset for a new battery. Here are some things you might not know about your fire and smoke alarms.
Chirping. How many chirps? Do you know what they mean? Find out ahead of time by reading the instructions that came with the detector. Or you can remove the alarm in the middle of the night by unscrewing it from its base, unplugging it, taking out the offending battery, and setting it on the kitchen table until the morning. In the morning pull out your magnifying glass and read the directions on the back of the unit. I’m talking about chirping once a minute. If the alarm is going off, you have an emergency.
Typically, one chirp every minute tells you that the battery is low. But if you’ve just installed it you might have put the battery in upside down, or the drawer might not be shut all the way.
Three chirps mean the detector has suffered some malfunction. Try removing power and then reapplying. Five chirps mean the unit is at end-of-life. Did you know that detectors have a service life? They wear out after 8-10 years. Don’t keep an old one – the sensors are no longer sensitive enough to detect smoke and carbon monoxide. Find the age of the unit by looking on the back for the manufacture date.
If the detector keeps chirping low battery after you replace the battery, remove the unit from power and hold the TEST or RESET button for 15 seconds. It will go through a sequence of beeps and then stop. Reinstall and it should be fine.
Finally, if you don’t have any smoke/fire detectors in your home now, I hope I’ve convinced you to add them. They should be installed inside each bedroom, in the hall outside each bedroom, and on every level of the home, including the basement. Check Consumer Reports for the top-rated units; most are less than $30. Buying the top-rated First Alert BRKSC9120B — is only $32 and includes a carbon monoxide detector.
Local columnist Lisa Turner is an engineer, contractor, and former home inspector. Read past articles in House Keys. Visit HouseKeysByLisaTurner.com. You can email Lisa at Lisa@LisaTurner.com
