Smoke Detectors

[ImcLoud]

I just reread this whole thread for the details.

Is there any reason to get this
First Alert BRK Hardwired Interconnected Smoke and CO Alarm with Battery Backup-SC9120B at The Home Depot

over this
Universal Security Instruments MICN109 3-in-1 Smoke, Carbon Monoxide and Natural Gas Alarm - Amazon.com

It costs less, has a natural gas detector, and I got points to spend on Amazon.

Also thanks a lot to Imcloud for his professional input.

Irv, I have one minor beef with your posts. Could you please use standard punctuation and include links to products you mention? Yes I'm being lazy about the second part .

But your somewhat lengthy posts would be easier for me to read if they were written as sentences with standard punctuation. They don't have to use correct grammar, but my eyes tend to glaze over from trying to read some of your posts. They do have useful info, but I tend to loose my place, and attention, when I read them.

If you do that, I promise I will refrain from EVER AGAIN becoming the grammar police with your posts .

LOL, I do this to weed out the riff raff... Only the chosen can read my long posts with bad spellin' an gramma'.... I love comma's ,I just put a bunch of thoughts together and separate them with commas... ez pz.... Walls of text are my specialty, my ignorance is just a hobby...

 

[ImcLoud]

Great advice.
If I may add one thing.
Keep the ladder stored within the bottom three feet of the closet.
In a fire the bottom 2 or 3 feet are of a room are the virtually smoke and heat free.
You don't want to stand up in thick smoke while looking for your ladder on the top shelf.

lol good advice Rick, the safety equipment is useless if not properly stored {accessible and in working order}, mine are hungon the closet doors so when you open the closet it is rite there about 6 inches off of the floor, they come with little brackets to hang them...

 

[Swerd]

LOL, I do this to weed out the riff raff... Only the chosen can read my long posts with bad spellin' an gramma'.... I love comma's ,I just put a bunch of thoughts together and separate them with commas... ez pz.... Walls of text are my specialty, my ignorance is just a hobby...

LOL …, …wait, did you just call me riff raff… , … ,?

 

[ImcLoud]

LOL …, …wait, did you just call me riff raff… , … ,?

nooooo..... lol... although you are border line, but you still read it, so no riff raff....

 

[MidnightSensi2]

The fire/halon systems (are they still halon or are they something else now?) are heat activated. Can smoke a jay next to them.

Once a year I swap batteries. If you do any construction, just replace them. Dust makes them go AWOL.

This is the top rated interconnected CO detector at Consumer Reports:

First Alert Onelink Wireless Interconnect Carbon Monoxide Detector with Voice Alarm-CO511B at The Home Depot

And, the top rated stand-alone unit:

First Alert Plug-In Carbon Monoxide Alarm with Digital Display and Battery Backup-CO615 at The Home Depot

Wow, is the plug-in literally an outlet plug in?

 

[Swerd]

A follow up…

I took off one of my old smoke detectors. They're made by Firex, and have a 5" diameter base plate. They have 3 conductor Romex (black, white, and yellow) connected by a snap-in plug. Apparently the yellow wire is used to connect to the other detectors.

After reading the First Alert and Universal write ups on Amazon, I ordered three Universal MICN109 from Amazon. They have two types of smoke detection (photoelectric and ionization) as well as CO and natural gas detectors. The various user reviews suggested that installing these was simple. The base plates are 5½" diameter. Thanks Alex for alerting me about that.

If I'm lucky the existing snap-in plugs will fit these. We'll see. Typically, with home DIY work, there is always something you didn't anticipate.

If I have to wire on new plugs, I assume I have to switch off the AC. That means I have to find which switch on my circuit breaker controls these.

 

[Rickster71]

A follow up…



If I have to wire on new plugs, I assume I have to switch off the AC. That means I have to find which switch on my circuit breaker controls these.

It will most likely be connected to a lighting circuit.
The reasoning being that the circuit would be less likely to be left shut off because of nuisance alarms. Since it would also shut off the general lighting circuit for that floor.
The green led will remain on while under AC power. So you can have a helper watch the green light while you try breakers.

 

[Alex2507]

Wow, is the plug-in literally an outlet plug in?

Sure seems that way.

I checked for availability at the local HD and they weren't carrying either of the Fist Alert models that GN linked nor did they have anything in a combo that checked for smoke with that ion and photoelectric (?) detection doo hickeys and now I have ordered one of the ones Swerd got. It's on the way. I only had one central location to begin with.

I'll look into the options for plug in models. The natural gas and dual smoke detection feature sure seem like nice features. I have to wonder if CR even checked the one we ordered and what it was that made them give First Alert the nod.

It would be nice to have one of these in each room but that's a lot of ceiling repair. I really do hate popcorn. Hmmm ... nope. That was an easy decision.

 

[Swerd]

I checked for availability at the local HD and they weren't carrying either of the Fist Alert models that GN linked nor did they have anything in a combo that checked for smoke with that ion and photoelectric (?) detection doo hickeys and now I have ordered one of the ones Swerd got. It's on the way. I only had one central location to begin with.

I have to wonder if CR even checked the one we ordered and what it was that made them give First Alert the nod.

That's always been a problem I had with CR in the past. I could never find the models they rated when I looked in the local stores.

 

[Alex2507]

My detector went off yesterday. I removed it and took out the battery. The silence button didn't work. Replacing the battery made it go off again. Battery voltage was 9.09 volts. I tried it out on the balcony in fresh air. It just wants to beep beep beep. Defective unit, right? Right. So Cheryl calls the fire department. They said we were clear and that it was indeed a very nice albeit defective unit.

I don't know what the 7 year limited warranty thing is but Amazon says it's past the return window so I just ordered another one ... and some speakers for my air conditioned truck. I think I'm driving up to TO and by the time I get back Cheryl will have missed me so much that she won't care that my truck got speakers before her car got brakes. Right? Right.

 

[Adam]

My detector went off yesterday. I removed it and took out the battery. The silence button didn't work. Replacing the battery made it go off again.

Granted, I didn't read back through this to see which kind you got, so maybe this doesn't apply...did you blow it out? Sometimes dust or an insect can get on the sensor and cause it to go off.

 

[Alex2507]

Granted, I didn't read back through this to see which kind you got, so maybe this doesn't apply...did you blow it out? Sometimes dust or an insect can get on the sensor and cause it to go off.

Good point and Rick also mentioned vacuuming them monthly which I haven't done. I'll get it to Eddies and blow it out with compressed air ... or ... I don't know. I can send the broke one back to Amazon once the new one arrives. That's kind of not my thing and I normally don't care to spend my time doing that but now I have a little time and the thing has a 7 year warranty. I've had this one for 7 months. Whatever.

These are the speakers.

 

[Swerd]

Good point and Rick also mentioned vacuuming them monthly which I haven't done. I'll get it to Eddies and blow it out with compressed air ... or ... I don't know. I can send the broke one back to Amazon once the new one arrives. That's kind of not my thing and I normally don't care to spend my time doing that but now I have a little time and the thing has a 7 year warranty. I've had this one for 7 months. Whatever.

These are the speakers.

I once had a smoke detector go off. I looked for dust, and vacuumed it out, and found a small spider web. Apparently that did it.

 

[Rickster71]

My detector went off yesterday. I removed it and took out the battery. The silence button didn't work. Replacing the battery made it go off again. Battery voltage was 9.09 volts. I tried it out on the balcony in fresh air. It just wants to beep beep beep. Defective unit, right? Right. So Cheryl calls the fire department. They said we were clear and that it was indeed a very nice albeit defective unit.

I get all my smokes from walmart.
Just sayin, everybody knows they have the best.

... and some speakers for my air conditioned truck. I think I'm driving up to TO and by the time I get back Cheryl will have missed me so much that she won't care that my truck got speakers before her car got brakes. Right? Right.

I'll have Marie text her that entire line, word for word.

 

[Alex2507]

Is there any reason to get this
First Alert BRK Hardwired Interconnected Smoke and CO Alarm with Battery Backup-SC9120B at The Home Depot

over this
Universal Security Instruments MICN109 3-in-1 Smoke, Carbon Monoxide and Natural Gas Alarm - Amazon.com

It costs less, has a natural gas detector, and I got points to spend on Amazon.

I just had the second USI detector fail. I'll try vacuuming it out and reinstalling the battery on the balcony. A seven minute warranty would have been more appropriate. F^%&ing Amazon crap backed by BS reviews.

 

[Swerd]

Sometime back in 2014, I bought 3 combination smoke/carbon monoxide/natural gas detectors and installed them. It was because of this old thread.

Recently they started chirping. I changed batteries but that didn't stop the chirping, so I found the owner's manual. Sure enough, the chirping (2 chirps every 20 seconds) was the end-of-service life warning. The detectors are smart enough to know when I first powered them up and waited 7 years to sound the 'replace me' alarm.

Looking up what I ordered on Amazon is a mighty pain, but I remembered discussing all this here on AH, where it's easier to search. Not only did I find the link to what I had bought, but the dates of this old thread made it clear that my combo detectors really were 7 years old.

 

[highfigh]

Sometime back in 2014, I bought 3 combination smoke/carbon monoxide/natural gas detectors and installed them. It was because of this old thread.

Recently they started chirping. I changed batteries but that didn't stop the chirping, so I found the owner's manual. Sure enough, the chirping (2 chirps every 20 seconds) was the end-of-service life warning. The detectors are smart enough to know when I first powered them up and waited 7 years to sound the 'replace me' alarm.

Looking up what I ordered on Amazon is a mighty pain, but I remembered discussing all this here on AH, where it's easier to search. Not only did I find the link to what I had bought, but the dates of this old thread made it clear that my combo detectors really were 7 years old.

IIRC, the CO detectors have a shorter life span than smoke, but I could have that reversed.

The link shows typical life spans for the different types-

How Long Do Smoke Detectors Last (Could Save Your Life)

If your smoke detector is more than 10 years old, chances are it needs to be replaced. We provide information on how long smoke detectors last and more.

www.safenow.org

 

[davidscott]

Thanks for the very informative link. My condo was built in 2015 so the smoke detectors should be ok but I'm gonna have to check the batteries since I moved in here a year and a half ago.