Smoke detectors are essential to have installed in your home in order to alert you and your family to a fire. More than 90% of homes have at least one. ElectricMan electricians professionally install smoke detectors in peoples’ homes, and we want you to know how to properly maintain them. Your chances of dying in a fire are cut in half if you have a working smoke detector.
Tips For Installing & Maintaining Smoke Detectors
- Location – Smoke alarms should be on every level of your house and near the bedrooms. They should be installed on the ceiling or on the wall 6-12 inches below the ceiling. Don’t put them too close to fireplaces or kitchen appliances.
- Batteries – Batteries should be changed annually or when a chirping noise indicates the power is low. It’s easy to remember if you schedule it yearly around the time change in the spring or the fall. You should test your alarms monthly. Some alarms (mandated in newly build homes) are hardwired into the electrical system and interconnected so that if one goes off, the rest do also.
- Replacement – The National Fire Prevention Association recommends you replace your alarms every ten years, even if the monthly tests indicate it’s still working. Smoke alarms do lose sensitivity and eventually fail. It’s a small price to pay compared to your life. Two-thirds of home fire deaths occur in homes with no smoke alarms or older, non-working, smoke alarms.
- Cleaning – Dust, cobwebs, and insects can reduce a smoke alarm’s sensitivity. Vacuum them occasionally or follow the manufacturer’s guidelines to clean them.
- Types – There are two types of alarms: ionization and photoelectric. Both are adequate protection for your home, but one senses flames quicker and the other smoke quicker. To be extra safe, you can buy a combination unit or both kinds.
Why You Should Choose ElectricMan
All the electricians at ElectricMan are highly trained, licensed, insured, background checked and drug-tested for your best interests and safety. Being family-owned and operated, this is important to us in our mission to provide quality service. Call us today for the very best Dallas electricians!