Did you know that most fires in the US occur in a home?
Over 370,000 fires occur each year in homes across the country. Given how much time we spend in the comfort of our homes, it’s important that we make sure we’re prepared in case a fire happens at home.
Smoke Alarms and Carbon Monoxide (CO) Detectors Save Lives!
Having working smoke alarms in your home can reduce the chances of dying in a home fire by 60%! In fact, more than a third of home fire fatalities over a recent 4-year period occurred in homes without any smoke alarms at all! Ensuring that you have working smoke alarms and CO detectors is one of the most important things you can take charge of in making your home safer. These devices give you the early notice needed to exit the building quickly in the case of a fire or CO leak, which in some cases is as little as 2 minutes!
In order to make sure these important tools can do their job, it is your responsibility to make sure there are enough, placed in the right locations, and regularly tested and maintained.
How many of each detector do I need in my home?
Each detector needs to be placed in a location where it can sense hazards before they enter sensitive areas.
At a minimum, it is recommended that smoke alarms are installed:
- On every level of the residence, including the basement.
- Inside every bedroom
- Outside each individual sleeping area (like in the hallway).
Smoke alarms should be installed on the ceiling or high on the wall to detect smoke as it rises. It’s also a good idea to keep smoke alarms away from the kitchen and bathroom, so they don’t accidentally go off from cooking fumes or steam. If you’re unsure of where to place them, consult the detector’s instructions for the best placement.
At a minimum, one CO detector should be placed on each floor of the residence, especially when that floor has a fuel-burning appliance like a furnace or gas oven. Typically, CO detectors are placed lower to the floor than smoke alarms, but you should consult the detector’s packaging to find the best place for that specific model.
How often should I test my detectors?
We recommend checking all detectors once a month to ensure they are in good working order. Most detectors can be tested by pressing the “test” button on the front face of the device.
How often should I change my batteries?
Smoke alarms will let you know when their batteries need to be changed by “chirping”. If you hear this, it’s a great time to change the battery out and stop the chirping! To get ahead of this, we recommend changing the batteries out prior to the chirping.
If your model uses replaceable batteries, we recommend changing batteries once a year. A good reminder is to change batteries in your detectors when you change your clocks during daylight savings time in November!
Some companies now offer smoke detectors with sealed, “10-year” batteries that don’t need to be changed for the life of the detector. Consider that as an option if changing your smoke detector batteries has been a hassle in the past!
How often should I replace my detectors?
Most detectors are designed to work for 10 years. It is recommended that it be replaced at 10 years or once the detector reaches the expiration date noted on the device, whichever comes sooner.
Looking for more information? Please visit these links for smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors.
Need help with your smoke detectors? If you and are otherwise unable to safely change your smoke detectors or batteries, please visit our Stations page, find the phone number for the station closest to you, and call the crew to schedule a time for them to come and help you out. Please note that our firefighters are unable to change detectors that require a new wiring harness as they are not trained to do so.