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Smoke Detectors

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  • K k5054

    Why do smoke detector batteries always fail at 2:30 AM?

    R Offline
    R Offline
    Ron Anders
    wrote on last edited by
    #6

    My guess is that because they are screaming "change my battery" Wherever you have them is coldest at night. So that's when the battery finally dips below allowable threshold.

    1 Reply Last reply
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    • K k5054

      Why do smoke detector batteries always fail at 2:30 AM?

      L Offline
      L Offline
      Lost User
      wrote on last edited by
      #7

      go for the zero power option: hang up some whistling kettles instead.

      Message Signature (Click to edit ->)

      M 1 Reply Last reply
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      • K k5054

        Why do smoke detector batteries always fail at 2:30 AM?

        D Offline
        D Offline
        dandy72
        wrote on last edited by
        #8

        Similarly, I used to say that a wireless mouse/keyboard's batteries always die an at inconvenient time. Until I realized there's no such thing as "a convenient time" at which a battery could die.

        L 1 Reply Last reply
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        • D dandy72

          Similarly, I used to say that a wireless mouse/keyboard's batteries always die an at inconvenient time. Until I realized there's no such thing as "a convenient time" at which a battery could die.

          L Offline
          L Offline
          Lost User
          wrote on last edited by
          #9

          you could mod and use your wireless mouse on a phone charging pad.

          Message Signature (Click to edit ->)

          D 1 Reply Last reply
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          • K k5054

            Why do smoke detector batteries always fail at 2:30 AM?

            pkfoxP Offline
            pkfoxP Offline
            pkfox
            wrote on last edited by
            #10

            If you are in the UK they should be mains wired

            We can’t stop here, this is bat country - Hunter S Thompson RIP

            K M B K 4 Replies Last reply
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            • P Pualee

              Mine died when I wanted to sell my house ... I come home after multiple showings and 3 of them were chirping! Why then? Why did 3 start at the same time? If multiples fail at the same time, why didn't all of them fail at the same time? Very odd coincidence.

              M Offline
              M Offline
              Marc Clifton
              wrote on last edited by
              #11

              Pualee wrote:

              I come home after multiple showings and 3 of them were chirping!

              Some are wired together so that if one goes off, they all go off. Unfortunately, it makes it impossible to figure out which one needs the battery replaced.

              Latest Article - A 4-Stack rPI Cluster with WiFi-Ethernet Bridging Learning to code with python is like learning to swim with those little arm floaties. It gives you undeserved confidence and will eventually drown you. - DangerBunny Artificial intelligence is the only remedy for natural stupidity. - CDP1802

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              • K k5054

                Why do smoke detector batteries always fail at 2:30 AM?

                S Offline
                S Offline
                Slacker007
                wrote on last edited by
                #12

                :laugh: :laugh: :thumbsup:

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                • K k5054

                  Why do smoke detector batteries always fail at 2:30 AM?

                  T Offline
                  T Offline
                  theoldfool
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #13

                  smoke detectors? We don't need smoke detectors.

                  If you can keep your head while those about you are losing theirs, perhaps you don't understand the situation.

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                  • pkfoxP pkfox

                    If you are in the UK they should be mains wired

                    We can’t stop here, this is bat country - Hunter S Thompson RIP

                    K Offline
                    K Offline
                    k5054
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #14

                    I'm in Canada, and I'm not aware that I'm required to have smoke detectors at all in my residence, but I do get a break on my home-owners insurance for having them. I think maybe new builds are required to have wired detectors, but my house dates from the 60s, so it would require a retrofit in any case. Are you saying that a 15th C cottage in the UK needs to be retrofitted with mains wired smoke detectors? My battery operated smoke detectors have a sticker saying "replace in 2020", at which point I'm guessing the smoke-detecting ability has degraded beyond any usefulness. Assuming that wired-in detectors have the same issue, do you have a replaceable detection unit, or do you need to wire-in a new unit? Either way, will they start chirping in the middle of the night to let you know that the detector needs replacing?

                    pkfoxP 1 Reply Last reply
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                    • P Pualee

                      Mine died when I wanted to sell my house ... I come home after multiple showings and 3 of them were chirping! Why then? Why did 3 start at the same time? If multiples fail at the same time, why didn't all of them fail at the same time? Very odd coincidence.

                      M Offline
                      M Offline
                      Mark_Wallace
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #15

                      Did the ghosts follow you to your new house, as well?

                      I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!

                      1 Reply Last reply
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                      • K k5054

                        Why do smoke detector batteries always fail at 2:30 AM?

                        Sander RosselS Offline
                        Sander RosselS Offline
                        Sander Rossel
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #16

                        This is a huge coincidence, but just last night I went to bed and I noticed the small light from the smoke detector (it's there, but I'm not very aware of it) and I thought to myself "That's been hanging there for years, when's the battery going to run out? Probably somewhere in the dead of night..." I've slept through smoke alarms in the past (luckily just my dad testing the alarm) :laugh: I'm about 10 years older now, so I'm not sure if I'd still sleep through it... Stress makes you sleep lighter :sigh:

                        Best, Sander sanderrossel.com Continuous Integration, Delivery, and Deployment arrgh.js - Bringing LINQ to JavaScript Object-Oriented Programming in C# Succinctly

                        K 1 Reply Last reply
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                        • L Lost User

                          you could mod and use your wireless mouse on a phone charging pad.

                          Message Signature (Click to edit ->)

                          D Offline
                          D Offline
                          dandy72
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #17

                          My mod was to get a wired mouse again. Hasn't failed me yet.

                          1 Reply Last reply
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                          • K k5054

                            Why do smoke detector batteries always fail at 2:30 AM?

                            K Offline
                            K Offline
                            Kschuler
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #18

                            Because the last time you replaced the battery was at 2:30 AM several months ago.

                            1 Reply Last reply
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                            • L Lost User

                              go for the zero power option: hang up some whistling kettles instead.

                              Message Signature (Click to edit ->)

                              M Offline
                              M Offline
                              maze3
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #19

                              Lopatir wrote:

                              go for the zero power option: hang up some whistling kettles instead.

                              That will do for the heat, I think you might want to splurge a bit a get a canary as well for the smoke.

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                              • pkfoxP pkfox

                                If you are in the UK they should be mains wired

                                We can’t stop here, this is bat country - Hunter S Thompson RIP

                                M Offline
                                M Offline
                                maze3
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #20

                                :wtf: :laugh: reading through the comments took me a moment to realise the nesting of the comments were seperate:

                                dandy72 wrote:

                                My mod was to get a wired mouse again.

                                pkfox wrote:

                                If you are in the UK they should be mains wired

                                1 Reply Last reply
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                                • M Marc Clifton

                                  Pualee wrote:

                                  I come home after multiple showings and 3 of them were chirping!

                                  Some are wired together so that if one goes off, they all go off. Unfortunately, it makes it impossible to figure out which one needs the battery replaced.

                                  Latest Article - A 4-Stack rPI Cluster with WiFi-Ethernet Bridging Learning to code with python is like learning to swim with those little arm floaties. It gives you undeserved confidence and will eventually drown you. - DangerBunny Artificial intelligence is the only remedy for natural stupidity. - CDP1802

                                  B Offline
                                  B Offline
                                  BryanFazekas
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #21

                                  Like others, when one battery fails I replace them all. I learned this lesson the first time it happened -- 3 smoke detectors failing within a week. This wasn't as bad as when the sensor in a CO detector failed. We got the babies out and I opened all the windows. Took an hour to find the documentation that said either the battery was failing, the sensor was failing, or we were going to die. Given that the battery tested good and we hadn't died, I was quite certain it was the sensor ...

                                  E 1 Reply Last reply
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                                  • B BryanFazekas

                                    Like others, when one battery fails I replace them all. I learned this lesson the first time it happened -- 3 smoke detectors failing within a week. This wasn't as bad as when the sensor in a CO detector failed. We got the babies out and I opened all the windows. Took an hour to find the documentation that said either the battery was failing, the sensor was failing, or we were going to die. Given that the battery tested good and we hadn't died, I was quite certain it was the sensor ...

                                    E Offline
                                    E Offline
                                    englebart
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #22

                                    Most CO detectors have a built-in kill switch around 10 years because the sensors don't work anymore. Always write the install date on them.

                                    B 1 Reply Last reply
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                                    • E englebart

                                      Most CO detectors have a built-in kill switch around 10 years because the sensors don't work anymore. Always write the install date on them.

                                      B Offline
                                      B Offline
                                      BryanFazekas
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #23

                                      englebart wrote:

                                      Most CO detectors have a built-in kill switch around 10 years because the sensors don't work anymore. Always write the install date on them.

                                      You may have mixed up smoke and CO detectors. Smoke detectors are supposed to last 10 years (just replaced mine and the warranty including backup battery is 10 years). According to several handyman sites I checked, CO detectors last 5 to 7 years -- although my story took place 20 years ago and we had a failure at 3 years. I don't know if the CO sensors last longer now or if I had a defective one. Regardless of that, your advice to record when installation occurred is spot on! Beyond that, I'm now in the habit of writing the purchase date and where purchased on the user manual for everything that comes with a user manual. Anything that doesn't have a manual gets recorded in a small notebook, which goes in the filing cabinet along with product documentation.

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                                      • pkfoxP pkfox

                                        If you are in the UK they should be mains wired

                                        We can’t stop here, this is bat country - Hunter S Thompson RIP

                                        B Offline
                                        B Offline
                                        BryanFazekas
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #24

                                        I'm not sure if wired-in is a universal requirement in the USA, but it is in my county. Mine are wired in -- currently the backup batteries are typically warrantied for 10 years, after which the unit should be replaced.

                                        1 Reply Last reply
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                                        • K k5054

                                          I'm in Canada, and I'm not aware that I'm required to have smoke detectors at all in my residence, but I do get a break on my home-owners insurance for having them. I think maybe new builds are required to have wired detectors, but my house dates from the 60s, so it would require a retrofit in any case. Are you saying that a 15th C cottage in the UK needs to be retrofitted with mains wired smoke detectors? My battery operated smoke detectors have a sticker saying "replace in 2020", at which point I'm guessing the smoke-detecting ability has degraded beyond any usefulness. Assuming that wired-in detectors have the same issue, do you have a replaceable detection unit, or do you need to wire-in a new unit? Either way, will they start chirping in the middle of the night to let you know that the detector needs replacing?

                                          pkfoxP Offline
                                          pkfoxP Offline
                                          pkfox
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #25

                                          No, but if you have a rewire or anything that requires a certificate from an electrician they have to fit wired in smoke detectors

                                          We can’t stop here, this is bat country - Hunter S Thompson RIP

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