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Smoke Detectors

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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 ->)

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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

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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

                                        1 Reply Last reply
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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
                                          kalberts
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #26

                                          Here in Norway I have never seen anything but battery driven smoke detectors in private homes. And you are required to have at least one on each floor (in every housing unit if there is more than one). The smoke detectors are required to warn you long time before they run out of power; I believe the requirement is a minimum of two weeks. If you have more than one smoke detector, you are not required to interconnect them, but it is highly recommended. My previous set of detectors was made for wired interconnection, but before I got myself up to actually stretch the wires, the detectors were ready for replacement. My next (i.e. current) set of detectors don't need any wiring, they have wireless interconnection. There was some discussion, maybe a year ago, after lots of media reported on a study showing that you should never keep the door to bedroom open while you sleep: If there is a raging fire in the corridor outside your bedroom, a closed door can hold it back from your bedroom for the few second it takes you to escape from the bedroom e.g. through the window. But the study failed to point out that if your home is properly equipped with interconnected smoke detectors, you would be awakened by a siren several minutes earlier, with a fair chance to stop the fire before it develops, and certainly before the raging flames reach your bedroom door. ... So I still sleep with my bedroom door open!

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