Many of our weekend and night service calls are water related. We had about a foot of snow this week and it is unseasonably warm today. The melt water seems to find its way into buildings right where the fire equipment seems to be.
My on call technician spent his afternoon today replacing a fire alarm control panel tht was under a roof leak from snow melt.
We had some wired detectors that did this so we took them down. We bought replacements, but they were wired differently than the old ones so we couldn’t install them. As a result we no longer have detectors. Bad idea, sure, (and don’t think you have to lecture me on it, those of you who get off on that), but it’s how it is.
Some brands now start beeping after about 10 years of use.
When you have hardwired models, replacement has to be compatible, the box will have clues.
Good idea to check state fire codes on what is expected for type of detector if you are replacing units.
I’ve seen this and am glad I don’t have these - that would infuriate me. Let’s face it - when the batteries are going low - I get it - I should replace it - but does it have to go on the full blown every minute or so beep? How about starting off once an hour or something. I can’t even get to the detector(s) in my one place without borrowing a ladder as it (well two are) like 17 feet in the air.
The definitely both get replaced at once - and no way I’d do it every six months. I wait til the first starts chirping. If I wanted to be real lazy - I’d replace all of them at the same time, but make the one not in/near my bedroom a little less potent (put it in something that uses a nine volt and leave it on for a bit). In the hopes that one would give way first.
I am not quite that lazy/organized - so I labeled the last set of batteries with the date so I can see how long they actually are lasting - and maybe replace those a couple months ahead of time next time if I’m feeling up to it.
Smoke detectors have a 10 year life span. All manufactures, fire departments, and even building codes require that they be replaced. If your current smoke detectors don’t beep at 10 years, your next set will.