Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Detectors - Big Protection For A Small Price!

Do smoke detectors really save lives?

Most fatal home fires occur at night, while people are asleep. Poisonous gases and smoke from a fire in your home can numb the senses in a very short time.  Every home needs a device that can wake people up in time to escape from a fire. The sound of a smoke detector can do that and cut your changes of dying in a fire by 50%! Currently, 39 states have laws requiring smoke detectors in homes. California is one of those states. 
 

How do I choose a smoke detector?

There are many brands of smoke detectors available but it is important to buy "labeled" units... those bearing the mark of an organization that tests and evaluates products such as Underwriters Laboratories. Any labeled smoke detectors offers adequate protection, but it's vital that you follow the manufacturer's recommendations for installation, testing and maintenance. 
 

How many do I need?

According to the widely accepted Standard on Household Fire Warning Equipment (NFPA 74), minimum protection requires smoke detectors outside each bedroom and on each additional level of the home including the basement. For extra protection, NFPA recommends that you also install detectors in the dining room, furnace room, utility room and hallways. If your family sleeps with the bedroom doors closed, you might also install detectors inside the bedrooms. Smoke detectors are not usually recommended for kitchen because of false alarms from cooking; or for garages, where exhaust fumes might cause false alarm, or for attics or other unheated spaces, where extremes of temperature or humidity might affect the operation of smoke detectors. 
 

How do I install a smoke detector?

To install most smoke detectors, all you need is a screwdriver and a drill. Most smoke detectors operate on batteries or household current. A detector plugged into a wall outlet must have a restraining device so it cannot accidentally be pulled from the outlet. Detectors can also be hard-wired into the electrical system. Never hard-wire a detector to a circuit that can be turned off at a wall switch. Because smoke rises, mount the detector high on a wall or on the ceiling to detect the first traces of smoke. For a wall-mounted unit, the top of the detector should be 4 to 12 inches from the ceiling. A ceiling-mounted detector should be placed at least 4 inches from any wall. In a room with a high-pitched ceiling, mount the detector on or near the ceiling's highest point. 

Most home fires start in the living areas-the den, family room or living room. On a floor with no bedrooms, install the required detector in or near the living area. If a stairway leads to an upper story, install the detector in the path where smoke would travel up the stairs. Don't install a detector near a window, door or air register where drafts could impair the detectors' operation. Locate a basement smoke detector close to the stairway leading to the floor above. But don't install the detector at the top of the basement stairs; dead air space near the door may prevent smoke from reaching the detector. 
 

How do I maintain my smoke detector?

It's extremely important to test and clean all detectors regularly. Replace batteries according to the manufacturer's recommendation or at least once per year. When you move into a new home, install new batteries in every smoke detector. Never paint a smoke detector and be sure to clean your detectors at least once a year according to manufacturer's instructions. Follow the instructions for testing and test your once per week to make sure you're protected. 
 

What happens when the smoke detectors sounds its alarm?

Make sure everyone knows what your smoke detector sounds like. Plan at least two ways out from each room... especially the bedrooms. Set a place to meet outside your home so you'll know everyone is out. Have everyone practice the plan at least twice a year. In case of a real fire, get out of the building immediately. Once at the meeting place, have one person go to a neighbors to call 911. Tell the dispatcher your name and address and the exact location of anyone who is still in the building. Stay on the phone until you have answered all the dispatchers questions. 

What is Carbon Monoxide?

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a poisonous, colorless, odorless and tasteless gas. Although it has no detectable odor, CO is often mixed with other gases that do have an odor. So, you can inhale carbon monoxide right along with gases that you can smell and not even know that CO is present. CO is a common industrial hazard resulting from the incomplete burning of material containing carbon such as natural gas, gasoline, kerosene, oil, propane, coal, or wood. Forges, blast furnaces and coke ovens produce CO, but one of the most common sources of exposure in the workplace is the internal combustion engine.

How does Carbon Monoxide harm me?

Carbon monoxide is harmful when breathed because it displaces oxygen in the blood and deprives the heart, brain and other vital organs of oxygen. Large amounts of CO can overcome you in minutes without warning — causing you to lose consciousness and suffocate. Besides tightness across the chest, initial symptoms of CO poisoning may include headache, fatigue, dizziness, drowsiness, or nausea. Sudden chest pain may occur in people with angina. During prolonged or high exposures, symptoms may worsen and include vomiting, confusion and collapse in addition to loss of consciousness and muscle weakness. Symptoms can vary widely from person to person. CO poisoning may occur sooner in those most susceptible: young children, the elderly, people with lung or heart disease, people at high altitudes, or those who already have elevated CO blood levels, such as smokers. Also, CO poisoning poses a special risk to fetuses. CO poisoning can be reversed if caught in time. But even if you recover, acute poisoning may result in permanent damage to the parts of your body that require a lot of oxygen such as the heart and brain. Significant reproductive risks are also linked to CO.

What brand should I get?

Just like smoke detectors, there are many brands available, but it is important to buy "labeled" units... those bearing the mark of an organization that tests and evaluates products such as Underwriters Laboratories. Any labeled smoke detectors offers adequate protection, but it's vital that you follow the manufacturer's recommendations for installation, testing, and maintenance. 

Where do I place the CO detector?

In order to maximize the protection of your home from excess levels of carbon monoxide, place your detectors in all of the following places:

• On every level of your home. In order to ensure that your home has maximum protection, it’s important to have a CO detector on every floor.

• Five feet from the ground. Carbon monoxide detectors can get the best reading of your home’s air when they are placed five feet from the ground.

• Near every sleeping area. If your CO levels get too high during the nighttime, it’s important that detectors can be heard by everyone sleeping in your home. Place your detectors close enough to every sleeping area so that they can awaken everyone in the case of an emergency.

• Near attached garages. Cars produce carbon monoxide any time they are running. If you have an attached garage, those gasses can quickly spread to the rest of your house. A CO detector near your attached garage will warn you if that becomes a problem.

• Where the manufacturer recommends. Every model of carbon monoxide detector is tested according to manufacturer specifications. It’s important to take those specifications into account when you’re deciding where to place your detectors.