How to Buy a Smoke Alarm
Smoke alarms are an absolute must nowadays. Your home most likely has at least one smoke alarm, but is it enough? Smoke alarms provide an early warning that can save lives, but different fires call for different alarm types. Here's how to choose the right one for your home.
. Determine which type of smoke alarm you need. The ion smoke alarm reacts best to open-flame fires and is the least expensive. The photoelectric smoke alarm reacts best to smoldering fires and won't react as much to ordinary kitchen smoke. Buying both kinds and using them together offers the best protection.
. It's also very important to determine how many smoke alarms you need. But it is always a good idea to install one in each bedroom, near heat sources and at least one on each level of a home. Pay attention to whether an alarm is specially designed for a certain location, such as a hallway.
. Consider a smoke alarm system, which connects all the alarms together by wire, so that when one goes off, it sets off the rest of the home's alarms as well. These are especially valuable in big homes, where occupants are spread out and may not all be close to any one smoke alarm.
. There are various varieties of smoke alarms, but the most common are the battery-powered or electric smoke alarms. The battery-powered are easy-to-install alarms. Some use lithium batteries which last 10 years.
. The electric smoke alarms work on an alternating current. AC smoke alarm models are mostly installed in bedrooms. They are typically linked to each other, so if one senses a fire, it triggers all others through the hardwiring. These are really convenient smoke alarms.
. Get photoelectric alarms, which have sensors and light beams that react quickly to smoldering fires such as bedding and upholstery fires, which can cause fatal smoke inhalation.
. For full protection of you and your assets, buy dual-detection alarms, which combine both fire-sensing technologies. Because these run on batteries, hybrid units work independently and are not wired to other alarms.
. Buy alarms with a hush button that silences the horn while you clear away smoke. Buttons big enough to push with a broom handle are easiest to activate.
. Vocal smoke alarms are of two types and are very unique devices. One uses a generic voice that's preprogrammed into the alarm. The other allows parents to record their own messages, in their own voices, which adds the element of familiarity for the children.
Above are a few very prompt and unique life-saving devices in the form of smoke alarms. With these available options, you can save yourself and your assets from any unwanted fire hazards.
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