Firstly our house has WAY too many smoke detectors. Our building codes require that we have one in each bedroom and one in the hallway outside the bedrooms and one on each floor. I think that covers what the code says...honestly I don't know for sure.
So we have one in each of the 4 bedrooms, one in the office (which could be a bedroom since it has a window & a closet), one in the hallway upstairs (it's less than 5 feet away from the one in my bedroom!), one in the family room (that likes to get tripped when I cook! And NO! I don't use the smoke detector as a timer for my cooking.) and one in the basement. They are all wired together...so when one goes off, they all go off. And they all chirp when their back-up battery gets low.
I've complained before about one of these lovely detectors wanting a new battery on Christmas morning at like 3AM! The one in my bedroom will set off the entire house if I take a shower that is too hot and steamy, I guess it thinks that steam is smoke. They also like to go off it they get too cold (we shut the vents and doors to two of our bedrooms since we don't use them.) And while it would be nice to change out all the batteries at once so that they are all on the same schedule, we have never bothered to do that as we're lazy and cheap. So the rest of them like to go off chirping whenever they want to.
Oh and the best part (read that with dripping sarcasm!) is that when one decides it needs a new battery...it's a wild goose chase to figure out which one it is. Chirp! Is that downstairs? Chirp! Um, I'm not sure. Chirp! I think it's upstairs Chirp! is it in the sewing room? and so on until we can determine which of them is chirping. Oh and this noise grates on my nerves...and try that in the middle of the night which seems to be their favorite time to go off.
Just this past week the smoke detector in the family room and the one in the office both decided that they wanted new batteries. The one in the family room for some unknown reason to me decided that instead of happily accepting it's battery and being quiet that when I tried to plug it back in it would set off the entire house! I don't like these noises, so I took the detector and tossed it outside! (don't tell DH or he will get madder at me than he already is!) And then yesterday the one in the office decided it wanted a new battery too. Well when I went to take it down, I got showered with insulation and chunks of drywall! I wasn't a happy girl! I tossed that one outside too!
DH & I have an ongoing argument about the smoke detectors in this house. I would like to take down and throw away most of them and he of course thinks that they are all necessary. So when one goes off wanting a new battery, I take it down and don't bother putting it back up with a new battery. DH gets mad at me.
I suppose part of this argument stems from the fact that my family has NEVER had a house fire and DH's family has. (the fire in DH's family's house would not have been helped at all by smoke detectors as no one was home at the time. And it was caused by faulty wiring which seems to be a huge problem with the houses in his old hometown...and not so much of an issue here with all the building codes.) I feel as sensitive as these detectors are that one per floor is plenty.
That would drive me crazy, too. I think we just have 2 - one upstairs and one downstairs. That's it.
ReplyDeleteKailani
An Island Life
NO! I don't use the smoke detector as a timer for my cooking
ReplyDeleteLOL
Would someone have dared suggest that? Um, yeah. (Probably Bone.)
The one in my brother and sister-in-law's old house used to go off all the time from the steam from showers. I hated it. I used to be amazed that Hunter could sleep through it on mornings when I'd babysit him and take a shower while he was napping!!
Personally, I feel that one per floor is sufficient. However, I can see DH's point of view having had a house burn down. I would probably feel that way too, but 6 or more seems way to excessive. - Meezer Mom Mary, who's christmas tree is now in the hallway waiting to be taken downstairs, but it still mocking her.
ReplyDeleteI sooo understand where you are coming from with the chirping. Drives me absolutely BONKERS!!! I don't blame you for tossing them.. but don't run over them with the lawnmower.. it will make a horrible noise .. lol
ReplyDeleteHow'd I get drug into this already before I even said a word? Sheesh.
ReplyDeleteI remember sometimes when my Dad would cook when I lived at home, he'd set off the smoke alarm. He'd try to fan it with a towel but that never did anything so eventually he'd take it to the back bedroom and put it in a closet and close the door.
They can be temperamental little things, thought.
PS: Thin Mints.
ReplyDeleteWe just knew you were going to say something, Bone. And don't go giving me any of this "innocnet until proven guilty" crap... that only works in a court of law. :)
ReplyDeleteI hate them too. Ours used to go off when we cooked and then Wolfie would get so scared he would hide :( Can't they just not beep when they aren't supposed to?
ReplyDeleteOurs have gone off a few times and "yes" it is a truly annoying noise. We do try and remember to change the batteries at least once a year (when we change the clocks) but I can't say we're very good about it. But still...I'd rather have them than not.
ReplyDeleteI feel your pain! I also hate that chirping sound. And then to thank me for putting in a new battery...those darn smoke detectors give off a long shrill chirping sound. I need ear plugs just to change the smoke detectors!
ReplyDeleteSorry, I think that you can't have enough. Just one fire while you guys are sleeping will convince you.
ReplyDeleteBattery replacement - we follow a suggestion and replace batteries in all detectors and clocks in the fall when the clocks change. As long as you are changing the time you might as well change the battery. Do all the detectors at once at the same time.
The reason they go off at 3am is that it's the coldest time, and the batteries are putting out low voltage when cold.
I had a huge fire in my dorm once, and so I recommend that you keep all of the detectors up and running. Or, don't house 1500 college kids there. One or the other.
ReplyDelete