Fire Alarms and Co Detectors
Tips on Fire Alarm systems and CO detectors
Fire Alarm Systems:
- If you have an alarm company monitoring system, then they should have service personnel available to perform maintenance on the system. You should have the system serviced regular. Insects and dirt/dust can accumulate inside the detectors and cause the system malfunction or cause false
 alarms.
- If you are getting your alarm system serviced, please make sure that the alarm company is aware the service person is on location. The fire company gets many false alarms to residence only to find out the system was getting serviced.
- Make sure that your alarm company has updated contact information on the homeowner, so in case the fire company responds to the home, we can get in touch to discuss the situation.
- Make sure if you go away on vacation the person watching you home has the proper access code to deactivate or cancel the system. Some systems may not reset without the code.
If you do not have an alarm monitoring system:
There are typically two different systems found in a home. The first is the independent system with smoke detectors. This is where you buy individual smoke detectors and place them throughout the home. It is recommended to have one in every room, WITH BATTERIES, but at least one on every floor. The detector will "chirp" if the battery is getting low. Also make sure to press the test button regular to make sure the system is working. If you place them yourself in the home, make sure they are on the ceiling, (not wall) and placed in the center of the room, for proper circulation. Also change the batteries often to ensure proper function. These detectors work independent of each other they will not all go off at the same time.
The second system is a more complex system that is normally installed by the builder or alarm company. This is the hard-wired system. This is when all the detectors are placed in different rooms and hard-wired together, with a battery backup. Since these detectors are tied together if one goes off they all go off together. In case of no smoke or fire condition, and they go off, the problem detector needs to be found. Once the faulty detector is disconnected from the system, the system will reset and silence.
Remember, even brand-new batteries or brand-new detectors out of the package can be faulty. If you find a problem detector, remove it, and replace the batteries. If the detector goes off again, replace again with a new set of batteries. If the problem continues, then replace the detector head.
CO detectors:
CO cannot be smelled or seen. It is known as the silent killer. The only proper way to determine if CO is in your home is to call the fire company to investigate. We have meters that can detect if levels of CO are in your home. If a CO alarm goes off, and you or members of your family are ill, LEAVE THE HOME AND CALL 911.
The fire company can determine if there is a problem or faulty detector. Do not place your family in a life-threatening situation, call us to be sure, via 911.
CO detectors can be bought like smoke detectors in any hardware store. Just follow the instructions on where to place it and how it works.
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