Smoke Detector Replacement in Des Moines, IA

Smoke detectors are one of the most important and affordable ways to protect your family and your home from the threat of fire. The facts are clear that properly installed and maintained smoke alarms can provide an early warning that could be the difference between life and death.

More than half of the nation’s fire deaths occur in homes with no smoke alarms or some alarms that failed to operate. (NFPA)

The risk of dying in a home structure fire is 55 percent lower in homes with working smoke alarms than homes with no alarms or none that worked. (NFPA)

Power source issues were the most common factor when home smoke alarms failed to operate. (NFPA)

Types of smoke detectors

Understanding the different types of smoke alarms and how to properly maintain them is the first line of defense for protecting your family and your property in the event of a fire. Because not all smoke alarms are created equal.

Hard wired smoke detectors are installed directly into your home’s existing electrical system and are equipped with backup batteries in case of power outage in your home. Battery powered detectors run on batteries alone. They are not wired into a home’s electrical circuit and rely on sufficiently charged batteries to operate correctly. Forgetting to replace batteries could put you at risk. Hard wired smoke alarms, on the other hand, are designed to sound an alarm with or without batteries.

Hard wired smoke detectors also provide the benefit of being interconnected with other smoke detectors in your home. Many of the injuries and deaths caused by home fires reportedly occurred in a room separate from the area where the fire initially started. With an interconnected system, if the presence of smoke is detected in the living room, all of the alarms in the entire house will go off, alerting everyone to the potential danger. Fire can quickly spread throughout a house, so the extra time gained by having an interconnected system could prevent tragedies.

Battery powered smoke detectors operate completely separately from the other devices in the home. This means only the device near the source of smoke will sound an alarm.

Installation and smoke detector replacement

Installing hard wired smoke alarms can be a challenge and interconnected alarm systems require electrical work that can be dangerous, and expense to fix if done incorrectly. A certified electrician can complete the process in one day, ensuring that interconnected devices are located around the home, test the system, and provide direction on use and maintenance.

The service of a certified electrician is also recommended for smoke detector replacement. Replace smoke detectors every 10 years, even if the device is working properly. Check the manufacture date on the device for the recommended time to replace.

Along with smoke detector replacement, it is a good idea to have your electrician take a look at any other problems and concerns that you have noticed in your home’s electrical system. It may also be an opportunity to explore options for carbon monoxide detectors in your home. Having multiple tasks completed at the same time can help save time, cost and can prevent small problems from turning into larger ones that are more expensive to fix.