Installing and maintaining smoke alarms in your home is important to detect fires early and respond quickly. Fires can spread at alarming rates and smoke and flames can cause confusion and panic. The faster your response the better chance you have of containing a small fire or getting yourself and loved ones to safety before calling for help.

Why Should I Install Smoke Detectors?

A smoke detector buys you time in the event of a house fire. Fires can start in a number of different ways in any room of your home, at any time, day or night. To cover all your bases and detect fires in all situations it’s important to have multiple, reliable smoke detectors in your home. Those minutes, or even just extra seconds, can be enough to save loved ones.

Here are just some of the reasons working smoke detectors should be installed in your home.

24/7 alert

Smoke detectors are working all the time. While from the outside it might look as if they only operate when smoke is around, the opposite is actually true. You won’t see it, but inside their chambers smoke detector systems are constantly in motion. When smoke enters and the continuous flow is interrupted, that’s when they activate the alarm. Knowing this really helps explain why battery changes are so important. They are constantly on alert 24/7, making sure everything around them is okay.

Early fire warning

A smoke detector acts fast to detect smoke, heat or fire in the surrounding area. When the sensors are triggered it will let off a loud alarm to draw attention. Without this alert, you may be completely unaware of the danger.

The earlier the warning the faster you are able to respond, either by putting the fire out if possible, or getting you and your loved ones outside where you can safely call for help. As well as saving lives this extra time can significantly limit the amount of damage that is done to your property and possessions.

Protect your home & family

You can protect your home and family by replacing old, unreliable and outdated smoke alarms with new interconnected alarms installed by an electrician. Interconnect smoke detectors are recommended for families as children will often sleep through an alarm. In the event when one alarm is triggered, say close to a child’s room, your alarm will also sound, letting you know to go and get them. This is also a handy system if you have a fire in the garage that might take some time to spread to the main house. This way you can be notified and get assistance to put the fire out before it gets close to your loved ones.

Help firefighters locate fire

It’s important to have multiple smoke detectors placed in various locations around your home to give you an early warning to fire no matter where it is. Covering different locations will also help firefighters quickly locate where a fire is so they can target the best entry points and focus their energy on the most strategic areas of your home.

Legal requirement

In Australia, every property where people sleep is required by law to have a working smoke detection device. The type you purchase and how much you spend is entirely up to you, just make sure the one you choose complies with Australian Standard 3786 (AS3786). Those that meet this standard will have it clearly marked on the packaging.

There are different types of smoke detectors available on the market, some that combine multiple technologies, including new systems that can have carbon monoxide detection capabilities. While standard smoke detectors have 9-volt batteries, you can also opt to hardwire a smoke detector to your home electricity with a qualified installation by a licensed electrician. Find out what type of smoke detector works best for you.