Where Should Your Smoke Detectors Be Installed?
The Federal Emergency Management Agency urges every home to have smoke detectors installed. Having a smoke detector in appropriate rooms can cut your risk of dying in a house fire by 50 percent. Of course, it is impossible for these detectors to do their jobs if they are not installed in the right places. FEMA recommends having a smoke detector on every level of the home, including the basement. You should have one installed outside of every bedroom as well as in family, dining and other rooms in the home.
If you tend to sleep with the bedroom door closed, you should actually have a smoke detector installed inside your bedroom as well as in the hallway outside. If all of the bedrooms in your home are located on the second story, you should have smoke detectors installed outside the family or living room on the main floor. The basement should also have a detector installed on the ceiling near the bottom of the stairs and in homes that have more than one story, smoke detectors should be placed at the bottom of each staircase that leads to the floor above.
Knowing where to install smoke detectors is important but it is also important to know where not to install them. Garages are not typically a good place to install smoke detectors because the exhaust from cars can cause them to sound. Kitchens are also not recommended for installation due to the heat from cooking that can cause them to go off. Attics that are unheated and uncooled are also not recommended because extreme temperatures could sound a false alarm and bathrooms tend to produce too much steam for smoke detectors. These rooms however, may be suitable for fire detectors which are completely different.
If you have a home security system installed, you may have smoke detectors installed as part of that system. If you are unsure, you should check with your security company to see if smoke detectors are included in your package. If you are just now considering the purchase of a home security system, fire and smoke detectors are something that you should consider as part of your overall home security plan.
When installing smoke detectors, you have to be careful not to place them too high on the wall or ceiling. This can result in dead air reaching the detectors. Dead air results when hot air moves so quickly that it misses the area nearest ceilings. Installing smoke detectors too high on the wall could result in those detectors not properly picking up on smoke when a fire begins. Safety experts recommend placing them four inches from the wall when mounting on ceilings and four to twelve inches from the ceiling when mounting them on walls.
Properly installing and placing smoke detectors is critical in protecting your family and your home from a fire. If you are unsure of where to install your detectors, you can get assistance from your local fire department to ensure proper placement.
Author Bio : Russell Standage is a propitor of Zions Security,installs and monitors smoke detectors. Contact them to learn more about the services they offer in your area. http://www.zionssecurity.com/saltlakecity.html
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