Smoke Detectors - Installation, Testing, and Maintenance

A working smoke alarm gives you roughly two minutes to escape a home fire. That's it. Two minutes. And that two minutes is only possible if the alarm sounds early. A working smoke detector significantly increases your chances of surviving a deadly home fire.

Understanding smoke detection

The statistic is stark: in fires where alarms are working, people escape. In fires where alarms are disabled or missing, people die. I've been to fires where a working alarm woke a family at 2 a.m., giving them just enough time to get out. I've also been to fires where the alarm had been disabled or the battery was dead. Those fires had different outcomes.

If fire starts in your home, you may have as little as two minutes to escape. Early warning from a working smoke detector and a practiced escape plan can save lives.

Most people don't think about smoke detectors until there's a fire. By then, it's too late.

A working smoke detector provides the critical two-minute window needed to escape a fire safely

Installation: placement is everything

Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, including the basement. Place alarms inside bedrooms and outside sleeping areas. This is not optional. Every level, every bedroom. If you're skipping the basement because you think fires don't start there, you're wrong. Fires start in furnace rooms, in storage areas, and in workshops. A basement fire will cut off your exit before you know it's there.

Placement on the ceiling is ideal because smoke rises. If ceiling placement isn't possible, place alarms high on a wall. Don't place them in corners where dead air pockets form. Don't place them in kitchens where cooking steam triggers false alarms (though you need detection there - use heat detectors instead of smoke detectors in kitchens).