Your Smoke Alarm Battery - Essential Care Tips

 

Photoelectric smoke alarms are a vital safety feature in any home or building. They work by detecting smoke particles in the air and sounding an alarm to alert occupants of a potential fire. However, like any other lifesaving electronic device, photoelectric smoke alarms require batteries to operate effectively. In this blog post, we will discuss the importance of your smoke alarm battery and offer tips on how to maintain it.

 

Why is your smoke alarm battery important?

The batteries in a photoelectric smoke alarm are essential because they provide the power necessary to detect smoke particles in the air. Quite obviously, without functioning batteries the photoelectric smoke alarm would cease to operate – it would not be able to detect smoke and would not sound the alarm, leaving occupants at risk in the event of a fire. When a smoke alarm battery becomes low on power it may make the smoke alarm more susceptible to false / nuisance alarms. Even in situations where you have a 240v hard wired smoke alarm, the hard wired smoke alarm will contain a battery to supply temporary back-up power if there is a loss of the 240v mains household power.

 

Additionally, photoelectric smoke detectors are often installed in hard-to-reach places such as ceilings, making it difficult to check the batteries regularly. Therefore, it is beneficial to choose high-quality batteries that will last longer and require less frequent replacement.

 

How to maintain a smoke alarm battery

Here are some tips on how to maintain photoelectric smoke alarm batteries to ensure they are always functioning properly:

Check the batteries regularly: It is important to check the batteries in your photoelectric smoke alarms regularly to ensure they are functioning properly. A good rule of thumb is to check the batteries every six months and replace them as necessary. As per Australian Standard 3786:2014 the photoelectric smoke alarm must also have a low battery warning, which will alert you when it's time to replace the smoke alarm battery (otherwise known as the annoying ‘chirp’).

Use high-quality batteries: It is important to use high-quality batteries in your photoelectric smoke alarms to ensure they last longer and require less frequent replacement. The old adage rings true –‘cheapest is not always the best’ and you get what you pay for. Lithium batteries are a good choice because they have a longer life span and are less likely to leak than alkaline batteries.

Keep spare batteries on hand: It's always a good idea to keep spare batteries on hand in case of an emergency. If you don't have spare batteries and the batteries in your photoelectric smoke alarm die, you will be left without a functioning alarm until you can replace them.

Test the alarm regularly: It's important to test your photoelectric smoke alarm regularly to ensure it is functioning properly. Your smoke alarm will have a test button that you can press to sound the alarm and make sure it's working. Most modern reputable smoke alarm brands such as Red smoke alarms will also have an optional remote control device to test the smoke alarm.

Replace the entire unit every 10 years: Photoelectric smoke alarms should be replaced 10 years from manufacture date to ensure they are functioning properly. Even if the batteries are still good, the sensors in the alarm can degrade over time, reducing its effectiveness.

 

The smoke alarm lithium battery

To make smoke alarm battery maintenance even easier, most modern photoelectric smoke alarms come with a 10-year lithium battery which is sealed inside the smoke alarm itself. The battery is non replaceable and lasts for the entire lifetime of the alarm. After 10 years, the entire unit (both the smoke alarm and the smoke alarm battery) is disposed of and replaced with a new one. When there is a non-replaceable smoke alarm battery, section 4.22.1(i) of Australian Standard 3786:2014 states that the following message must be printed on the rear of the smoke alarm ‘WARNING: BATTERY NOT REPLACEABLE – SEE INSTRUCTION MANUAL’.

 

Hard wired smoke alarm with back-up smoke alarm battery

Red smoke alarms are a brand which manufacture two slightly different models of hard wired smoke alarm. As the name suggests, the smoke alarm is hardwired into 240v household mains power. The variation between each model is due to the difference in the back-up smoke alarm battery. The back-up battery in the Red smoke alarm R240 model is a 9volt replaceable battery which must be replaced annually. The smoke alarm battery in the Red smoke alarm R240RCmodel is a rechargeable lithium battery – this means the battery never needs to be replaced for the life of the alarm.

 

In conclusion, photoelectric smoke alarms are an essential safety feature in any home or building. It is important to maintain the smoke alarm battery to ensure the fire alarms are functioning properly and can detect smoke in the air. By checking the batteries regularly, using high-quality batteries, keeping spare batteries on hand, testing the alarm regularly, and replacing the entire unit every 10 years, you can ensure that your photoelectric smoke alarms are always functioning properly. Modern smoke alarms contain a non-replaceable lithium battery which is sealed inside the unit and never needs replacing for the life of the alarm (10 years). Even a hard wired smoke alarm will contain a back-up battery to supply power in the event of a loss of 240v mains household power. The smoke alarm battery is an essential component within any smoke alarm. By following the tips in this article, you will ensure your safety, and that of your family is never compromised.

For all your smoke alarm battery needs, please check us out today at www.photoelectricsmokealarms.com.au