Smoke Detector Maintenance Tips
Smoke alarms are one of the most important safety features that you can have in your home. Since they alert your loved ones to a fire in your home faster than they may be able to detect them, they can help everyone get out safely. To ensure that all of your smoke detectors are working properly to keep your family safe, keep these smoke detector maintenance tips in mind.
- All smoke alarms should be replaced at least every 10 years. Smoke detectors that are more than a decade old are 30 percent more likely to fail.
- Use your vacuum to clean the dust off of your smoke detectors at least once a year. Dust that covers smoke alarms is one of the biggest contributors to faulty smoke alarms.
- Replace the batteries in your alarms at least once a year. Do not use long life batteries, especially in older alarms, since it can cause them to not work properly.
- Use both photoelectric and ionization alarms in your home. Photoelectric detectors work best to detect smoldering, slow fires while ionization detectors work best to detect fast flaming fires.
Along with properly maintaining your smoke alarms, installing them correctly will help to ensure the safety of your family. Smoke alarms should be installed inside or right outside each bedroom of your home. Smoke alarms should also be installed on each level of your house. While there should be a smoke alarm installed relatively close to your kitchen, make sure that it is not so close that it goes off each time you cook.
Along with keeping your family safe, having smoke alarms properly installed throughout your home can help to save you money on your homeowner’s insurance policy. Contact the insurance experts at Agers Insurance Services in Oakley, California for all of your Northern California home insurance coverage needs.