Shopping for new smoke alarms

[cbo111]

My 9-year old home has 10 wired and interconnected smoke/C02 alarms. In the past couple years I have had several middle-of-the night chirping events, despite changing the backup batteries annually. The glowing red/green lights on half of the alarms indicate they are operating on battery power only and not AC. The alarms are all coming to the end of their lifespan and I am considering removing all of them and replacing with simple 10-year battery-only powered models. My questions for this esteemed group are:
1. If my home is all-electric, is there really a danger of C02 poisoning? If not, can I purchase smoke-only models or does this violate some building code?
2. Do the alarms have to be interconnected? I've lived in this home for 7 of its 9 years and don't believe it was ever properly wired in the first place. To resolve, this would require hiring an electrician with associated costs. And I would still have to replace the alarms anyway due to their age.
3. My initial plan is to remove all the existing alarms and replacing with simple smoke alarms that are not interconnected and have 10-year batteries. Looking for advice.

 

[foxcreek9]

Here is a non-wired connected option

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B088KLBK45/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

 

[cbo111]

Here is a non-wired connected option

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B088KLBK45/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

That is an interesting option. Do you have this system installed?

 

[mountainsoft]

I have had several middle-of-the night chirping events, despite changing the backup batteries annually.

It's probably time for new smoke detectors. It's usually recommended to replace them about every 10 years as the sensors get dirty, wear out, etc.

The glowing red/green lights on half of the alarms indicate they are operating on battery power only and not AC.

Check your breaker panel to see if any breakers are tripped. Smoke detectors are often placed on a bedroom circuit, but could be on a circuit of their own too. If in doubt, turn the breaker off and back on.

I am considering removing all of them and replacing with simple 10-year battery-only powered models.

That is certainly an option, but if your house is already wired there's no reason to go with battery only models. Having the AC power adds protection should a battery fail before you can replace it.

If my home is all-electric, is there really a danger of C02 poisoning?

CO2 is a byproduct of combustion. If you don't have gas stoves, gas water heater, wood stove, etc. there's really no need for a CO2 detector. However, building codes vary around the country so you would have to check your local codes. We're all electric too and just have basic smoke detectors, no CO2.

Do the alarms have to be interconnected?

Ideally yes, especially if you live in a larger home. You may have a fire start on one side of the house, or on another level, and not be able to hear that alarm go off. By interconnecting the alarms they all go off if one senses a fire.

My initial plan is to remove all the existing alarms and replacing with simple smoke alarms that are not interconnected and have 10-year batteries.

Your house is already wired, so I would get standard smoke alarms for interconnected AC with battery backup. You can find bulk packs at the home centers with multiple alarms in a box. That can be slightly cheaper than buying a bunch of individual alarms, and you'll know they're designed to work with each other.

Once you have the new alarms installed, be sure to test them to make sure they all go off at the same time.

 

[foxcreek9]

That is an interesting option. Do you have this system installed?

Yes, I put one in the garage and one in our master closet. The one in the master closet is to wake us in case of an overnight fire.

I have wired detectors in the house, but at the time the house was built no detector was required in the garage.

 

[Jerry1]

I would pay, if necessary, to get the wired connection to work. The larger the house, the more important interconnectivity is. Personally, I think it’s very important. As for CO, I’d still get a monitor and have it in or near my bedroom. Maybe another one near the garage, assuming it’s attached. We lost some friends. Not exactly sure what happened, but we think they pulled into the garage and forgot to turn off the car. They never woke up. I would not buy the smoke/CO combined units. CO doesn’t rise like smoke so putting a CO detector on the ceiling doesn’t make sense. Better at about shoulder level or even about the height of the bed.

 

[Irishgirlyc58]

I believe connected smoke alarms are required in California.
I would also check local building codes.

https://homeguides.sfgate.com/california-building-code-smoke-detectors-66921.html

 

[pjigar]

We have opted to go wireless for all smoke/CO2 detectors when we built our new house. They can be interconnected and has a good battery life (about a year on 2 AA).

 

[threeonesix]

I've been very happy with my Nest CO2/smoke alarms. They aren't cheap, and the X-Sense are probably just as good, I just chose Nest because all of my security cameras, doorbells, thermostats and door locks were already Nest from years past. I went with the battery-powered units because my house is so old it doesn't have wiring in place for such devices. They do require AA lithium batteries and they also alert of battery replacement needs via audio alerts and email alerts. The price of one Nest is equal to or less than that 6-pack of X-Sense.

 

[Lewis Clark]

My 9-year old home has 10 wired and interconnected smoke/C02 alarms.

Minor correction: The alarm is for carbon monoxide (CO), not carbon dioxide (CO2).

 

[GalaxyBoy]

CO is the result of incomplete combustion such as from a malfunctioning gas furnace, fireplace, gas stove, an idling vehicle in an attached garage, etc. I believe the detection element in a CO detector has about a ten-year lifespan so it sounds like it's time. Common sense would dictate that if you don't have a credible source of CO then a detector shouldn't be needed. Regardless, whether it's legally required or not depends on the applicable codes.

As far as wireless connectivity goes, I'd check that those detectors are listed by UL or whatever testing laboratory is acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction. That might vary in California where it could be the California State Fire Marshal. I didn't see such a listing on those wireless detectors linked earlier, which looked like they might be listed by a European authority.

Interconnection was added to the codes a while back. I think it's a very good idea, especially if you have detectors remote from your sleeping area. The point is to wake you up, so if you're sleeping, say, two floors above the fire you want to be alerted as soon as possible.

Disclaimer - I'm no longer a card-carrying fire protection person; I'm retired!

 

[Northforker]

If you want to save rewiring the detector mounting plates because you bought a different model or brand, you might want to try to order the exact brand and model number of your existing detectors. I replaced 8 in our house in December because they were 10 yrs old and occasionally chirping.took less than an hour.

 

[Gryphon]

That is an interesting option. Do you have this system installed?

I decided to replace my smoke detectors a bit early this year (could have waited until fall). I wanted to add detectors in the bedrooms but didn't want to have an electrician come out & do all the wiring, so I have battery operated wireless units in the bedrooms. They wirelessly connect to the hallway unit outside the bedrooms which is wired to the other units in the house.

The combo wired/wireless unit bridges the gap between the two networks; pressing the test button on any of the units (wired or wireless) causes all the detectors to go off, so it all seems to be working as advertised.

 

[SecondAttempt]

Ideally yes, especially if you live in a larger home. You may have a fire start on one side of the house, or on another level, and not be able to hear that alarm go off. By interconnecting the alarms they all go off if one senses a fire.

While this is accurate, it also is part of a problem. Commercial fire alarm systems are set up so there must be multiple detections before an alarm is triggered. This is pretty effective at eliminating most false alarms. Unfortunately I know of no residential systems that take this approach.

 

[badatmath]

It some places it appears to be code for new construction to have carbon monoxide detectors if you have an attached garage even if no other risks. Easy enough to check for your state. I believe I read if your home comes hard wired connected you have to keep it that way, at least when you sell.