SMOKE DETECTORS SAVE LIVES

• Smoke Detectors are the easiest, most cost-efficient way to alert your family of a developing fire. Working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in a home fire by 50%, and that’s important, because nationwide, a home fire starts every 83 seconds. 
• Remember – Smoke Detectors provide an early warning to the occupants. The faster you are alerted about a fire, the faster you can start getting your family out. 
• Before you choose your smoke alarms, consider how many you need, where you should install them, when to replace them and what unique features different smoke alarms have.

WHERE TO PLACE

• Buy an approved smoke detector. Look for the UL or FM Label.
• Install a smoke detector inside each bedroom and in the main corridor outside of each bedroom area.
• Install a minimum of one smoke detector on each additional level of the house and one above any stairwell.
• Interconnect the smoke detectors so if one goes off, they all go off.
• Keep smoke detectors away from drafts created by fans or air ducts and away from the kitchen stove and bathroom.
• Test each smoke detector weekly (with the test button).
• Replace the batteries once per year.

Source: National Fire Protection Association – First Alert Home Fire Detection Facts

WHEN TO REPLACE

• Test them weekly.
• Replace the batteries once per year.
• Replace the smoke alarm before it is 10 years old.