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Had all new smoke detectors installed in my home. A total of six of this model - Kidde i12010S Worry-Free Hardwired Interconnect Smoke Alarm. Four of these are on vaulted ceilings 13' high. This detector model is the only one currently readily available compliant with new requirements in my state. It's been problems ever since.
Randomly, a detector would emit a three-beep sequence. I'd notice it early morning and in the middle of the night. I was lucky enough to isolate one detector that by coincidence chirped and displayed a change from green LED to red LED and back to green LED while I was physically in the room. Removed this detector from it's wiring and now it is operating on battery only.
That addressed that one detector, but not the problem overall. Again in the middle of the night a three-beep chirp of one of the detectors elsewhere in my home woke me up.
It is impossible to determine the offending detector because the chirp is so momentary and whichever detector is may be, it immediately returns to normal operation emitting a full green LED.
There is definitely a pattern - one unit somewhere false alarming around 7:30 a.m., by which time I've left for the office so I only observe this on weekends, and just before 3:00 a.m. every night.
Kidde advises that these are false alarms triggered by power surges, voltage drops, etc. from the local utility and advises installing a surge suppressor on the circuit or a whole house surge suppressor to prevent false alarms. They also advise testing by operating the units on battery only for several days, either disconnecting all the detectors from wiring, or turning off the circuit (these should be on a dedicated circuit but I have not verified).
I'm none too pleased that I'm awoken in the middle of the night, cannot access detectors 13' high, spent a decent sum for the units and installation, only to be told I need to spend more money to install a surge suppressor.
The prior units, also hard wired and interconnected, ran on a 9-volt battery. They were nearly 20 years old and needed replacing. And, one would also occasionally emit a false alarm, a fairly recent occurrence.
Thoughts? Is a surge suppressor the way to go? Will it solve the problem?
There is an ongoing recall with this model for units manufactured between December 18, 2013 and May 13, 2014.
Also, are you sure that this is the only compliant model in your state? Typically, such laws requiring 10-year sealed batteries only apply to units powered exclusively by a battery, and does not apply to hardwired alarms.
There are no laws that would require someone to buy only one brand and model of smoke detector.
I think the confusion may lie in the fact that many areas have introduced such laws requiring 10-year sealed batteries in non-hardwired units. The OP may have possibly not looked into the details of the law and may have possibly mistakenly thought the law also applies to hardwired alarms.
IMO a sealed lithium backup battery in a hardwired alarm is somewhat of a waste, since most of the time hardwired alarms are receiving AC power, thus they require much less frequent battery replacement than ordinary 9V powered smoke alarms. By having a sealed lithium backup battery in a hardwired alarm, the battery will last longer than the alarm itself. We have a 3 year old house and we have yet to hear any of our hardwired alarms chirping.
There is an ongoing recall with this model for units manufactured between December 18, 2013 and May 13, 2014.
Also, are you sure that this is the only compliant model in your state? Typically, such laws requiring 10-year sealed batteries only apply to units powered exclusively by a battery, and does not apply to hardwired alarms.
Yes, these units are outside the manufacture dates covered by the recall. About the battery issue, true, the requirements do not call for 10-year battery for hard-wired units. I purchased these units to avoid the trouble of replacing 9-volts in unreachable areas.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mack Knife
There are no laws that would require someone to buy only one brand and model of smoke detector.
It was the only hard-wired interconnected unit with a 10-year battery. As noted above, my goal was to avoid periodic 9-volt battery replacements.
I appreciate the responses but they do not address my question.
Are these just really sucky units? Tear them out and replace with an entirely different brand? The other reason I purchased these was for the large hush button, which, mounted on a 13" ceiling is reachable with a broom stick or similar.
I think the confusion may lie in the fact that many areas have introduced such laws requiring 10-year sealed batteries in non-hardwired units. The OP may have possibly not looked into the details of the law and may have possibly mistakenly thought the law also applies to hardwired alarms.
IMO a sealed lithium backup battery in a hardwired alarm is somewhat of a waste, since most of the time hardwired alarms are receiving AC power, thus they require much less frequent battery replacement than ordinary 9V powered smoke alarms. By having a sealed lithium backup battery in a hardwired alarm, the battery will last longer than the alarm itself. We have a 3 year old house and we have yet to hear any of our hardwired alarms chirping.
I wasn't clear in my original post. I am aware that the new law requires battery-only units to have a 10-year sealed battery. However, I purchased these units (hard-wired and interconnected is required by law per the age of my home) to avoid the 9-volt replacements. I figured the system would be trouble-free for a decade, after which I'd replace it all over again. Instead it's a big headache.
A whole house surge suppressor may in fact resolve the problem. Do NOT look at it as only a fix for this problem though. It very well might save the control boards in your kitchen appliances and other electronics as well. The laws on smoke detectors are extremely limiting, or I would suggest using a UPS power supply for them to avoid all power supply hiccoughs.
Smoke detectors have worked fine for many years - WITHOUT the need for surge protectors or special power supplies.
It is a poorly designed product. Simple as that. (Lately they remove components to save money on manufacturing costs, but problems like this crop up - those extra components are there for a reason!)
It isn't just smoke detectors - it is ALL household electronics that suffer the problem. CF bulbs are notorious, I've had horrible luck with microwaves, etc.
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