Warning: 90% of Families Have A Smoke Detector That Leaves Them Vulnerable
Do you know the type of smoke detector in your home? Knowing the answer may save your family.
The two types of smoke detectors are:
Ionization
Photoelectric
But one of these may not sound an alarm when you need it most, leaving your family vulnerable during a fire. The worst part is that it’s estimated that 90% of homes have this outdated type of smoke detector.
If you haven't changed your smoke detector in the past 10 years, or you moved into a home that’s more than 10 years old, you probably have this type of smoke detector.
We’ll explain the different types of smoke detectors and the kind your home needs in case of a fire.
The life-saving difference between the types of smoke detectors
Each smoke detector type responds more quickly to a different type of fire. Ionization smoke detectors are more responsive to a quick flame fire that does not produce a lot of smoke right away.
Example: A candle tips over and ignites a towel.
Ionization is an older technology prominently used in smoke detectors before 2003. So this type of smoke detector is usually found in homes built around that time or earlier.
Photoelectric smoke detectors respond faster to a smoldering fire that produces more smoke right away but not much of a flame.
Example: Someone dropped a cigarette onto a couch cushion, which starts slowly burning, or an overloaded outlet overheated in the middle of the night and causes and smokes before causing a fire.
Although many manufacturers post-2003 mainly sell photoelectric smoke detectors, NBC reported in late-2012 that 90% of homeowners have an ionization smoke detector. This is a problem since ionization smoke detectors can’t quickly detect smoldering fires.
Smoldering fires are deadly because they fill the entire home with deadly toxic gases before fire even spreads. What’s worse is that smoldering fires are more likely to happen while everyone is sleeping.
That’s what happened to a mother who lost her 4 children in a fire, as reported in the NBC story Some Smoke Detectors May Not Go Off In Time. The children died of smoke inhalation because there was a fire, and the woman’s ionization smoke alarms didn’t go off until it was too late.
NBC tested 3 ionization smoke detector by starting a smoldering fire on a couch in a test room. The detectors didn’t go off until 36 minutes after the smoldering fire started. By then, the room was already filled to the ceiling with toxic gases—far too late for a family to escape unharmed.
That’s why homes need photoelectric smoke detectors to detect smoldering fires. They only cost a few dollars more than the ionization type.
Why using both smoke detector types isn’t the answer
Many claim that you should just use both types of smoke detectors or a combination smoke detector that combines the technologies of both photoelectric and ionization.
But this isn’t the best solution.
Ionization smoke detectors are more likely to cause false alarms because they often mistake other particles, like dust, for smoke and set off the alarm.
How to get the best of both worlds without false alarms
Here at Max Supply we suggest installing a smoke+heat detector combo that uses photoelectric technology.
The photoelectric smoke detector side will detect smoldering fires, whereas the heat detector side will quickly react to quick flame fires that ionization detectors are designed to detect—but without the false alarms caused by dust.
To learn more about the smoke detectors we carry, ask one of our experts for help 410.841.9030!
