Silencing Smoke Detectors

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480sparky

Senior Member
Location
Iowegia
I've never installed resi smokes with a silence button, but I've got a customer who is asking about them.

If several units are hard-wired in a typical home, do you need to push the 'silence' button on the one that triggered the alarm, or can you push the button on any of them?
 

mdshunk

Senior Member
Location
Right here.
My normal smoke has a "hush" button. You need to manually press it, and the hush period is 7 minutes. After which, if it still senses smoke, it will alarm out again. There are special models, good for high ceilings, in which you point you television remote at it (swear to God) and press "mute" on the TV remote to hush the alarm.
 

Dennis Alwon

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Chapel Hill, NC
Occupation
Retired Electrical Contractor
mdshunk said:
My normal smoke has a "hush" button. You need to manually press it, and the hush period is 7 minutes. After which, if it still senses smoke, it will alarm out again. There are special models, good for high ceilings, in which you point you television remote at it (swear to God) and press "mute" on the TV remote to hush the alarm.

My wife is looking for a remote that she can point at me to silence me. The best she has come up with is a gun.

Why would you want to silence the alarm esp. if it only last 7 minutes?
 

mdshunk

Senior Member
Location
Right here.
We've got a smoke in the laundry room that will sometimes alarm out if someone's frying stuff on the stove and forgets to turn the hood fan on. I think the natural currents in my home carry the cooking smoke directly into the laundry room smoke alarm. The 7 minute hush period is perfect to get the hood fan turned on and the air cleared a bit.
 

chris kennedy

Senior Member
Location
Miami Fla.
Occupation
60 yr old tool twisting electrician
mdshunk said:
I think the natural currents in my home carry the cooking smoke directly into the laundry room smoke alarm.
Do you find these to be 'Objectionable Currents'?:grin:















Sorry.
 

mdshunk

Senior Member
Location
Right here.
Sierrasparky said:
Might I as who makes that "Mute " smoke alarm. I really like that.
I use the Kidde with the manual hush button, and the one you point your TV remote at is marketed under the First Alert brand.
 

LarryFine

Master Electrician Electric Contractor Richmond VA
Location
Henrico County, VA
Occupation
Electrical Contractor
Can anyone answer this:

480sparky said:
If several units are hard-wired in a typical home, do you need to push the 'silence' button on the one that triggered the alarm, or can you push the button on any of them?
My guess would be the former. How would you know which one, though? You'd have to look at every one.

Maybe the point is to get you to search the house. Still, how does one know which one triggered them all?
 

mdshunk

Senior Member
Location
Right here.
LarryFine said:
Can anyone answer this:


My guess would be the former. How would you know which one, though? You'd have to look at every one.

Maybe the point is to get you to search the house. Still, how does one know which unit triggered them?
The LED changes from green to red on the device that triggered the alarm. That's handy for the times when one goes bad and sets them all off. Look for the one that's red.
 

480sparky

Senior Member
Location
Iowegia
LarryFine said:
Can anyone answer this:


My guess would be the former. How would you know which one, though? You'd have to look at every one.

Maybe the point is to get you to search the house. Still, how does one know which one triggered them all?

In my researching this, I have found that the Kidde Silhouette has the capability to be silenced from any unit.

Q: Is there a way to hush nuisance alarms, such as when I burn toast in the kitchen?
A: The Silhouette Low-Profile smoke alarm has a ?Smart Touch? button that will quickly silence the smoke alarm system regardless of where a nuisance condition occurs. The system will stay hushed temporarily for about seven minutes. This button will also test the operation of the alarm and interconnected system. Kidde recommends that you test your smoke alarms monthly.
 

Sierrasparky

Senior Member
Location
USA
Occupation
Electrician ,contractor
Silhouette ... Those are great.
Thanks...
Anyone know about what they will cost.

I was not able to find the TV remote silence one. Anyone have a link?
:smile: :smile:
 

Rampage_Rick

Senior Member
480sparky said:
Allows one of two things:

1. the dust in the air to settle out.
2. serve dinner :D
3. If you're like me when you come out of the washroom it's billowing smoke like with Grandpa Munster after an experiment gone awry. I found that Tag body spray was excellent at setting off the detector located directly above my bathroom door, presumably from the residual mist hanging in the air for 30 seconds or so.

mdshunk said:
There are special models, good for high ceilings, in which you point you television remote at it (swear to God) and press "mute" on the TV remote to hush the alarm.
Probably incorporates a 38 kHz IR receiver. Used to tinker with those for fun. For laughs I wired one up to a fart machine so that every time someone pressed a button on the remote the TV would pass gas. Does't care what remote or button is pressed, so long as it has a 38 kHz carrier.
 

whillis

Member
Location
Vancouver, BC
Rampage_Rick said:
For laughs I wired one up to a fart machine so that every time someone pressed a button on the remote the TV would pass gas. Does't care what remote or button is pressed, so long as it has a 38 kHz carrier.

Someone has too much time on their hands....
 

480sparky

Senior Member
Location
Iowegia
mdshunk said:
Whatchoo talkin 'bout whillis?

What?!?!? No pix?

You're getting old, Marc!

coleman.jpg
 

cowboyjwc

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Simi Valley, CA
Dennis Alwon said:
My wife is looking for a remote that she can point at me to silence me. The best she has come up with is a gun.

Why would you want to silence the alarm esp. if it only last 7 minutes?

I got a gun for my wife.....


Good trade, huh?
 
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