smoke alarms going off for no reason?

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ddubbs103

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Over the family's house today and uncle said his smokes were going off for no reason except he thinks they have build up of smoke sut or dust etc from fireplace. I had asked to take one home, brand is firex model fxw-r with no battery backup.He has taken 2 or 3 down and was curious what was happening, I wasnt sure what to say except we can replace them with same brand and model if still available. I would rather replace all with new battery back up and some combo co ones too considering he has no co detectors either, but just wondering if anyone could give me maybe explanation for alarms going off or if anyone had problems etc. Is there a code when replacing the old ones with no battery back up with new ones. Just curius and I would rather safety be first price second. Thanks for any info.
 
Most resi smokes have a life span of about 10 years. Replace them if they're older than that.

False alarms can be caused by dust building up inside the unit. Take the brush on a vacuum and clean 'em up and see if that works.
 
They probably have dust or smoke on the sensors it is time to replace them all. Trying to repair them is probably not the way to go. Get some new ones with a battery back up. Just make sure he changes the battery every year.
 
Time flies after thinking about it the house is about 10 years old maybe more, seems like yesterday, any suggestions or prefferences on brands to use, I am starting to get more into resi work more often so I'd better start learning these things, thanks again.
 
I've used Kidde, Firex and BRKs. If I were to have a preference, it would be a little to Firex only for the fact that they have a broad line of accessories than can be integrated into the system and they have a lower profile than BRKs.
 
ddubbs103 said:
brand is firex model fxw-r with no battery backup.
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There-in lies your problem. Anytime I've had SD problems it's been with a Firex detector. I've had brand new installations where the devices would trigger at 3:00 AM for no apparent reason. If you contact their tech support they know about the problem and will probably send you replacements (if they're not as old as Noah). I don't mean to bash Firex but somehow they can't seem to remedy the problem yet they keep pushing product out onto the marketplace.
 
ddubbs103 said:
...brand is firex model fxw-r with no battery backup....
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That alone is reason enough to replace all of them.

FWIW Kidde and Firex are both under the same corporate ownership now. I don't know if that will change the reliablity of Firex but I do know both certain Kidde and Firex models are now UL listed to be interconnected.
 
ddubbs103 said:
Over the family's house today and uncle said his smokes were going off for no reason except he thinks they have build up of smoke sut or dust etc from fireplace. I had asked to take one home, brand is firex model fxw-r with no battery backup.He has taken 2 or 3 down and was curious what was happening, I wasnt sure what to say except we can replace them with same brand and model if still available. I would rather replace all with new battery back up and some combo co ones too considering he has no co detectors either, but just wondering if anyone could give me maybe explanation for alarms going off or if anyone had problems etc. Is there a code when replacing the old ones with no battery back up with new ones. Just curius and I would rather safety be first price second. Thanks for any info.
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You know that in MA it is state law to have CO detectors also.
 
Is the house dusty or do they have pets ( pet dander )?
Kiddie makes a very reliable one and it comes with adapters but I have no trouble with BRK and call backs.
I think they must come with a little built in clock that only lets false alarms occur at night. Late night. :smile:
 
Wood stoves and cats seem to be in a lot of houses that I have had problems with det's. New BRK line of smokes and smoke/ co's have been pretty dependable in the last year and a half I have been using them.
 
They are going off for a reason. Find the reason they are going off and you will fix the problem. Never say they are going off for no reason otherwise there would not be a problem. Had to interject some twisted humor.
 
ivsenroute said:
They are going off for a reason. Find the reason they are going off and you will fix the problem. Never say they are going off for no reason otherwise there would not be a problem. Had to interject some twisted humor.
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I dunno that sounded spot on to me.
 
We use the BRK's -(residential) they make a combo photoelectric smoke/CO detector w/batttery back up with voice alarm telling you which room is in alarm. the photoelectric smokes are required within 10 ft i think of a bathroom or kitchen. Combo's work great.
 
goldstar said:
There-in lies your problem. Anytime I've had SD problems it's been with a Firex detector. I've had brand new installations where the devices would trigger at 3:00 AM for no apparent reason. If you contact their tech support they know about the problem and will probably send you replacements (if they're not as old as Noah). I don't mean to bash Firex but somehow they can't seem to remedy the problem yet they keep pushing product out onto the marketplace.
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Yeah, I've returned/replaced/reinstalled at least 20 of them in the last 4 or so years, mostly the combo unit and +1 to your comment about them not ceasing production or whatever........what gives? Nowadays I use kiddie, they seem to work just fine.
 
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