One of the most important fixtures in your home for safety and peace of mind is a smoke detector. A combination smoke/carbon monoxide detector should be installed outside every bedroom, within 10 feet of the bedroom door for maximum efficiency. Show
How long have the smoke alarms been installed in your home? The National Fire Protection Association recommends that smoke detectors be replaced at least every 10 years. Over time, dust gathers inside the smoke detector, desensitizing the sensors. Even if a smoke alarm hasn’t reached the 10-year mark, if you notice a distinctive chirp even after you’ve replaced the batteries or if it doesn’t sound when you perform the recommended annual test of your fire alarm system, it’s time to change them out. In general, two distinct types of smoke alarm systems may be located in your home: battery-powered and hardwired. Here’s a summary of how the two types of smoke detectors compare on several factors. Maintenance & InstallationBattery-powered smoke alarms are easier to install. You can purchase them at any big box store and install them in a matter of minutes. With a simple replacement of the batteries, they’ll be operational once again—however, you will have to replace batteries often since this is their only power source. Hardwired smoke alarms must be connected to your home’s power supply. To do any maintenance work, the power must be off at the main electrical panel before you begin and you should hire a professional electrician for installation. While more work is required to install them, hardwired smoke alarms can be interconnected, meaning if one smoke alarm is activated, it will engage all other alarms in your home. More on this below. InterconnectabilityBattery-powered smoke detectors are stand-alone appliances and will not chain together. With hardwired smoke detectors, they can be connected together so that if one goes off, they all are triggered. This interconnection can save precious minutes if a fire occurs in an area of your house and has a chance to spread before you are fully aware. DependabilityBattery-powered smoke alarms operate solely through the power they receive from batteries. As batteries weaken, the alarm dulls as well. The length of time it takes to stop working entirely depends on how much battery life was left when the alarm began. Because hardwired smoke alarms are connected to the power supply, they will sound indefinitely until they are turned off. They often have battery backups to ensure they continue in the event the power supply is cut as well. Our Recommendation: Hardwired Smoke AlarmsHardwired smoke alarms, while they require slightly more work upfront, are the clear choice if you’re considering replacing your home’s smoke alarm system. You’ll hardly ever have to deal with the annoying “chirping” that occurs when a battery-powered smoke detector begins to go dead, and your entire family will be alerted in the event that a fire does occur since hardwire smoke detectors can be interconnected. Which type is the right choice for you? If hardwired smoke alarms are in your future, we can help you install and replace your system today. Just give R.S. Andrews of Atlanta a call at 770-913-6412! I don't know if battery-powered detectors connect with each other (I would guess they don't but I could be wrong) but wired ones do connect together (for example at my house if the one in the basement is activated, the one upstairs will also be triggered). Try not! Do or do not, there is no try...
 Feb 25th, 2022 11:40 am Does the code make it clear that a battery-powered alarm is a reduced level of safety?
Feb 25th, 2022 11:41 am Google Nest protectors can connect to each other without being hardwired (via wifi), but they don’t meet fire code as they lack the strobe light that is required today (speaking for ON only).
Feb 25th, 2022 12:04 pm There are battery powered that can be connected. Unsure how reliable.
Feb 25th, 2022 12:12 pm Yes it does. Replacement 6.3.3.7. (1) A smoke alarm shall be replaced within the time frame indicated in the manufacturer’s instructions. (2) When a smoke alarm is replaced (a) in the case of a suite subject to Part 9, the replacement shall not provide a lower level or type of protection than that required by Part 9, (b) in the case of a suite not subject to Part 9 that was constructed on or after April 6, 1998, the replacement shall not provide a lower level or type of protection than that required by the Building Code in effect at the time of construction of the suite, and (c) in the case of a suite not subject to Part 9 that was constructed before April 6, 1998, the replacement shall not provide a lower level or type of protection than that required by Article 2.13.2.1. As a fire inspector, I've yet to see wireless interconnected devices accepted by a building inspector. +2
Feb 25th, 2022 12:30 pm So, is it the power source or the interconnection method that makes battery-powered units "lower level or type of protection"? Not that it matters but in a house where only one smoke alarm would comply with code, there would be no need for interconnection. In that case, why would a battery-powered unit offer a lower level of protection?
Feb 25th, 2022 12:45 pm My wireless interconnected comment was referring to other posters here. But yes, it's all of the above. The power source, interconnection between other life safety devices and the strobe (I've yet to seen code compliant battery strobes). But you also have to keep in mind this only applies to houses built after a certain year where the wiring is existing and was built to the building code requirement of the day or if a permit was taken out on an older house (depending on what was done). Original houses in the 1950s for example are fine with battery operated smoke alarms. +1
Feb 25th, 2022 3:50 pm It would not make sense to consider wifi to be reliable, at least not in code I would hope. If your router crashes or if the detector cannot connect because the password was changed, the static IP address is already in use, the MAC address is filtered etc Try not! Do or do not, there is no try...
Feb 25th, 2022 5:02 pm You cannot replace a hardwired detector with a battery powered one in my region of BC. I enquired about it a year and a half ago when it came up here. I got the news directly from my insurance company which is what you and everyone should do. When dealing with insurance companies, you want questions answered directly from them and in writing, if possible. I was told (after my insurer did 2 days of research) that installing battery detectors where hardwired ones were installed due to code requirements would void my coverage in the event of a claim. +1
Feb 26th, 2022 7:26 am I'd be surprised if that was really the case. If you were negligent and somehow hooked up a battery operated smoke alarm to 120 volt a.c. wiring and that caused the fire, I could see how that might disqualify. If your home was insured as an interconnected and hard wired and a "monitored" system I could see them looking to void coverage in that instance. The insurance company could try to offer a reduced settlement if a hardwired interconnected system was replaced with a battery non interconnected where there was a death or personal injury. I could perhaps see the basis for that? One would expect that there must be a specific term in your contract to let them void or attempt to void coverage for doing the above. Did they tell you which term of the contract the disqualification falled under?
Feb 26th, 2022 8:57 am I bought a 3-pack hard wired with battery back up Smoke&CO combined detectors from Costco. Just plug in. I think the wire plugs are universal. Work great. They are super loud when they go off. +2
Feb 26th, 2022 9:12 am Sorry, what I meant was I still have my existing builder wired system, works fine. Then I added battery powered ones on all floors, both photoelectric and ionization since I couldnt tell which ones the builder used. I also have Rogers detectors. I got a lot of crap stuck to my ceilings. Basically at this point if I light a match the beeping will wake the dead. +1
Feb 26th, 2022 10:29 am OP call the Fire Marshall for Ottawa and ask. This is what I did. We live in a late 1940s bungalow. Electricians installed 2 hard wired smoke detectors. The units eventually reached end of life, so I called the Toronto Fire Marshall and asked. I was told that due to grandfathering that battery units were fine elsewhere but that hard wired units had to be replaced with hard wired units so that is what we did. We are getting close to having to replace the current hard wired units again. As pointed out, the units that were last installed are no longer being made so we will have to find something else but it will be hard wired. +1
Feb 26th, 2022 1:13 pm Yes, as stated in my post, they said I would no longer qualify under the building code. My buildings needed hardwired smoke detectors to get occupancy permits. By bypassing building code, they can void my coverage. Insurance companies are not charities. If they can avoid a payout, they will. It never ceases to amaze me that people will take or give internet advice over what an insurer states with regard to a policy they hold!
Feb 26th, 2022 2:16 pm @miscbrhah1, do the hard wired smoke detectors on the two separate floors have to be linked together? I have replaced my hard wire alarms with other hard wired alarms, but I have not linked them together since they were different brands.
Feb 26th, 2022 3:41 pm
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Can i replace wired smoke detector with battery
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