We have a new blogger! Kristen, of Safe Keepers LLC, will be writing a monthly blog for Firefighters’ Wives! Her website will be live next month, but until then, she is kicking off her February blog talking about smoke alarms! Check it out!
Let’s talk smoke alarms. Wait I should probably introduce myself first, then we’ll talk…
My name is Kristen. I have worked in the fire service for the last 6 years, child passenger safety the last 13. Before that, well, it was a mixture of work with preschoolers, elders and customer service with the public in general. That is probably enough for now – more later.
Now let’s talk smoke alarms.
I have a feeling many of you probably know more than I do about them… What I have found though, during my time in the fire service is we are sometimes not the best at practicing what we preach, so I want us to have the conversation… None of us wants our husband, boyfriend, son or brother to have to deal with a “kid call”, but have we done everything we can to prevent it for our own families?
Did you know there are different kinds of smoke alarms – ionization and photo-electric. Both detect fire and smoke a little differently, so it is best to have a combination of them in your home to best protect yourselves and your family.
Ionization smoke detection is generally more responsive to flaming fires.
Photoelectric is generally more responsive to smoldering fires.
You can’t predict the type of fire you may have in your home or when it will occur. The important thing is to have a combination of the two and assure they are working -in order to provide early warning of fire at all times of the day or night and whether you are asleep or awake.The best evidence has always indicated that either type of smoke alarm will provide sufficient time for escape for most people. (we will talk about Home Fire Escape Plans next time).
Do you know where and how many you should have? For best protection – one in every sleeping area (this includes living rooms and family rooms where kids might have slumber parties or where dads/grandpas might nap before bed), one in the hallway (outside the bedrooms), and one on every level of your home. I know, I know, it seems like a lot, doesn’t it? Well consider this – in my house which is just over 1000 sq. ft., we have 6 – three of which are hard-wired and interconnected. We have two in each of our bedrooms. Unfortunately, the hard-wired ones were only available with ionization technology and I also wanted photo-electric in our bedrooms. You never know….
Working smoke alarms save lives – check yours monthly!
Kristen Thorstenson | President
SafeKeepers, llc
