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Making An Ally Out of My Smoke Detector Like so many of us with traumatic brain injury, my sense of smell comes and goes. Living alone in a very old trailer with all its ills, it is essential that I have something to warn me if a fire should occur. I've lived in this relic for ten years, and for every one of those years, I've had a running battle with my smoke detector. It goes off when I take a bath, cook or just pound in a nail. But mostly the thing shrieks at me when there isn't anything wrong. Heavy duty batteries can last as long as three months, but usually they only manage for a couple of weeks. And since my smoke detector makes no distinction between when the battery is low and a fire, I'm left wondering whether to call for help or change the battery. Worse yet, when I check the batteries, the battery tester says they're good. Still, my smoke detector keeps warning me that my battery is dead. Over time, I've grown so annoyed with the thing, that when my smoke detector goes off, I unhook it and don't even check to see if there is a fire. Considering its track record, it's not surprising that when my smoke detector started going off this summer, I changed the battery, and when that didn't stop the alarm, I unhooked it, thinking the humidity had set it off again. But this time it had a reason to be sounding a warning. My refrigerator was smoking, something I didn't find out about until, by chance, my nose was working three days later and I finally caught a whiff of the fumes. It cost me a refrigerator, but if it had been a fire, it could have cost me my life. Of course, the newer models of fire detectors make a distinction between when the battery is low and when there is a fire. Mine doesn't, so simply buying a new one would alleviate that problem. But before I purchased another one, I wanted to make certain that I bought a detector that I could count on. So I consulted an expert. I live in a small community that only has a voluntary fire department. To my relief, the fire chief took my questions very seriously and went to a great deal of trouble to help me with my problem. He questioned me extensively on how old my detector was, where it was placed, what type of house I lived in, the kind of furnace I had and the type of detector that was installed. Then he did some research and got back to me. It turns out that smoke detectors only last about eight years. Mine was in the trailer when I bought it ten years ago, so, in all probability, it was simply worn out. The forced air furnace I have blows dust and lint into the mechanism and dirties it. Vacuuming it regularly helps to clear it. I'd been using a feather duster to keep it clean but that wasn't adequate with that type of heater. My detector was right outside of the bathroom only a few feet from a heat register where it would pick up every particle of dust and water in the air and send out an alarm. The fire chief told me that the detector should be placed at least fifteen feet from any bathroom or heat source. There wasn't anything on my detector that I could find to tell what brand it was, much less what type it was. But from the things it was detecting, the fire chief thought it sounded like a photo electric. Those are best for small smoldering type fires since they pick up large particles that breaks the beam of light they emit. The ionization detector uses electric current that is broken up by the particles in the air. It is best for wood fires. Both are excellent fire detectors, and the fire chief left it up to me to decide which would best suit my needs. Nor would he suggest any particular brand since all the ones on the market are excellent. Armed with this information I went to the local hardware store and purchased a ionization smoke detector. I measured off fifteen feet from the bathroom, heat register and stove and installed it, a job that was much easier than I'd expected. Since it was installed over a month ago, I've had blessed peace. I can take a bath without it interrupting me. The battery is still good, and it's been four weeks. I've even been able to leave it on when I cook a meal. But those benefits are as nothing compared to my sense of security. Now, if a fire starts, I'll be warned in time to save my life. |
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