Are you checking your smoke detector at least once every six months, if not more frequently? Although the average life of a smoke detector can span as long as 10 to 15 years, the devices can go on the blink, and you wouldn’t know it. About 30 percent of smoke detectors fail after 10 years, according to a recent report, and about 50 percent of them shut down after 15 years. Though your smoke detectors might emit a sound when you test them, that doesn’t necessarily mean the devices are working and will alert you to smoke or fire.
And if your smoke detectors aren’t battery operated or don’t have a battery backup – replace them. Detectors hard-wired into your electrical system won’t work during a power outage, and we all know that can happen anytime.
Taking just a few minutes to test your smoke detectors and replace the batteries will help prevent you from becoming one of these statistics: 40 percent of home fire deaths happen in homes with no smoke detectors, and another 23 percent happen in homes with detectors that don’t work.
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