I have smoke alarms that are 30 years old and still work fine. I also have a set of wirelessly interconnected alarms that self-destruct after ten years. They start chirping and you can’t stop it. Is this just a gimmick to sell smoke alarms or is it legitimate? I would like to find out how to override this annoying feature since a new 3 pack is $100.
EDIT- Mine have replaceable batteries
I imagine even if the battery still works, the other electronics can be in a degraded state. Nothing lasts forever.
Yes, the last Kidde smoke alarm I bought starts counting down (once battery is inserted) and stops working after ten years. I think the "test" button only proves the battery is still good. Something else could have failed, and you wouldn't know.
I believe the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) recommends smoke alarms be replaced after 10 years.
Quoting from this article here:
An NFPA report cites a study undertaken by Canada's Ontario Housing Corporation supporting the fact that 3% of smoke alarms will fail within one year. They also say that after 30 years, nearly all the alarms will have failed. They conclude that replacement after ten years, with roughly a 30% probability of failure, is an appropriate balance between safety and cost.
So….that REALLY old hard-wired alarm that probably came with the house may no longer function properly? How do you know?
FWIW, it does go off with a bit of smoke put under it.
Even if the alarm is still triggered by smoke when you test it, it probably isn’t as sensitive as it was originally. If it’s over 10 years old it should probably be replaced with a new one.
What type of component would start to time out from the first power up ? Would it be a stand alone component or part of an IC? Just for giggles I would like to defeat it.
Depending on which type of detector, it could be the radioactive emitter decaying, it could be the photoelectric detector, it could be the internal light source, or it could be any of a number of electronic components on the circuit board.
i have one like that in my home, 10 years lifespan is based on battery life that is not removable,
management companies are now using mostly those, since they do not need to worry about battery replacement, battery leaks\falures… , the battery aspect is the main reason for those 10 year alarms, cuz too often no one checks and replaces those. and when it starts beeping “low battery” people just remove the battery, to stop those annoying beeps, and forget to put a new one in, making the smoke alarm useless
We had to buy a bunch of the 10 year non-replaceable units per a San Francisco CA law that went into effect in July 2014. Before our tenants were taking the batteries out because of the beeps. Now they just take the units off the wall whenever it beeps because of false alarms due to smoking, cooking, etc.
If you ever find out if it is a gimmick be sure to let us know because I have wondered exactly the same thing.
All I know is I have one from 1984 that sounds like a gym/basketball game buzzer. I took it from another house and installed outside my bedroom in my then new house because the alarm would wake the dead. To this day it works fine. It’s sensitivity is still good. I know because it is on the second floor and it goes off if the oven smokes. Just need to clean them occasionally.
All three of my expensive wirelessly interconnected smoke alarms started beeping within weeks of each other so they are toast. For now I installed cheap Home Depot bottom of the line $5 smoke alarms. I figure If I install enough of them I will hear it no matter where the fire originates in the house.
Unfortunately, you may not hear any of your new cheap bottom of the line smoke alarms if they were made by "Kidde":
https://www.cnn.com/2021/05/07/us/kidde-recalls-smoke-alarms-trnd/index.html
Thanks for the heads up .Luckily the ones I bought are not listed.
We have some of the Nest smoke/co2 detectors. After 7 or 10 years 1st/2nd gen respectively, they give a 2 week or so warning and tell you it’s time to replace them. After they they do the chirp till you replace them. I just changed the 6 lithium aa primaries, which lasted about 5 years with the nightlight set to medium and occasional cooking alarm for the kitchen one. They are nice having all the connectivity, but seems like a pretty big waste to throw out the while unit when sensors age.
A search of the effected Kidde alarm models would suggest they are all WIRED units.
Now the new versions of Generators at Harbor Freight use a CO2 sensor shutoff for the geniuses that try to run them in a closed area.
Problem with this is that sensor will also have a use-by date and then your generator El-no Runno.
https://www.harborfreight.com/1400-watt-super-quiet-inverter-generator-with-co-secure-57063.html
Carry on!