Last night was the third time this week that our smoke detector went off, waking us up. We recently changed the batteries in all of the detectors in the house, but for some reason, the one in our master bedroom is now going off. Has anyone else had this problem before or does anyone know why it's doing it? We have a 1 year warranty on our house and I was hoping to find an answer before I have to call the electrician out. Thanks!
2009-08-20T07:33:41Z
You know, I was thinking maybe we got a bad battery. All I know is that I'm tired of getting scared to death in the middle of the night! LOL
2009-08-20T08:42:03Z
House was brand new when we moved in at the end of January.
2009-08-20T08:46:13Z
It's not carbon monoxide.. we purchased carbon monoxide detectors the day we moved in because we have a gas stove and hot water heater. A lot of good suggestions.. I'm going to show them to my husband when he gets home.
Da Guy2009-08-20T07:44:05Z
Favorite Answer
A smoke detector false alarm can be initiated by small dirt particles, smoke from cooking, placement to close to fluorescent lighting fixtures, and dust or temperature extremes. These may be present in garages, kitchens and attics. Fresh paint fumes can get heavy enough to cause a false alarm, so air out freshly painted rooms. Steam from bathrooms can also cause a false alarm.
I would first clean the battery compartment and sensor by vacuuming out any dust Then replace the existing battery with a brand new freshly purchased battery
A replacement of the Detector maybe the better option also
Is this an older house with the smoke detector wired into the home? (Some older ones were actually powered off of the home power!) If so, it was probably illegal to sell the house with those ancient smoke detectors. You also may have wiring if you home has a security system. Otherwise, it is just battery powered. Just see if you can remove it. If there are no wires coming out of the wall or ceiling, it is just battery powered without security wiring. Try changing the battery first, as Texperson suggested. If that doesn't work, buy a new smoke detector. If you need a new one and there is no security wiring, it is not worth the time or trouble to call an electrician, especially if your home warranty has a deductible. You can buy a good brand of smoke detector for $9 to $20 from places like Lowe's, Home Depot, or Walmart; buy a Kidde brand or a First Alert brand. Also, an regular electrician will only be able to replace your smoke detector, which is a five minute job, he/she will not be able to repair it since they would required special certifications and test equipment to do so. By that time, you are in the hundreds of dollars price range for what you can do yourself for about $10. It would only require two screws, at most, to install one of these.
Most people don't realize it, but smoke detectors go bad and need to be replaced. The element that detects smoke is mildly radioactive, and will decay over time. A bad element will cause the detector to go off. Most manufacturers recommend smoke detectors be replaced every 10 years or so. Even if an older detector appears to be working when you press the test button, it won't be as effective, or may not go off at all when it should.
RE: Why is our smoke detector going off at night? Last night was the third time this week that our smoke detector went off, waking us up. We recently changed the batteries in all of the detectors in the house, but for some reason, the one in our master bedroom is now going off. Has anyone else had this problem before or does anyone know why...