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Smoke Alarms that can’t tell the difference between Smoke and Cooking

August 24th, 2004 Leave a comment Go to comments

Is it any wonder that people die in house fires after pulling the batteries out of smoke detectors.

How many smoke alarms out there are non-functional because people get sick and tired of the smoke alarm mistaking cooking for smoke?

I’m not talking about burning food here, just normal cooking, no smoke, yet the smoke alarm keeps going off. Can nobody design a smoke alarm that detects just that, and only that?

  1. September 12th, 2009 at 14:53 | #1
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    I I understand your predicament, and that is exactly why Fire Angel have come up with a range of smoke alarms to suit different areas of the house and detect different types of smoke. The optical smoke alarm (or toast proof alarm) are perfect for places where cooking fumes are present.

    Visit the Fire Angel blog for tips and advice on fire safety and carbon monoxide safety – http://firesafetyproducts.blogspot.com

  2. September 12th, 2009 at 15:04 | #2
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    As is happens, I’ve moved house since that post and the configuration is such that the smoke alarms are not affected by the kitchen.

    What does surprise me is that even 20 years ago, the standard smoke alarm fitted as part of fire alarm systems was the optical type with rate-of-rise used where the optical could cause a nuisance. If the optical type is immune to ‘toast fumes’ why has it taken this long to be installed in houses?