How Long Do Smoke Detectors Last (And Why)

Exact Answer: 8 to 10 years

While building a house or any building, it is necessary to install some devices, for the safety and comfort of the inmates. Plumbing, electricity, sewage system, insulation, and cooling systems are some of the essential parts that come to one’s immediately when somebody mentions the must-haves while building a house. Yet, not many of them notice that doorbells, alarms are also important, and one important device that must be installed in the houses and commercial buildings are smoke detectors. Smoke detectors technically save the life of people by detecting the smoke, which indicates the direction of fire.

Some people call it the fire alarm, while some people call it smoke detectors. Just like every device in the world, smoke detectors also have an expiration date. There is a time when they should be replaced, or sometimes the batteries can be changed. It is important to know the life of a smoke detector since it plays such a vital role in maintaining the peace and safety of the inmates. Not only do buildings with any number of people should have a smoke detector, anything can start burning up anytime, even in houses.

Manufacturers of smoke detectors say that when taken good care of, smoke detectors can last for about 8 to 12 years. There are maintenance tips one can follow to make them last longer, and also ways to find if the smoke detector is weakening or faulty.

How Long Do Smoke Detectors Last?

Smoke detectors are devices that sound the alarm inbuilt inside them, when they detect smoke with their sensors, despite the cause. There can be various reasons why smoke builds in a place, but whatever the reason it may be, the cause is certainly fire. Sometimes, the fire might have occurred in a place without anybody’s knowledge and it could spread all around the room, even the building, without anyone knowing about it. At times like this, the fire can get severe and put the lives of the people inside the room, and the building, in danger of being exposed to fire.

Hence, to prevent this, smoke detectors are installed in certain places where the probability of a fire happening is very high. When the smoke detectors sense the smoke with their sensors, they sound the fire alarm, notifying the people in the building about the smoke, where most of the time the cause is fire.

They help the authorities of the building evacuate people to safety before checking out the cause of the smoke. It is important to install a smoke detector and keep an eye on its working condition. There are different types of fire alarms and smoke detectors.

Why Do Smoke Detectors Last That Long?

Some of the common types include smoke detectors with lithium batteries, hard-wired smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, and some other lesser-known types. The average lifespan of any smoke detector is about 8 years, and when maintained properly, they can last for around 10 years. For smoke detectors with batteries, the batteries must be replaced every year, and if the smoke detector is hard-wired, the entire unit can be replaced after eight to ten years.

Carbon monoxide detectors can last for about five to seven years and it is better to replace them every five years because, after the fifth year, their potency to sense and detect carbon monoxide might not be up to mark, which can lead to severe consequences.

Conclusion

For homes, it’s better to install the basic stand-alone smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, which will give the inmates protection, and they are also very well developed with technology now. The detectors, once they detect the smoke, they send out signals and notifications to inmates of the house, who monitor the alarms, and even the nearest fire department.

It is a must-have in every home and once the smoke detectors are custom made and bought, they can easily last for eight to ten years without any routine checks and hassle.

References

1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0165176589900153
2. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1805792