Springtime Means Cleaning, And Checking Your Alarms And Batteries

We are finally losing some of the snow, with all the fast melting, we have some dry conditions on our hands. Now is a good time to check all your safety alarms. Have your fire extinguisher checked, check your smoke alarm, make sure batteries are fresh.

Press the test button, it will make an annoying noise but you will save a life. Purchase a new one if it looks old, they aren’t expensive at all and every once in a while fire departments have giveaways.

According to an article done by UPI, a survey conducted by Qualtrics on behalf of Kidde, a manufacturer of residential fire safety products, found 67 percent of homeowners had four or fewer smoke alarms in their home, and 12 percent had one alarm. Most of the time, Americans never checked their smoke alarms. Some said they rely on the smoke alarm going off when the battery is totally dead.

The average single-family home should have at least five alarms. By the time a smoke alarm is 10 years old, it has a 30 percent chance of not working. Twenty-three percent of American adults said they would replace their home furnace, heater or air conditioning system if they knew it wouldn’t work tomorrow, but fewer than 5 percent said they would replace their smoke alarm.

Another good thing to have is a carbon monoxide alarm plugged in to the wall with a battery back up. Most people don't check those either, and that is something you will never see like you would if your house is on fire.

Have a path that every child knows to get out of your house. Have a meeting place once you are out of the house, and practice many times if you have very young children.

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