So at 2am the "Smoke Detectors"

[team scooter]

started chirping. Maggie was going ballistic. I changed all their batteries a few weeks ago when "they" started chirping at midnight. This time, with all my  2am wisdom, I figured ''they'' were old and worn out so I started unplugging all seven of them. When I still heard the chirp, I finally realized it was the battery in the forgotten Carbon Monoxide detector plugged in the hallway instead. The bad news is after I installed the new C/M battery and reinstalled all the smoke detectors, I couldn't fall back to sleep. The good news is I'm almost finished doing my laundry. 

[sheep_herder ★]

Good Morning!! Glad your problem was minor, and you were able to utilize your time wisely.

[Ralphie ★]

Not too many of us can function at peak efficiency when rudely awoken in the middle of the night. I used to get a few work calls in the middle of the night, and the person would just start talking and I would be thinking, “Whoa!  Slow down!  Who are you again?  And for that matter, who and where am I?”.

 

[BR46]

It's always in the middle of the night.

I think it was some part of a evil plan by some Chinese guy who makes smoke detectors.......I will program them to have the low battery noise go off in the middle of the night........and space the chirp out that just when they fall back asleep it chirps again ..........Haaaaaa Haaaaaa Haaaaaa

[Longjohn ★]

Why do you have so many smoke detectors in the scooter mansion?

[Square Wheels]

I got Nest smoke detectors, they are all smoke and CO2.  They are hard wired with a battery.  They test their own battery regularly.  I can go online to see their status.   I used to change all the batteries every January to avoid those chirps, then we got the we're too old chirps too.   The biggest benefit is there is a button you can press to silence them.  They warn you before they are about to go off with "Warning, there is smoke in the living room".  You can only press the one that is going to alarm, not just anyone of them.  I suspect they want you to actually witness there is no smoke.

Thye also have nightlights (if you turn that one), which I really like.  They can be always on, or on when you walk near it.

I suspect the Amazon ones do all that, plus they play music.

[team scooter]

29 minutes ago, Longjohn said:

Why do you have so many smoke detectors in the scooter mansion?

Code says one detector in each bedroom, one each in the two halls outside the bedrooms (split bedroom house)  and the two in the basement. 

[Square Wheels]

7 minutes ago, team scooter said:

Code says one detector in each bedroom, one each in the two halls outside the bedrooms (split bedroom house)  and the two in the basement. 

In our downstairs, we had one in the hall just outside the two bedrooms.  The prior owner had them also installed just inside the bedrooms, so there were three within 6 feet of each other.  The Nest detectors are a hundred bucks each, I took out the other two in the bedrooms and left the hall one for now.  We used to have fourteen of them in my small house.

[team scooter]

39 minutes ago, Square Wheels said:

I got Nest smoke detectors, they are all smoke and CO2.  They are hard wired with a battery.  They test their own battery regularly.  I can go online to see their status.   I used to change all the batteries every January to avoid those chirps, then we got the we're too old chirps too.   The biggest benefit is there is a button you can press to silence them.  They warn you before they are about to go off with "Warning, there is smoke in the living room".  You can only press the one that is going to alarm, not just anyone of them.  I suspect they want you to actually witness there is no smoke.

Thye also have nightlights (if you turn that one), which I really like.  They can be always on, or on when you walk near it.

I suspect the Amazon ones do all that, plus they play music.

Ours are hard wired with battery back up too, but I'm not sure (2001 circa) if they have CO2 capabilities or not, hence the plug in CO2 detectors in the hall and basement. After twenty years though, I think its time to up date/replace them. Its on the list with the furnace, AC, roof, and noisy well pump. Luckily I at least work at a well pump distributor now. 

[Square Wheels]

3 minutes ago, team scooter said:

After twenty years though

Flip one over, they have a best by date on them.  Yours passed 10 years ago. 

[Ralphie ★]

3 minutes ago, team scooter said:

Luckily I I at least work at a well pump distributor now. 

Good timing!  

Man, you change jobs like I change underwear, every few years.

 

[team scooter]

1 minute ago, RalphWaldoMooseworth said:

Good timing!  

Man, you change jobs like I change underwear, every few years.

 

Over thirty years at the landscape company, a month at a furnace place for a temp service, and over four long, miserable years at the landscape supply place. I'm at my forth employer since 1986. And change for me is no longer as scary as it used to be.

[Ralphie ★]

20 minutes ago, team scooter said:

Over thirty years at the landscape company, a month at a furnace place for a temp service, and over four long, miserable years at the landscape supply place. I'm at my forth employer since 1986. And change for me is no longer as scary as it used to be.

So what was the big difference between the presumably happy 30 year and the miserable 4 year jobs? 

[team scooter]

2 minutes ago, RalphWaldoMooseworth said:

So what was the big difference between the presumably happy 30 year and the miserable 4 year jobs? 

The landscape company job was fun and never boring. And we were all like family. I know all of my ex coworkers wive's and kid's names, they know mine. My wife and I are even Godparents for a couple of my ex coworker's kids. And we all still keep in touch.

But the bosses at the landscape supply place all had Napoleon complexes. And they went though several other workers before I left. And they all left after making huge ruckuses', some even threatening bodily harm to the boss. Myself, I got my revenge by leaving them without notice as their busy season started. And I never intend to travel to that side of town again. But I do keep in touch with one coworker, a great guy. He keeps me up to date on the latest drama. 

[Ralphie ★]

2 minutes ago, team scooter said:

The landscape company job was fun and never boring. And we were all like family. I know all of my ex coworkers wive's and kid's names, they know mine. My wife and I are even Godparents for a couple of my ex coworker's kids. And we all still keep in touch.

But the bosses at the landscape supply place all had Napoleon complexes. And they went though several other workers before I left. And they all left after making huge ruckuses', some even threatening bodily harm to the boss. Myself, I got my revenge by leaving them without notice as their busy season started. And I never intend to travel to that side of town again. But I do keep in touch with one coworker, a great guy. He keeps me up to date on the latest drama. 

What happened with the first company?

[team scooter]

10 minutes ago, RalphWaldoMooseworth said:

What happened with the first company?

We moved up here, over an hour away to get away from the city rat race. My wife and I commuted together for a while, but after she found a job up here, it didn't pay for me to drive that far alone. 

[a bunch of numbers]

1 hour ago, team scooter said:

but I'm not sure (2001 circa)

My son who's a fireman down in Charlotte told me they specify changing the smoke alarm every 6 years.

[Bikeguy]

2 hours ago, team scooter said:

Code says one detector in each bedroom, one each in the two halls outside the bedrooms (split bedroom house)  and the two in the basement. 

I just counted my smoke/CO detectors in our new home.  We have 8.  I didn't think we had that many.   I just found 1 in my basement, I never knew it was there. 

I do know they are they are all hardwired and 'they' all go off at the same time.  I tested them once.  OMG was it LOUD,  8 alarms at the same time.  I was glad WoBG wasn't home she would have been like.,  WTF are you doing?

I never thought about then all chirping about low batteries at the same time.  That must be very annoying.  I'll guess that will happen sometime soon. 

 

[Ralphie ★]

Our hardwired ones have saved us from a lot of low battery chirping over the years I spose. 

[Bikeguy]

2 hours ago, Square Wheels said:

In our downstairs, we had one in the hall just outside the two bedrooms.  The prior owner had them also installed just inside the bedrooms, so there were three within 6 feet of each other.  The Nest detectors are a hundred bucks each, I took out the other two in the bedrooms and left the hall one for now.  We used to have fourteen of them in my small house.

If you took the detectors out of the bedrooms, that probably means you not 'to code' any more.  I'm sure the idea is, if the bedroom door is closed, you want one in the bedroom.  And even if the door is open,  the wall and door frame could trap a lot of smoke in a bedroom before it gets out to the detector in the hallway.  

Mine are in each bedroom and outside each bedroom in the hallway.  At least 2 bedrooms are across the hall from each other, there is only 1 in that part of the hallway.  And one in the basement near the furnaces and water heater. 

[Ralphie ★]

I guess hallways are an old standard, since that is what we got in a new house In 1986. Spose I should get one for the bedroom. Already added a CO detector that was snot originally required.  Hell they might not have existed in 1986. 

[MickinMD ★]

6 hours ago, team scooter said:

started chirping. Maggie was going ballistic. I changed all their batteries a few weeks ago when "they" started chirping at midnight. This time, with all my  2am wisdom, I figured ''they'' were old and worn out so I started unplugging all seven of them. When I still heard the chirp, I finally realized it was the battery in the forgotten Carbon Monoxide detector plugged in the hallway instead. The bad news is after I installed the new C/M battery and reinstalled all the smoke detectors, I couldn't fall back to sleep. The good news is I'm almost finished doing my laundry. 

The state or county regulations apparently require a smoke detector close to the kitchen stove in apartments and in a number of those where I am they go off when you've got a hot frying pan with oil in it, open a 400° oven to check what's baking. or anything similar, even with the "vent" fume hood fan turned on, which actually recycles the air back into the room a lot cooler.

So I have to keep broom stationed close to the smoke detector in case it goes off so I can reach the handle up and press the button in the middle to turn it back off.

Fortunately, sound is insulated well enough to keep the sound inside the apartment.

[Dirtyhip]

6 hours ago, RalphWaldoMooseworth said:

Not too many of us can function at peak efficiency when rudely awoken in the middle of the night. I used to get a few work calls in the middle of the night, and the person would just start talking and I would be thinking, “Whoa!  Slow down!  Who are you again?  And for that matter, who and where am I?”.

Don't even try calling me in the middle of the night.  It's like I am still in a dream state.  I can almost function and not remember anything.  

When I was in high school, there was a horrible car accident. Two kids were killed and my boyfriend was injured.  His Mother called me in the middle of the night. I had my own telephone number and line to my bedroom.  Anyway, I guess I answered, heard the news, said "Thank you" and promptly hung up on her.   She hated my guts after that happened.  I didn't even remember the call.  I got to school and everyone was in shock.  I was like... "What happened?"

I have sleepwalking in my family too.

[Square Wheels]

5 hours ago, Bikeguy said:

If you took the detectors out of the bedrooms, that probably means you not 'to code' any more.

 

That's OK, there's never anyone in them.  If needed, I can just buy a few more, they are super easy to add to the network.