Why Do Your Smoke Alarms Keep Beeping?

If your day has ever been interrupted by that dreaded smoke alarm beeping, you know how annoying it can be. This sound has haunted people worldwide for decades and will continue to do so. 

As you know, it’s not the beeping of your smoke alarms that causes such a hassle, it’s the fact that it is so hard for you to stop it. Lucky for you, there is an answer to your problem, and it may be as simple as a battery issue or some dust. 

If you want to get to the bottom of your smoke detector problem and learn how to perform smoke alarm testing, keep reading.

Aegis Safe deliver effective fire protection services and fire extinguisher services throughout Brisbane, Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast.

Why Is Your Smoke Alarm Beeping?

There are dozens of factors that may be causing your smoke alarm to beep periodically. Many of them, in fact, have nothing to do with smoke.

Learning what might be triggering your alarm’s beeping will help stop it now and in the future. 

Expired Battery

One of the most common causes of smoke alarm chirping is actually the smoke alarm battery. 

Most smoke alarms are designed to alert homeowners when their battery is low to get them to change it. It’s recommended by professionals that you change your smoke alarm’s battery at least once a year. Do not wait for it to die and stop working; this is a safety hazard. 

If this is the cause of your alarm’s recent beeping, all you need to do is get a ladder and replace the old battery with a new one. If you have multiple smoke alarms, you could take this opportunity to go ahead and replace the battery in all of them. Mark the date you did this on your calendar and change them again in one year. 

Dust Buildup 

Even though your smoke detectors are placed high up on your ceiling or walls, they can still collect a lot of dust. When this happens, your smoke alarm may confuse it for smoke and go off. 

To fix this, try removing your smoke alarm from the wall and dusting it off with a rag. Afterward, try dusting them every few months to prevent any major dust buildup.

Keeping your smoke alarms clean will help their performance in the future and keep you free from any more false alarms. 

Steam

Similar to dust, your smoke alarm may confuse steam for smoke and sound off. If you are cooking or showering close to a smoke alarm and hear it go off, this is probably why.

The best way to keep this from happening again is to shower with your door open and try to fan most of the steam away from the smoke alarm.

Expired Smoke Detector

Believe it or not, your smoke alarms have an expiration date. In fact, most smoke alarms work for around 8 to 10 years before they need to be replaced. 

If your’s is older than that, your problem is more than likely caused by your smoke alarm’s age and you need a new one.

To do this, call a fire service company that specializes in smoke alarms and schedule a quote. They will come to your house, assess what needs to be updated, and give you an estimated cost. Afterward, schedule a date for them to come back to your house and install your new smoke alarms.

Temperature Change

Your smoke detectors are sensitive to heat. If you live in a warmer area or your city is experiencing a heatwave, this might trigger your smoke alarm beeping. 

To avoid this, you could try to keep the smoke alarm cool, but if it is a constant problem you should consider moving them to a less sensitive part of your home.  

How To Test Smoke Alarms

Another thing you should do to determine what is wrong with your smoke alarm is to test it. Oftentimes our smoke alarms have problems we overlook simply because the green light is flashing or it has been quiet for a while. This does not mean your smoke detector is in working condition. 

The only foolproof way to ensure your alarm is still safe is to test it. This may seem difficult, but it can get done in a few easy steps.

Prepare

Before you begin testing your alarms it is recommended that you inform anyone else in your home. This is a loud process and it could scare anyone who is not aware of what is happening.

Another thing you should do is ask another house member to go to the farthest room from your smoke detectors. Here they can check to see if they can hear the alarm across the entire house. 

If you don’t have anyone in your home with you, this is not a crucial step, but it does help. 

Press The Test Button

After you have prepared, locate the test button on your smoke alarm and press it down. Do not let go of it. 

Once you have begun holding the button down, you should hear a loud siren. If the siren is not loud or you don’t hear one at all, you need to change your smoke alarm battery and retest them. 

If after the retest your alarm is still low-pitched or quiet, consider the age of your smoke alarms. You may need to install a new smoke alarm system.

End Your Smoke Alarm Beeping  

Now that you know what might be causing your smoke alarms to beep, all you need to do is figure what is wrong with you and fix it. 

If after troubleshooting and smoke alarm testing, you decide that the solution to your problem is new smoke detectors. Give Aegis Safe a call. 

They are dedicated to giving you and your family the safest home possible and are more than happy to help provide you with the best fire alarm out there. Visit their Fire Protection page to learn more.