Recently, the regulations about a smoke detector have had changes. And if you don’t follow the new rules, it may cost you some money.

Who Is Affected?

That’s a great question. Actually, if your home was built after 1977, there are no changes. The fire code was changed to require all smoke detectors to be hard wired for power in 1977. The battery is just for backup use. However, changes do affect you if your home was built before 1977. And it’s a change that could possibly, save your life.

We all know about smoke detectors. But to tell the truth, there is something a lot of us ( me included) are guilty of. If we need a 9 volt battery, and there aren’t any in the drawer, where do we go to get one? We go to the smoke detector, right? And how diligent are we about replacing the battery?

Or, if the smoke detector  battery is going dead, it makes the detector send out annoying sounds. And too many of us simply remove the battery to silence the noise.

Did you ever do one of these things? I know I have.

And, did you know that a dead battery is the most common cause of a non-functioning smoke detector?

What’s the Change?

What has changed is the design of the smoke detector. Homes built before 1977 now require a smoke detector with a sealed 10 year battery. Smoke detectors with replaceable batteries are no longer acceptable. Will the police come into your home to see if you’ve purchased new ones? No. However, if you either sell or rent your home, you’ll need to get a Certificate of Occupancy. When the town inspects for the Certificate of Occupancy, you’ll fail if you don’t have the new detectors installed. And, the town may charge you for a re-inspection.

Bottom Line

There’s a side benefit to the law. In addition to the 10 year battery, all smoke detectors should be replaced every 10 years. So this forces you to get a new one – every 10 years. By the way, you should also replace your Carbon Monoxide detector every 10 years. And, even though the newer units probably cost a little more, you won’t have the expense of changing the batteries every year.

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