Smoke Alarm,help needed.

hazzie123

I have bought 2 smoke alarms but have no idea how you put them up,bit thick!

Do I have to drill the ceiling or is it possible just to screw it straight in?

I have borrowed a drill but dont know how to work it so really dont want to use it.

ormus

they dont weigh much so you can usually just screw them in. try and get the screws into the wood lathes or joists, if poss.
modern homes have PB ceilings, older homes have plaster and lathes.

andrew-b

Follow the guidelines in the instruction manual for where to position it. As already said, if possible screw straight into a ceiling joist. You should be able to locate the joists by gently tap the ceiling with a finger and listening for where it sounds more solid.

Andy

hazzie123

Thanks for the help,the smoke alarms are installed finally.

Igol

Want the bad news.
Chances are your local branch of Trumpton would have come around and done them for free. Fire service that is. They hand out 10 year battery life ones round here and will even come around and do a full survey of your house for fire risks.

Tim_Deegan

Igol wrote: »

Want the bad news.
Chances are your local branch of Trumpton would have come around and done them for free. Fire service that is. They hand out 10 year battery life ones round here and will even come around and do a full survey of your house for fire risks.

There is no harm in contacting your local fire service to do a home fire safety check anyway. They will also test the ones you have fitted, and make sure they are fitted correctly. I don't want to sound like i'm questioning your DIY abilities hazzie123, but you would be surprised how many are wrongly installed.

Tim_Deegan

I should also add that anyone who hasn't had a home fire safety check should book one as soon as possible, because the goverment are planning to stop funding them next year.

Premier_2

Tim_Deegan wrote: »

I should also add that anyone who hasn't had a home fire safety check should book one as soon as possible, because the goverment are planning to stop funding them next year.

Good job too - council tax is too high as it is without wasting money on silly jobs like this,

If you don't know how to fit one, employ a professional. Don't rely on council tax payers to pay for the job for you.


Edit: it may be interesting to note this poster has resurrected a few threads of old in order to advertise this service, plus made a load of comments on the following linked thread including claiming to be a full time firefighter as well as a retained firefighter, but sadly the past has caught up with him because last month he was claiming to sell beds!
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1196611

Tim_Deegan

Premier wrote: »

Good job too - council tax is too high as it is without wasting money on silly jobs like this,

If you don't know how to fit one, employ a professional. Don't rely on council tax payers to pay for the job for you.

Is preventing fire deaths a silly job then??

Home fire safety checks, and fitting smoke alarms actually saves council tax payers money. How much do you think it costs in council taxes each time a house is engulfed in flames ending up as a 5 pump fire, and when people are killed or injured. When a fire could have been tackled at a very early stage with very little damage, and with no injurys ar loss of life??