“When buying your Halloween candy this year, pick up some batteries for your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms,” said State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan. “We change our clocks the day after Halloween on November 1, so remember when you change your clocks, change the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms,” he added.
One of the best things we can do as we get our homes ready for winter, is to make sure smoke and carbon monoxide alarms have fresh batteries. A working smoke alarm is your first line of defense in a fire. Time is your enemy in a fire and working smoke alarms give you precious time to use your home escape plan before poisonous gases and heat make escape impossible.”
Replace Aging Smoke & CO Alarms
No appliance lasts forever. “When changing your alarm’s batteries check to see if your alarms need to be replaced. Smoke alarms last about ten years and older carbon monoxide alarms last 5-7,” said Coan.
Ten Year Alarms
There are some new smoke and CO alarms that come with a sealed 10-year lithium battery. The batteries in these alarms never need changing, but the entire alarm needs to be replaced every ten years.
For more information on smoke alarms in Massachusetts contact your local fire prevention office or go to: www.mass.gov/dfs and type Smoke Alarms in the search box.