Quell Q1400 User manual - page 10
7.LIMITATIONS OF SMOKE ALARMS
WARNING: PLEASE READ CAREFULLY AND THOROUGHLY
• Life safety from fire in residential occupancies is based primarily on early notification
to occupants of the need to escape, followed by the appropriate actions by those
occupants.
• Smoke alarms shall be installed outside each separate sleeping area in the
immediate vicinity of the bedrooms and on each additional story of the family living
unit, including basements and excluding crawl spaces and unfinished attics. In new
construction, a smoke alarm also shall be installed in each sleeping room.
• Smoke Detection - Are More Smoke Alarms Desirable?
The required number of smoke alarms might not provide reliable early warning
protection for those areas separated by a door from the areas protected by the
required smoke alarms. For this reason, it is recommended that the householder
consider the use of additional smoke alarms for those areas for increased
protection. The additional areas include the basement, bedrooms, dining room,
utility room, and hallways not protected by the required smoke alarms. The
installation of the smoke alarms in the kitchen, attic (or unfinished), or garage is
normally not recommended, as these locations occasionally experience conditions
that can result in improper operation.
• Smoke alarms are devices that can provide early warning of possible fires; however,
alarms have sensing limitations. Ionisation sensing alarms may detect invisible fire
particles (associated with fast flaming fires) sooner than photoelectric alarms.
Photoelectric sensing alarms may detect visible fire particles (associated with slow
smoldering fires) sooner than ionisation alarms. Home fires develop in different
ways and are often unpredictable. For maximum protection, Chubb recommends
that both Ionisation and Photoelectric alarms be installed.
• Smoke alarms must be tested regularly to make sure the batteries and the alarm
circuits are in good operating condition.
• Smoke alarms cannot provide an alarm if smoke does not reach the alarm.
Therefore, smoke alarms may not sense fires starting in chimneys, walls, on roofs,
on the other side of a closed door or on a different floor.
• If the alarm is located outside the bedroom or on a different floor, it may not wake
up a sound sleeper.
• The use of alcohol or drugs may also impair one’s ability to hear the smoke alarm.
For maximum protection, a smoke alarm should be installed in each sleeping area
on every level of a home.
• Although smoke alarms can help save lives by providing an early warning of a fire,
they do not prevent damage to property. Home owners and renters should have
adequate insurance to protect their lives and property.
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