10 year smoke alarms.

Is there a law in your state that says that new household smoke alarms must be ones where you don’t have to change the battery? Apparently there was a law passed in my state at the beginning of this year that says that household smoke alarms must be ones where you don’t have to change the battery. However I still see smoke detectors with batteries that you change for sale in stores.

Which state?

Florida.

[quote] Homeowners are now required to use 10-year, battery-sealed smoke alarms when installing new alarms or replacing outdated or non-working alarms. The new smoke alarms look pretty similar to the old ones but there's one big difference. You don’t replace the battery, which lasts for 10 years. [/quote]

If your old smoke alarms are working fine you don’t have to replace them, it’s called grandfathering. It’s only when you are installing new alarms or replacing them. No worries mate. :wink:

What I wonder about is, if smoke detectors where you have to change the battery are illegal now in Florida, why are stores here still selling them? In stores I still see smoke detectors with batteries to be changed for sale, as well as the 10 year smoke alarms. Why are stores selling something that is illegal?

I believe we’ve had a topic like this already…

Anyway, the reason stores still sell “regular” smoke alarms alongside sealed lithium battery ones is because the law is too new to warrant pulling every single smoke alarm that doesn’t have a sealed battery. It’s the same reason you still see residential buildings without low-frequency sounders (like mine).

Just because there is a new law that mandates a 10 year sealed smoke alarm be installed for new and replacement scenarios - there is probably no law that says a store can’t still sell the older style smoke alarms. And as long as there is a demand for the older style smoke alarms, the stores will probably still stock them! Unless the state of Florida bans the sale of the older smoke detectors, you will probably still see them for a while. Plus, enforcement would be next to impossible. Without getting political, the government cannot simply enter your home and “look around” to check to see if you have the right type of smoke alarms. There are exceptions for rental properties or situations like that, and I know one township in New Jersey that requires a fire inspection when the home is sold or transferred, but other than that, there aren’t any smoke detector police.