Don't forget to test your smoke alarm when you change your clock this weekend

Ah yes, it is that time of year again; the Sun is lower in the sky, the air is getting colder, and the leaves are falling from the trees.  Fall is here friends and neighbors, and this weekend marks the time when when we set our clocks back an hour for Daylight Savings.  Years ago, we would tell you to change your smoke alarm batteries when you changed your clocks, but since 1998 Oregon law has required that all battery operated ionization type smoke alarms (ionization is the most common type) sold in our state were to be powered by a ten year battery.  Replacing this battery with a standard nine volt alkaline battery isn't a good idea, as it could cause the smoke alarm to fail.  So what do you do?

•  Smoke alarms over ten years old, regardless of how they operate, should be replaced.

• If they are hard wired into your home's electrical system, and are less then 10 years old, all you need to do is replace the back up battery.  A good old fashioned 9 volt back up battery is fine for these hard wired alarms.
  
• If you have a battery operated smoke alarm, check to see what kind it is.  Somewhere on the alarm it should say if it is ionization or photo electric.  If the smoke alarm is of the ionization type, make sure it's less than ten years old, has a long life battery in it, and then test it to make sure it works.  If the smoke alarm says that it's a photo electric type, than it should already have a long life lithium power cell, as a nine volt alkaline doesn't have enough energy to power a photo electric alarm for very long.  Test your photo electric alarm and call it good. 
  
• It's also a good idea to dust your smoke alarm out, using a can of computer keyboard cleaner or a vacuum, gently clean the device to remove any dust, cob webs, or other debris that could keep your smoke alarm from working properly. 

When you test these smoke alarms we hope that you also practice a family fire drill.  Everyone should know two ways to safely get out of their home, including a plan for when and how to use your window to get out safely.  Once you are out, the family should meet at a designated meeting place; this can be as simple as a tree, mailbox, or the driveway where everyone meets and a roll call is taken to make sure everyone is safely out.  Part of your family fire drill should talk about how no one is allowed to go back into the home unless it is safe, and also where a safe place your kids can go to ask for help and call 9-1-1 from.