Comments on: Smoke Detector Beeping and Chirping

By: Lena

Lena — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 14:39:35 +0000

Why did my smoke detector start beeping when the batteries were testing still in the green good range on my battery charge tester? Shouldn’t they only start beeping once the batteries are completely dead? We took the batteries out of two of them to sleep through the night and thankfully the beeping stopped. We’re not sure if we are hearing something in the attic. Could that be affecting the wiring of the smoke alarms?

By: TERRY HEMMEN

TERRY HEMMEN — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 03:06:30 +0000

Thanks to Dave for his expertise….It was driving me mad after installing new batteries in my 6 detectors and still have them chirp….so, I took the unit(s) off the wall..unplugged the electrical connection..removed the batteries…pushed the test button until they lost their chirping….put the battery back in…tested it…plugged the electrical connection and remounted…problem solved!!

By: Meaux

Meaux — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 23:53:13 +0000

Just changed out to new batteries, each smoke defector beeped two more times in the following 5 to 10 minutes after installation as they reset themselves. Mine are hard wired & require 9volt batteries. I always seem to forget this 2 more beeps is a confirmation of sorts.

By: teresa santell

teresa santell — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:42:32 +0000

ps, the detectors are also hard wired, only one chirps unless it is disconnected then they all chirp.

By: teresa santell

teresa santell — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:35:34 +0000

we have a chirping smoke detector. we changed all the detector’s batteries; still it chirps. we changed the back up battery; still it chirps. the house is 4 yrs old. we tried changing the detector itself, but it was screwed and glued to the sheet rock, so could not remove it. they are not on a dedicated line. what next?

By: Anita Bourbon

Anita Bourbon — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 16:12:34 +0000

thank you

By: Zozo's Mommy

Zozo's Mommy — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 13:51:07 +0000

There are 7 smoke detectors in this house, and changing the batteries is an event to be planned for and dreaded. Both my cattledogs are rescues with some severe fear/panic issues. The chirp of a smoke alarm with a low battery anywhere in the house caused them to hide, shaking and scared. Thanks to your comments above, all batteries were replaced fairly quickly, without the usual post-ladder-storage beeping. I also identified two units that need to be replaced. I appreciate your detailed instructions more than you can imagine.

By: cc

cc — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 00:42:01 +0000

The above suggestions of Dave the Handyman make sense and might solve the classic type of beep sounds but the above numerous examples of folks who use a smoke detector (hard-wired or not) combined with my own experience have led me to the conclusion the “smoke detector” product seems to be poorly designed, at best. If so, then the manufacturers of smoke detector products should seriously review and thoroughly understand the above problematic events of their faulty products and then design, develop and market more robust products for all of us. It is totally unacceptable for this VERY annoying problem to continue without being fixed. Have the various manufacturers evaluated the impact of the quality of air (composition, airflow, negative/positive charges), fouling-up of the sensor due to dust/dirt, insects’ deposition, etc. etc.? If Yes, then what is their fix and respective recommendations???? Someone could write a PhD thesis on this issue. I am so sick and tired of this VERY annoying issue, that I plan to install brand new smoke detectors in our home and hope and pay that I will have some PEACE at nights for even a little while!!!! Amin!!!!

By: ms

ms — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 05:14:58 +0000

thanks so much for this handy tip. i was going crazy in the middle of the night trying to make the alarm stop beeping. i followed your instructions and replacing the battery really worked. thanks a million.

By: wayne jacobsen

wayne jacobsen — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 05:05:34 +0000

old smoke detector chirping.replaced batt still chirping. replaced smoke detctor and new detector still chirping. I tried the reset routine and still chirping. It is hard wired with 9v batt. back up. Please help.
It does stop chirping when I turn off circuit breaker.
wayne