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When was the last time you replaced your smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms? Yes, replace. Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms should be replaced at least every 10 years. Most of the time it’s easier to just do these odd jobs and maintenance quickly when you think about it or when it needs to happen, but it’s a great time to remind your teens about household safety and teach them about maintenance of their own house someday. Upgrade to the First Alert 10-Year Sealed Battery Combination Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Alarm like this one from First Alert when replacing outdated alarms.
Did you know smoke and CO alarms should be replaced every 10 years?
If I knew this I had definitely forgotten! We used this reminder from First Alert (Don’t wait, replace!) to check the smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in our house. We had one that was WAY past time to replace & realized that we really needed to add a few more alarms to our house to be safe. Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms should be installed on every level and in every bedroom for whole home protection.
You can check the date of your current alarms on the back of the alarm itself. There should be a manufacture date right on there. If it’s been 10 years or more, it’s time to replace it! You should also be checking those batteries every 6 months & testing those alarms regularly.
If constantly checking the batteries or that horrible 3am low battery beep has you hesitating, you need to get this First Alert 10-Year Sealed Battery Combination Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Alarm. Not only does it provide 2-in-1 protection against smoke AND CO, but it also has a 10-year battery so there is no need for battery replacements. After 10 years, you just replace the whole unit itself.
We loved how easy this one was to install (because no wiring is required) and that it was a LOT slimmer than our old one. So go through & check those alarms to see which ones need replacing. Stay safe & help be prepared!
Why Your Teens or Tweens Should Help With Household Safety and Maintenance
It might seem inconvenient to wait until your teens are around and receptive, but household maintenance like replacing smoke and CO alarms is such a great opportunity to teach your teens or kids so many different things.
Here are just a few reasons your teen should help when you do household maintenance or safety checks:
- Going over safety checks like checking the batteries in alarms or the manufacture dates give you the opportunity to make sure everyone remembers the fire safety plan in your house.
- It’s a great time to practice skills like using drywall screws.
- It shows them how to do these safety and maintenance checks in their own house someday.
- They’ll know how different things work in case of an emergency
- It gives them ownership and responsibility for things in the family house
- It helps reinforce safety checks like making sure the stove is off when they’re done using it
- Going over household safety slowly over time helps you not feel like you have to go over every single thing when you leave them home alone
Just the conversation starter is enough of a reason, but early on is the best time to start teaching them these little things that they’ll want to know about living on their own. It also shows them that as parents we’re still learning and don’t know everything but can take action when we DO learn something, Like the fact that our smoke alarm was WAY past time to be replaced!
We already added 2 of these First Alert 10-Year Sealed Battery Combination Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Alarms and it was definitely so simple to install + we love the slim profile and the fact that it has that 10-year battery. We’ll be getting a couple more to add to make sure our house is well outfitted!
