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HELP!! Smoke Detector going off all the time.

Jesterarts

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Hey guys... I have an issue.

I have a smoke detector in the bedroom and it keeps going off randomly.

Brand new smoke detector, goes off every 2 minutes or so...

I've replaced the battery, replaced the smoke detector, replaced the battery in the replacement smoke detector and tried moving it around the room...

Same thing... driving my up the wall!

I read that dust can cause them to go off randomly but they are brand new and within 2 minutes of being in the room they are going off!!

Anyone have any idea wtf iw going on?
 

hsvpunk

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well i was going to suggest replacing the batteries, but you have done. I am stumped as to why it would be doing it too.
 

nicko

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another $6 detector from bunnings should do the trick.
 

alien

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You could put out the fire in your room? Or stop smoking?

If they keep going off i would say that the air wherever they are isn't clean enough. Take the smoke detector outside and see if it still does it. If it does it's the detector. If not your air inside is dirty! :p

Basically the way they work is there's a radioactive sample in there emitting alpha radiation (dont worry, not enough to do any sort of damage to you unless you open it up and play around with it). If you do open it up and work on it, make sure you wash your hands before eating. Anyways, so yea it emits radiation and the receiver picks up how much radiation is getting to it. If there isn't enough getting to it it will set off the alarm. Smoke basically blocks the Alpha radiation particles and sends them flying in a different direction, so does contaminants in the air.
 

Jesterarts

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Neither of my detectors are going off outside... so my "inside air is dirty"... only issue I have there is that we always have atleast one window open at all times to the air inside is fresh.

One thing i will try... right near the detector I have a big tribal mask that was painted black... ages ago... but if you sniff it you can smell paint... is it possible that that little big of pain fumes is setting it off?
 

hsvpunk

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no paint wont do it... at my house we have just had some rooms painted, and neither of the detectors have gone off. and we change batteries once a month n check the detectors.
 

zerodown

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Sure it's a smoke detector and not a Halitosis detector?
 

alien

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hsvpunk, paint fumes CAN actually set off smoke detectors. If the fumes atomic composition is heavy enough radiation will bounce off it, especially in fairly big concentrations. Even H2O in the air (steam) can set off a smoke alarm if concentration is enough. Usually paint fumes only set them off after you paint though and not after 2 years. Try move it as far from it as you can?

Even found one question on the interweb and also an article:
MMH: Product, Material & Finishes, Rooms, Outdoors, Systems, Structure & Exterior, Moving
TheDartmouth.com | Paint fumes set off Baker-Berry library alarm system
 

commsirac

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hsvpunk, paint fumes CAN actually set off smoke detectors. If the fumes atomic composition is heavy enough radiation will bounce off it, especially in fairly big concentrations. Even H2O in the air (steam) can set off a smoke alarm if concentration is enough. Usually paint fumes only set them off after you paint though and not after 2 years. Try move it as far from it as you can?

Even found one question on the interweb and also an article:
MMH: Product, Material & Finishes, Rooms, Outdoors, Systems, Structure & Exterior, Moving
TheDartmouth.com | Paint fumes set off Baker-Berry library alarm system


Interesting about the paint fumes.
Just a small point, alpha radiation is ionising radiation, ionises the air within the detection chamber and allows a current to flow between charged plates. Typically smoke particles stop this from happening, absorbing the particles and not forming charged ions, hence the detector current stopping. Other gases do likewise and are unable to from charged ions like the oxygen and nitrogen in the air.
 

VNexecutive

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while we're on the topic, im pretty sure that cigarette smoke doesnt affect smoke alarms. maybe new ones, but not that im aware of.
deoderants etc do though.
 
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