Yellow Smoke Detectors
When your detectors turn yellow you don’t even need to look at the date just replace them.
Smoke Detectors should be replaced every 10 years. You should also make sure you clean them according to the manufactures recommendation on a regular basis as well as testing them.
Residential or commercial detectors should be replaced when they turn yellow or if they are over 10 years old. Each year new technology is integrated and often the newer detectors have new features. \
If your system is a commercial system you will need to make sure the new smoke detectors are compatible with the panel you have installed. Commercial sensors normally run off the batteries in the main fire panel. These smoke detectors are either 2 wire or 4 wire and they are either addressable telling you exactly where they are or they are zoned conventional where you could have several on one loop or zone.
If you have detectors that are tied to the AC 120V power often they will have 9 volt battery backup in each detector and these are SMOKE ALARMS not smoke detectors. When this is the case and they are powered with high voltage you should have a licensed electrical contractor replace them.
When you have a commercial fire alarm system you will be required to have your system tested and tagged each year in Utah as per R710 and more often according to NFPA 72 .
When you have a fire your insurance company will want to know when the central station got the alarm and if the system was not monitored or had not be maintained and tested there is a chance insurance will not pay the claim so it pays to keep the system in good shape.
New requirements are coming out all the time and one of the most recent ones is the requirement for low frequency horns/ horn strobes to be installed in certain buildings which have a 520mhz low frequency which wakes you up better than the higher frequency.
Call Larry Love in Salt Lake City for more information 801 898 6003 Larry.Love@JCI.com