Smoke and heat alarms
Fire detection is the best way to protect yourself from fire. Smoke and heat alarms give you an early warning of a fire in your home.
We provide smoke detectors in all our homes. Your home should have a smoke alarm fitted on every floor and where a room is used for living puposes ie Lounge as well as a heat alarm in the kitchen (heat alarms operate at higher temperatures to allow for cooking heat). If you have not got these fire detection precautions in place, notify us straight away.
We are converting all of our customer’s smoke and heat alarms from being powered by batteries to hard wired alarms which are powered by your mains electricity. They have a battery as a backup in case your power fails.
Do:
- Dust your smoke/heat alarm regularly
- Check your smoke/heat alarm monthly to make sure it is working by pressing the test button
- Replace the battery if the alarm bleeps for any reason other than smoke or fire in your home
- Contact us if you have any problems with your smoke alarm
Do not:
- Remove a working battery from your smoke/heat alarm
- Paint over or remove the smoke alarm
If you decide to put up extra smoke alarms:
Do:
- Check with us first to ensure your ceiling does not contain asbestos
- Position them on the ceiling in the middle of the room
Do not:
- Put smoke alarms in or near kitchens or bathrooms because everyday steam and smoke can set them off by accident. Your Scheme Officer will also test the fire alarm systems in your scheme’s communal areas weekly
If you live in one of our sheltered or semi-sheltered homes there is an annual programme of testing the smoke detector in your property. If a battery needs replacing GCH will be responsible for arranging this.
Your smoke detector connects to the monitoring centre. Please answer their call if they contact you, to confirm what has happened. If there is no answer this will be treated as an emergency and the Fire Service will be called.
Fire safety checks in Sheltered Housing:
- Emergency lighting – monthly
- Fire Equipment e.g. extinguishers, blankets and fire hoses – annually
- Risk assessments – every 12 – 18 months
- Fire Alarm/Panel – 6-monthly
- Fire Door Inspection – quarterly (every 3 months)
- All schemes also have a fire alarm test to a different call point within the building every week
Fire safety checks in General blocks:
- Emergency lighting – monthly
- Fire Equipment e.g. extinguishers, blankets and fire hoses – annually
- Risk Assessments – 3 yearly however annually where the risk of a fire is higher
- Fire Alarm/Panel – 6-monthly
- Call Point Checks – Weekly
- Fire Door Inspection – quarterly (every 3 months)
We will take any action needed to ensure these systems are working properly and that the fire detection method complies with the latest standards.
What should I do if there is a fire in my home?