How do smoke detectors intercommunicate?
Battery-powered smoke alarms are stand-alone units. But if you have AC-powered smoke detectors in your home and your home has been built in the last 10 years in the U.S., chances are they are wired together to intercommunicate. This sort of wiring guarantees that if one alarm in the house goes off, they all go off. Even if the fire starts and is detected in the basement, people asleep upstairs will hear the alarm because of this safety feature -- every alarm in the house goes off.
If you buy an AC-powered smoke detector today, it will have three wires -- black, white and red. Black accepts 120 volts AC, white is neutral, and red is the intercommunication wire. All of the alarms operate off the same circuit from the fuse box and are normally connected using normal wire for three-way switches The electrician runs the red wire from alarm to alarm to interconnect them.
When any alarm detects a fire, it sends a 9-volt signal on the red wire. Any alarm that detects a 9-volt signal on the red wire will begin sounding its alarm immediately. Most alarms can handle about a dozen units intercommunicating on the same red wire. It's a very simple and a very effective system. 3
References
3 http://home.howstuffworks.com/question576.htm
ONELINK is a system of home smoke alarms that talk to each other- and to you! You can connect up to 18 ONELINK alarms together- when one goes off- they all go off. The ONELINK smoke detectors use photoelectric sensors- that assist in decreasing ‘false’ alarms due to an overcooked dinner or steamy shower! But if you DO have a false alarm, the units are easily silenced by pointing a regular household remote control at them and pushing any button!
What is the difference between the ‘regular’ ONELINK alarm and the ‘Talking’ ONELINK alarm?
With the standard ONELINK system, all alarms are activated when one goes off. With the talking ONELINK system, when the initial alarm sounds, the other alarms go off with a voice command stating to Evacuate, and where the hazard is located. So if the smoke alarm goes off in the middle of the night in the kitchen, the alarm in your bedrooms will sound ‘Evacuate, Smoke in Kitchen’- alerting all family members where the danger is. First Alert offers the talking alarm for both smoke and carbon monoxide detection.
How many ONELINK units can I connect?
You can connect up to 18 ONELINK smoke and carbon monoxide alarm units to fully protect your home.
Is it easy to install and program ONELINK products?
Yes- all ONELINK products are wireless, and easy to install. All products come with complete instructions- as well as a DVD. To watch a video on how to program your ONELINK system, click here. To watch a video on how to install your ONELINK products, click here.
Are all the ONELINK products wireless?
All ONELINK products come wireless, but we understand that you may be renovating or building a new home, and will be able to easily hardwire your ONELINK products into your homes electrical system. For that reason, we do offer a Hardwired version of the ONELINK system. You can find the hardwired ONELINK smoke alarm here.
To view the ONELINK smoke detectors and combo packs click here.
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