8. LIMITATIONS OF HEAT ALARMS
WARNING: PLEASE READ CAREFULLY AND THOROUGHLY
• HEAT ALARMS ARE NOT DESIGNED TO PROTECT LIFE SAFETY AGAINST
FIRE AND SMOKE. IN MOST FIRES, HAZARDOUS LEVELS OF TOXIC
GASES, SMOKE AND HEAT CAN BUILD UP BEFORE A HEAT ALARM WILL
OPERATE. IN CASES WHERE LIFE SAFETY IS AN ISSUE, HEAT ALARMS
SHOULD ONLY BE USED TO PROVIDE AN ADDED SOURCE OF INFORMA-
TION AND AS A SUPPLEMENT TO THE SMOKE ALARM INSTALLATION.
HEAT ALARMS DO NOT ALWAYS DETECT FIRES, THE FIRE MAY BE A
SLOW SMOLDERING (SMOKE PRODUCING) LOW HEAT PRODUCING
TYPE, THE FIRE MAY BE IN A DIFFERENT ROOM THAN THE ALARM, OR
THE HEAT FROM THE FIRE MAY BYPASS THE ALARM. THIS ALARM WILL
NOT DETECT SMOKE, GASES OR FLAMES.
• HOME FIRES DEVELOP IN DIFFERENT WAYS AND ARE OFTEN UNPREDICTABLE.
NO ONE TYPE OF ALARM (HEAT, PHOTOELECTRIC OR IONIZATION) IS
ALWAYS BEST, AND A GIVEN ALARM MAY NOT ALWAYS PROVIDE WARNING
OF A FIRE. ALSO ALARMS DO HAVE LIMITATIONS. FOR A BATTERY POWERED
ALARM THE BATTERY MUST BE OF THE SPECIFIED TYPE, IN GOOD CONDI-
TION AND INSTALLED PROPERLY. AC POWERED ALARMS WILL NOT OPERATE
IF AC POWER HAS BEEN CUT OFF SUCH AS BY AN ELECTRICAL FIRE OR AN
OPEN FUSE. ALARMS MUST BE TESTED REGULARLY TO MAKE SURE THE BAT-
TERIES AND THE ALARM CIRCUITS ARE IN GOOD OPERATING CONDITION.
• HEAT ALARMS CANNOT PROVIDE AN ALARM IF HEAT DOES NOT REACH THE
ALARM. THEREFORE, HEAT ALARMS MAY NOT SENSE FIRES STARTING IN
CHIMNEYS, WALLS, ON ROOFS, ON THE OTHER SIDE OF A CLOSED DOOR OR
ON A DIFFERENT FLOOR. IF THE ALARM IS LOCATED OUTSIDE THE BEDROOM
OR ON A DIFFERENT FLOOR, IT MAY NOT WAKE UP A SOUND SLEEPER. THE
USE OF ALCOHOL OR DRUGS MAY ALSO IMPAIR ONES ABILITY TO HEAR THE
ALARM. FOR MAXIMUM PROTECTION HEAT ALARMS SHOULD ONLY BE USED
AS A SUPPLEMENT TO SMOKE ALARMS. SMOKE ALARMS SHOULD BE
INSTALLED IN EACH SLEEPING AREA ON EVERY LEVEL OF A HOME AND BE
INTERCONNECTE WITH EACH OTHER AND THE HEAT ALARMS.
• ALTHOUGH HEAT ALARMS WHEN COMBINED WITH SMOKE ALARMS, CAN
HELP SAVE LIVES BY PROVIDING AN EARLY WARNING OF A FIRE, THEY ARE
NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR AN INSURANCE POLICY. HOME OWNERS AND
RENTERS SHOULD HAVE ADEQUATE INSURANCE TO PROTECT THEIR LIVES
AND PROPERTY.
