FlyingFinn Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 In our bathroom there is a ceiling mounted smoke alarm. Now it seems that when ever the air in that room gets very humid from running the shower the darn smoke alarm goes off. Long hot shower is pretty much guaranteed to trip it every time. Admittedly the screaming alarm will make sure I wake up no matter how sleepy I’m in the morning but it wakes up the neighbors too… Any of you guys know, do all smoke alarms react on high humidity or is this just a faulty unit and/or bad design? -- Mikko Link to comment
Joe Frickin' Friday Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 Both ionization and photoelectric detectors are effective smoke sensors. Both types of smoke detectors must pass the same test to be certified as UL smoke detectors. Ionization detectors respond more quickly to flaming fires with smaller combustion particles; photoelectric detectors respond more quickly to smoldering fires. In either type of detector, steam or high humidity can lead to condensation on the circuit board and sensor, causing the alarm to sound. ... Make sure the alarm is located in the proper position and hooked up correctly. If the alarm is mounted in the wrong position, it can trigger the sensors when there is no sign of smoke. Smoke alarms should be at least 20 feet from ovens and furnaces, and at least 10 feet from high-humidity areas like bathroom. ... The specs for a number of smoke alarms say that high humidity (up to 95% relative) is OK, but of course as soon as you develop condensation inside the detector, all bets are off. And unfortunately, this is what you get in a bathroom: warm moist air hits cool surfaces (like components inside the smoke alarm) and condenses. It'd be fine if the detector were in a damp basement, but the heat from the shower pretty much assures you're going to get problematic condensation. If the bathroom ventilation fan is not enough to keep the humidity/condensation under control, your best bet is relocating the alarm to somewhere other than the bathroom. Link to comment
azkaisr Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 Okay, I think we need to ban any Mensa level emails on humidity and smoke detectors on Monday. My head almost exploding that. This aint NAY SA. Link to comment
mrduck Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 Hey, I gotta ask, whats the chances of something burning in your shower? I mean, not to get personal, but whatcha doin' in there????? Link to comment
WURTY Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 Is your wife in there with you ? Link to comment
Fugu Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 Hey, I gotta ask, whats the chances of something burning in your shower? Bathroom wall heater. Link to comment
Firefight911 Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 Hey, I gotta ask, whats the chances of something burning in your shower? Bathroom wall heater. Curling iron, blow drier, etc. Just ask my wife the next time she leaves the flat iron on and she can, verbatim, tell you the risks with bathroom fires!! Link to comment
FlyingFinn Posted August 5, 2008 Author Share Posted August 5, 2008 Is your wife in there with you ? Easy there big fella, same goes for you Ducky... It's just the humidity from running the shower. Really! On a serious note, the photoelectric detectors are supposed to less suseptible to humidity so I'll get one of those this weekend and put it to the test. -- Mikko Link to comment
FlyingFinn Posted August 5, 2008 Author Share Posted August 5, 2008 I would just move....again I AM getting pretty good at it.... Link to comment
FrankT Posted August 6, 2008 Share Posted August 6, 2008 Relocate the freakin thing to the hallway outside your bathroom. Link to comment
ghaverkamp Posted August 6, 2008 Share Posted August 6, 2008 Relocate the freakin thing to the hallway outside your bathroom. Sure, and then he leaves home and mistakenly leaves the toilet on, and the next thing you know, he's lost his house. Link to comment
rocks Posted August 6, 2008 Share Posted August 6, 2008 Relocate the freakin thing to the hallway outside your bathroom. Sure, and then he leaves home and mistakenly leaves the toilet on, and the next thing you know, he's lost his house. You're the lawyer... can you prove it? Would he have a tort case? Link to comment
Shaman97 Posted August 6, 2008 Share Posted August 6, 2008 The specs for a number of smoke alarms say that high humidity (up to 95% relative) is OK But that 95% has to be non-condensing. We were always trained that ionization detectors would detect products of combustion at an earlier 'incipient' stage. Ionization detectors have a little bit of radioactive material (Americium) housed inside a chamber. A small electrical current is applied to one side of the chamber - it's relying on the Americium particles to 'jump' from particle to particle to get to the other side of the chamber. If some foreign particles (smoke, steam, dust) get into the chamber, the ionization effect of the electrical current is reduced, and you get an alarm. High winds can also cause the detector to go into alarm. Age will also cause the Americium to decay, making the detector to go into false alarm more often as it ages. Photoelectric detectors are either looking to refract light or block light within a different style chamber to produce an alarm. One type is looking for lighter smoke, the other for darker smoke (petrolium based). So it would depend on the more likely type of smoke that would be produced to determine the type of detector you would place in any given area. Years ago (20 or so) ionization were the more prevalent. Now it appears that photoelectric detectors are. Link to comment
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