I just returned from LA where I visited some relatives over Thanksgiving weekend. Good trip, great food and awesome weather. Some retired relatives have lived in their house for over 30 years. They’ve updated some items inside the house but other parts of the house have original details. One part of the house, they have unwittingly ignored is their smoke alarms. They do not work, and the smoke alarms are probably 10-20 years old – none of them have working batteries and it’s not certain the detectors even work at all. When asked why they don’t replace the batteries or detectors, they indicated that the ceilings are too high or that they simply forgot to do so. I spent the next 10 minutes lecturing them on the importance of smoke detectors/alarms and how dangerous it is to live without them.
In selling real estate, one of the California state laws require that “every single-family dwelling and factory built housing unit sold on or after 1/186 must have an operable smoke detector, approved and listed by the State Fire Marshal, installed in accordance w/the State Fire Marshal’s regulations….” In fact, some local cities impose even more stringent smoke detector requirements. When I recently completed a bathroom remodel to my own house, the city inspector checked my house for working fire alarms and even instructed me to add a smoke detector to a part of the house before he issued the final approval. I was happy to comply.
As part of closing a real estate transaction, one of the disclosure documents that must be signed is a Certification of Compliance with Water Heater, Smoke Detector and Carbon Monoxide Device Requirement. Simplistically, the Seller/Owner signs the certification that they/the house is compliance prior to close of escrow. On the deals that I close as either the listing or buying agent, one of the real estate agents on the transaction ends up providing a working smoke detector on behalf of their client literally the day before close of escrow. Obviously, this is not the ideal scenario because it means the owner had been living on the property without proper working detectors previously.
Nowadays, it’s not just smoke detectors but also carbon monoxide devices. There are many brands that sell single units that detect both smoke and carbon monoxide.
The “chirping” of low battery life is annoying. Over the years, I’ve had to wake up in the middle of the night to dismantle the battery to stop and then procrastinate for weeks before replacing the batteries. I can only imagine the extra hassle it would be for an elderly person to carry a stepladder up the stairs and then have to replace batteries. Low and behold, they now make detectors that come with a 10-year battery life – hooray!
Smoke/carbon monoxide detectors are relatively inexpensive these days. You can see the link below from Homedepot.com that a combination smoke/CO2 detector with a 10-year battery life only costs $40. This investment now lasts for an expected 10 years and replacing the units is very easy. Below is a link for an example of one such unit.
My relatives who I had to lecture were probably annoyed at me for the tone I took, but I am completely comfortable with having done so. It’s a safety issue, and I lecture only because I care and am concerned about their welfare. The only redeeming outcome of the exchange is that I now know what present to get them for the holidays. I will probably purchase nine new units and install if for them throughout the house. No, it’s not a fun gift, but one of necessity to all households alike. I don’t believe they read this blog so hopefully it’ll still be a surprise gift!
Have a fun, safe holiday season!
Tao SF Peninsula Real Estate 