Fire Alarms - A Closer Look at Smoke and Manual Alarms

To most employers, fire protection and safety is allmeans a pause in production as well.
about extinguishers, megaphones and exit signs thatThe second are the ionization alarms that display
help fight flames and assist everybody duringproperties of feeling the smoke by detecting the
evacuation respectively. But beyond those, you as anpresence of minute particles often associated with
employer should also provide further protection tofires. This means that even if the material burning
your staff by investing in a good fire alarm systemgives off little to no smoke at all, they can still get
that will alert everybody once an actual emergencyset off when needed. Because of this feature, they
arrives.are not recommended in an industrial kitchen setting
Now, when people talk about fire alarms in general,as they may give out false alarms more often than
they often end up thinking that these are smokeyou want them to.
detectors that produce high pitched sounds when2. Apart from the very famous smoke alarms that
they are set off. But what they do not know is thatare usually automatic, some buildings still have the
there are actually several types of alarms available inmanual mechanisms.
the market.If you are not that familiar with them, those are the
What exactly are those?alarms that are activated with a push of a button or
1. Well, let us start off with those varieties that youpull of a lever. Unlike smoke alarms which are
are more familiar with, the smoke alarms.commonly installed in the ceiling or the upper part of
As implied, these devices are made to detect thewalls, these are usually put where they can easily be
presence of smoke in a room where it is installed.reached by anybody in case of fire.
Usually they can be set to tolerate a certain level ofWhile these alarms can be pretty inexpensive, they
smoke, but when it goes beyond the "tolerable" level,are not the popular choice because they are not only
it gives of a sound enough to warn everybody aboutoutdated, but they can be pretty ineffective as well.
the impending danger.How so?
A regular smoke alarm has its variations too. The firstWell mainly because before these alarms can get
are the photoelectric alarms which detect the visibilitytriggered a person would have to notice the fire first.
of smoke. This feature makes them particularly idealAnd usually this happens when the fire is already too
in workplaces where there are a lot of highlybig to control.
combustible materials that give off a lot of smokeSo those are your main choices for an alarm to install
while they are burning.in your building. If you do not know which to choose,
There is a downside though. These alarms requirejust consider which alarm is right for the type of
professional installation and regular maintenance too.your business and which will provide more protection
If they get too dirty, they may get set offto your staff. As long as you have those things in
accidentally by insects like flies or mosquitoes. And tomind, you are good to go.
an employer, false alarms are costly because that