Why you need two types of smoke alarms
The James City County Fire Department suggests for the best fire protection citizens should install both photoelectric and ionization alarms.
- Ionization: The most common type of smoke alarm. It is cheaper and better at detecting the smaller amounts of smoke in a fast flaming fire.
- Photoelectric: Less common, it uses a light source and light chamber to detect the smoke from a fire. It is better at sensing smoky fires.
For more information about how these types of smoke alarms work, click here: http://home.howstuffworks.com/smoke.htm
There are studies to support having both types of smoke alarms. Click on the USFA Fire in the USA report, 1985-1994; page 76 reports fire fatalities in 19% of homes with working smoke alarms. A 2006 NIST report suggests that while further study is needed the escape time has decreased dramatically.
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