My four legged smoke detector

[tripledog]

The other morning, I woke to my youngest dog barking. I can usually yell for her to shut up, and she will. After about the 3rd time I yelled at her, I finally got out of bed to see what all the commotion was about. Seems that I forgot to load the woodstove that night, and the house was about now 40 degrees. I still had a good bed of coals, so I put in some kindling and loaded the stove. I brought the house back up to temperature (typically 75-90 degrees, and yes, that IS with the stove dampered down completely), and went back to bed. About a half an hour later, the puppy started barking again. Another check to see what was wrong, and I smelled, but couldn't see, smoke so strong that it was burning my eyes. I usually use well seasoned wood, but this time I loaded it with wood fuel bricks that burn hotter than hell. I clean the chimney a minimum of once every two weeks, so this was perplexing. After multiple trips outside, I noticed smoke coming out of the front of the chimney, about 12 feet from the top. I hadn't noticed, but the block chimney had buckled and cracked, and apparently also cracked the clay liner tiles. I went back inside, and saw wisps of smoke blowing into the house, right at the thru-wall thimble. I don't think it was a chimney fire, rather the strong southwest wind blowing smoke through the cracked chimney. I should have called the fire department, but they trashed my brother's house and car so bad (and there wasn't even a fire involved), that I did not. It was a nervous 6 hours, as I couldn't shovel the contents out and bring them outside due the strong winds that would have blown them back into the house, thus creating a massive fire. I closed the stove door, and left the upper damper open, and both air intakes closed. The stove finally burned out. Now I have two industrial heaters that a friend brought up and temporarily wired into the breaker box, two space heaters that I borrowed from other friends, a ceramic plate heater, and a mica panel heater trying to heat the house. All the heaters are electric, so my electric company is goin to LOVE me at the end of the month (anyone have any KY jelly, preferably unused, that I can borrow?).
My bad for not replacing my smoke dector within the last 3 years, and it very nearly cost me my house and quite possibly my life. If it wasn't for my little ankle biter, I probably wouldn't be here. I will be buying a new smoke detector ASAP, as well as some very special treats for the puppy. The house is about 50 degrees now, and I am shivering, but since I still have my dogs, my life, and my house, it is a great problem to have! I love all of my dogs, and the puppy has definitely earned her keep. It will be chilly for a few days until I can install my new triplewall chimney, but I am very thankful that my puppy alerted me. You gotta love dogs!!!

[badass350x]

Your very lucky, glad all is well Thank god for best friends!

[atc007]

Weren't we talking about dealing some triple wall a few years ago? Damn glad the pup did it's job! Scary crap. My Nephew is here today because of a pet bird. His shop was downstairs in his basement,and he escaped with the singed clothes on his back,and that bird. Lost EVERYTHING,home,cars,trucks hundreds of thousands of inventory etc. That was 07,They live a very happy life now in a new home. life does go on. You'll sleep like a baby with that new triple wall up. And double check ALL your "temporary heating" That gets a lot of people in trouble right there.

[Ghostv2]

Glad everything turned out ok, maybe you should check out them outdoor wood stoves in the future. They are kinda popular here. Wouldnt ever have to worry about smoke or fire.

[tripledog]

Your very lucky, glad all is well Thank god for best friends!

Thank you, and yes, best friends truly are a blessing! One of the kind members of this site said that I had good karma headed my way, and this incident proves it. I am very thankful for the outcome, as it could have been much, much worse.

[tripledog]

Glad everything turned out ok, maybe you should check out them outdoor wood stoves in the future. They are kinda popular here. Wouldnt ever have to worry about smoke or fire.

I have one that I bought about 5 years ago, but never installed. I never had enough cash to buy the insulated pex pipe, circulator pumps, and concrete for the pad. This puts things in a whole new light. The boiler will be installed before next winter, regardless of cost. I am sure it will be cheaper than buying a new house.

[czac]

Dogs Rule!

[atc007]

Thank you, and yes, best friends truly are a blessing! One of the kind members of this site said that I had good karma headed my way, and this incident proves it. I am very thankful for the outcome, as it could have been much, much worse.

And it came right back at ya today. Glad you now know to listen to animals!!!!!! My friends and family could never understand HOW I could be outside,the back of the barn,120 foot long barn. And KNOW when someone stepped foot in the other end. The cows told me. Simple as that. Best one was when my Son and fiancé moved in downstairs. Rule was,dog lives outside. It was summer. I went in my garage door,the dog raced in,ran into the finished game room and looked at me like he built the place! I went and got my kids,and said to them, NO MORE dog in the basement. He said how did you know!? I said he told me.

[kb0nly]

I have two dogs here, and i generally know something is up before it even becomes obvious to the human occupants... They don't generally bark unless they got a reason to. Be it a car door closing, an odd smell or noise, etc. I had one alert me to a wall adapter that was dying and getting hot, she kept going over by that outlet and barking at me. I checked a few times why she was sitting there, didnt smell nothing, didnt hear nothing, but just as she was about to bark the second time a little wisp of smoke started coming out the top of the wall adapter. I guess she smelled something getting hot that i couldnt detect. Went over to grab it and unplug it, it was so hot it left three little marks on my hand.

Smoke alarms are great, and by all means important devices, but they don't alert until the problem is already bad enough that the smoke reached it, by then a whole wall could be in flames! I use AC line powered smoke detectors with a battery that it will switch to if the AC power fails. No worry about a dead battery but i still change them every fall. Only bad thing is the manufacturer says replace them every five years, so every five years i take the hit of replacing five detectors, but its cheap insurance and the insurance companies like to see the correct stuff in place. Most even give a discount now days if they do an inspection and you have detectors and extinguishers all properly placed and in date, etc.

[Vealmonkey]

I'm glad you're all OK. Let's just say, FIRE right now is a 4 letter word that really sets my nerves on edge. I can't say enough that I'm glad you're ok. Better the electric company loving you than your doctor. Be safe.

[atc007]

I wasn't even gonna post this yesterday,but after KB's post I will. We are a registered foster home. 14 years now. We would and have,done it for free. We take these kids in,treat them as if they were born here. They have access to anything and everything we do as a family. Zero restrictions. It is the toughest SOB of a job,but also can be extremely rewarding with the success stories. By that ,I mean happy adults,some nurses,some foundary workers,but HAPPY,NOT in jail. 93% of prison population is former foster youth, Little tidbit of fact for ya. Anyhow! We switched agencies last fall. They come in and examine EVERY square inch of our home. The lady doing the 2 day exam. SAW ac powered w battery backup smoke alarms. Did NOT test them. As a matter of fact,earlier in the fall,she was here,and we had one chirping downstairs wanting a new battery,,,actually,it was the CO2 detector. Anyhow,she completely blew it,checked her list we were good to go for smoke. Last time I had checked them,they pierced my ears.. Well, I tried a sliced potato/olive oil baked potato deal in the oven the other night,and lets just say. I used too much oil. I had a lot of smoke. Nothing,none of the alarms went off. I went over to the 1st one,light was on,,tested it,,,just a VERY sick hummm. New battery,same. 2nd one , same thing. I am off to buy alarms today. My newer ones downstairs are G2G,but I didn't sleep very well last night after Pat and Dans deals lately. I know they have heat sensors now too. I'm researching what ones to buy as we speak. Glad all you guys are still around to post.

[DohcBikes]

I rarely use this word tripledog, but I must say, that is the CUTEST smoke detector I have ever seen!! What a little blessing he is!!

Always trust your animals, just like Bill said, they smell and here things we would never see or hear.

When I I was about 8 I had a chocolate lab puppy that save our entire farmhouse from a fire that I started with fireworks. I won't get into details but she kept trying to take me around the house to see it and I just kept telling her to be quiet. She finally talked me into going around the corner to see a 10 foot flame rising up the wall where I was throwing fire crackers, which is not legal in Nebraska in September, under the house. I was the only one home at the time. I called 911, which at the time was my grandma lol, and she called actual 911. The fire dept. barely showed up in time to save the house, but the sheriff wasn't too happy with my out of season festivities. I can clearly remember my response to his question of why. "We live in the country, its legal all the time out here" lol.

Glad to hear you have an outside heater going in soon!!

In the words of Scrappy Doo..... PUPPY POWER!!

[tri again]

Smoke alarms suck.
I've had 3 chirp in the last week.
New batteries are 4 bucks each...ok, test button, SKAReeeCH!!!!

Blew smoke into them and NOTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So those go outside by the woodpile, or bbq and got some new ones.
The 10 year pos aren't cheap..30 bucks?
I LOVE the old, illegal ones, 3 or 4 bucks with a battery and they f*&*^%in' work correctly.

Oh, I also heat with wood.
Usually takes me 1/2 cord to learn the burn characteristics or each batch.
so aanyway.................
I have a state mandated CO2 alarm.
I have filled this place with smoke 2 feet off the floor, oh, say 10-15 times since I've had the co2 alarm and it has NEVER ONCE chirped, except last week, jumped on the bandwagon with the smoke alarms and chirped battery dead signal...double a's but how do we test them?

Test buttons mean NOthing to me.
Gotta hit 'em with smoke IMO

PS _ animals are freakin' psychic.
Sensitive enough to pick out cancer cells in a mix of doggie treats
and grab you shirtsleeve moments beFORE one has a seizure.

[kb0nly]

I wasn't even gonna post this yesterday,but after KB's post I will. We are a registered foster home. 14 years now. We would and have,done it for free. We take these kids in,treat them as if they were born here. They have access to anything and everything we do as a family. Zero restrictions. It is the toughest SOB of a job,but also can be extremely rewarding with the success stories. By that ,I mean happy adults,some nurses,some foundary workers,but HAPPY,NOT in jail. 93% of prison population is former foster youth, Little tidbit of fact for ya. Anyhow! We switched agencies last fall. They come in and examine EVERY square inch of our home. The lady doing the 2 day exam. SAW ac powered w battery backup smoke alarms. Did NOT test them. As a matter of fact,earlier in the fall,she was here,and we had one chirping downstairs wanting a new battery,,,actually,it was the CO2 detector. Anyhow,she completely blew it,checked her list we were good to go for smoke. Last time I had checked them,they pierced my ears.. Well, I tried a sliced potato/olive oil baked potato deal in the oven the other night,and lets just say. I used too much oil. I had a lot of smoke. Nothing,none of the alarms went off. I went over to the 1st one,light was on,,tested it,,,just a VERY sick hummm. New battery,same. 2nd one , same thing. I am off to buy alarms today. My newer ones downstairs are G2G,but I didn't sleep very well last night after Pat and Dans deals lately. I know they have heat sensors now too. I'm researching what ones to buy as we speak. Glad all you guys are still around to post.

The best ones to buy now are the dual sensor, Smoke alarms that use ionization technology are great at detecting a fast, flaming fire such as burning paper, but poor at detecting a smoldering fire, as in a couch or mattress. The opposite is true of photoelectric smoke alarms. That's why you need both types of alarm in your home. Or a dual sensor model, which embeds the two technologies in a single alarm. They even make tri sensor models, dual smoke sensors and CO2 as well.

Now here is one tidbit... They say you should replace them every 5 years, some even say 3 years on the package, but the 10 year ones are the worst investment, they usually fail before the 10 year mark anyway. I buy 5 year units, dual sensor AC powered with battery backup, around $25 each but they work good. But my friends, if your a Smoker... All bets are off!!!

The reason being is that most smoke alarms won't go off for the basic whisp of cigarette smoke or second hand exhaled smoke, but the problem is the cigarette smoke leaves residues of tar on the sensors, which keeps them from working at the correct sensitivity. This is also true if you have a small grease fire in your kitchen, after such an event if you set off the alarm or filled the room with smoke at least it needs to be replaced because there will be oily smoke residue in the sensors.

I quit smoking about 13 years ago now... Looking at the date on the calendar its hard to believe. But one thing we found out was after we quit and scrubbed the house down head to toe that the smoke detectors no longer went off if we created a little too much smoke in the kitchen. Even a lit piece of paper below them wouldnt set them off. I researched it and found that cigarette smoke was to blame.

[tri again]

KB, I only clicked dislike too because it should be right on the front of the box
as a warning. Some lawyers told them what not to say apparently.

Didja ever paint a house that had smokers in it?

Looks great until you come back the next day and brown oil horror movie tar is escaping out from under the new paint likesomeone sprayed the wall with a spatter gun of gunk.

As I understand, the ionizer ones have some radioactive gap that triggers when smoke interferes so intheory, cooking residue etc should make them more sensitive, but I digress.

I really like them everywhere, even outside and a case of the cheap ones never let me down.
But I WILL get some of those new fancy ones you describe.

and wtf is the deal on why the state mandated co2 sensor has never gone off with multiple episodes of house FULL o' smoke?

s.n. - I have a smoke alarm right outside my front door too, one of those old types.
When people go outside to smoke, it ALways goes off if they're anywhere near it.

Fire inspectors love to see them outside too when mere mortals typically laugh a little when they see them.
rant over

[aldochina]

My house has a security system installed, that we dont pay for the service, was there when we bought the place. The system is still on, we just dont arm it, and it wont call out to anyone. We live life like it is not there. The other night my wife put wax paper in the oven instead of parchment(not the first time), and it smoked the joint out. the house alarm went off and scared the day lights out of us all!! Couldnt believe how loud! Plus it was going off on the outside of the house! Of course it took me 10 mins to rifle through some paperwork and find out how to silence it!! lol, the few neibors we do have were calling to make sure everything was OK! I sleep better at night now with my wood stove!!
I have seen fire rip through peoples lives before! Brutal event for sure! Just last week a local landmark family restaurant burned to the ground. The wife and I ate there the night she went into labor for my first! I am so sorry for those who have dealt with this on a very personal level. Glad your situation turned out OK! That pup is adorable, what is she/he, mix? My wife wants a yorki or somthing tiny, but after the last few days she isnt in as much a rush :(

[tripledog]

I'm glad you're all OK. Let's just say, FIRE right now is a 4 letter word that really sets my nerves on edge. I can't say enough that I'm glad you're ok. Better the electric company loving you than your doctor. Be safe.

Thank you so much for your concern, Vealmonkey. You are speaking from experience, an experience that I wouldn't wish on anyone. I hope things are getting back to normal for you, and so sorry for your loss. You are ALL an awesome bunch of guys on this site!

Aldochina, the pup's father is a Chiahuahua, the mother is a Shi-tzu, so the puppy is a Chew-sh1t, and believe me, she does a lot of that!