Smoke Detector Contamination & Nuisance Alarms

A smoke detector by its very nature is designed to detect the presence of airborne contaminants.  These contaminants accumulate over time and make smoke detectors more sensitive to false alarms.

The cause of this contamination is not limited to point type smoke detectors (conventional/collective or addressable) but also affects projected beam smoke detectors and aspirating smoke detectors.

Most modern fire detection & alarm systems have the facility to monitor the current value (CV) of the a smoke detector as well as the long term accumulation of contamination, also known as the tracking value (TV).  Unfortunately every fire panel handles and displays this information differently, making the task of identifying detectors more complex.

To address this, Firewize has developed a methodology for most makes of fire panel in Australia that enables us to connect to a fire panel and extract the contamination level of each detector.  This information is then compiled and stored in a spreadsheet, a method most people can then use and manipulate for their own analysis.

We also offer a subscription service that enables building owners to get a daily update on the contamination levels for the detectors in their buildings and take immediate action to replace a dirty smoke detector before the dreaded false alarm.