Do You?

I received an email today from a bloggy friend. I do not know this person but it troubled me so much that I knew I had to write about it today.
Actually this post is a long time coming, her letter just spurred it to the forefront. Her letter involved concern for someone she deeply loves who does not have any working smoke alarms in her home.

So here are my thoughts…..it is utterly ridiculous in 2010 to live in a home, apartment, room, condo, shelter, cave, duplex, shed, shanty, houseboat or shack without a working smoke alarm. Anyone who entertains the notion that “it can’t happen to them” – H-E-L-L-O!!!


It most certainly can happen to you and to think otherwise is nuts. We are living proof that it can happen to anyone. If you had asked me 2 years ago, “Do you think your home will burn down?” I would have said, “Ummm, no!”

Let me just set the record straight: It is not a matter of faith or trust to NOT have a smoke alarm. It is a matter of plain ol’ stupidity. If it’s a matter of faith or trust, then sleep in the middle of a super highway.
And for the record, not one of my family would say there was anything “fun” about the fire or the aftermath. It has been a nightmare in many ways. God has been gracious and completely faithful, no doubt. But the idea that a fire “is no big deal” is insane. There was nothing so terrifying in my 51 years as seeing the little log home that I absolutely loved and felt safe in, in flames. The wood burning right before my eyes, the six kids we had living at home at the time sleeping, knowing I was racing against the clock…..oh my gracious! My kids would agree.
Yes, I am passionate about this and I beg you to head to the store tonight and buy a smoke alarm or batteries if you are in need of either. I recommend, since our fire, different brands of smoke alarms. During our fire, our THREE battery operated smoke alarms never even beeped once. Only one alarm beeped. Just one. The one that had been fixed less than 24 hours before.
If someone you love does not have a smoke alarm or batteries then I urge you to go buy them one and deliver it. Install it for them. At least take it out of the box, install the battery and put it in a high place in their home. Please, for me.

On my birthday this past year Dw took me to lunch at one of my favorite local restaurants. The owners are people that we occasionally visit with when we eat at their restaurant. They knew we had had a house fire and were asking us about it. In the midst of talking they brought up “we really should get some batteries for our smoke alarms.” WHAT?? I almost jumped out of my seat! “YOU DON’T HAVE SMOKE ALARMS OPERATING IN YOUR HOME?” “No, we keep forgetting to stop and get some batteries – and believe it or not we heat with wood!” I am sure my eyes were popping out of my head. These people are great people who own a nice restaurant. They appear to be bright. But what the heck?? I mean, REALLY, What in the world are they thinkin’?

I would love to believe that an almost bearable bi-product of our home burning down is that people we have contact with have become conscientious about getting smoke alarms and diligent about checking their batteries. That would make it almost worthwhile – to think that our fire saved some lives sometime, somewhere, someday.

If money is an issue, local fire departments give smoke alarms away for free (ours will even install it for you). If yours doesn’t give them away for free, email me and I will send you one. If you can’t afford a battery, email me and I will send you one of those! There is no excuse.

Before our fire I had a pile of smoke alarms that I gave away whenever I heard of someone who didn’t have one, or to our kids friends who have basement rooms but the smoke alarm is upstairs. Whatever the situation, I gave away whenever I heard of a need. I have been known to drive to people’s home late at night to deliver a smoke alarm. It is that important and there is absolutely no excuse for anyone not to have several working smoke alarms in their home. I have two smoke alarms in the kitchen waiting for “new homes”. Could they be going to yours??

So here’s two questions:

Do you have working smoke alarms in your home?
Have you checked yours lately??Please do it! And then let me know you did, k?

62 thoughts on “Do You?

  1. Yes, my apartment has virtually one in every room, and they work. Except maybe one. This post was just a reminder to me that I need to call the leasing office and have them check it. I remember every day to call….after hours 🙁

  2. I have checked ours recently (because of you Linny!), but for some reason I just get a little fearful about them. I don't trust them! Maybe it's because we've lived here for a year, and despite massive smoke billowing from my oven a couple times (ahem, not from my cooking), they have never once gone off. I lie awake at night sniffing the air or wandering into the hall to see if I can glance a red glow anywhere, because I don't trust those little pieces of plastic. And believe me, my landlord is cheap with everything that she has put in this house- so I don't doubt for a second that ours are probably the bottom of the line.

    You have kicked me in the butt! 😉 I have been meaning to, for weeks now, stop at the store and get fresh batteries for all of them, as well as a couple new ones. Thank you for reminding me!

  3. As I read this I made my dad check the fire alarms in our house (One up stairs and one down stairs outside my basement room). Our alarms have maybe been checked twice sence moving here..once after your house burned down and just now. Thanks for the reminders!

    Blessings from Canada!
    Anna

  4. We DO have working alarms! My oven tests them each night when I burn food! We have fire extinguishers too!

    I agree…fire departments give them away… I can get some to send out too, if people need them!

    FWIW, here, you get fined if you'd have any size of house fire and they find the batteries out of your smoke alarm!

    Let me know if you need more!

  5. ok linny, talked to my hubby about replaced the broken one in the kitchen and i just checked (and replaced) batteries in 2 of the bedrooms upstairs. we will be buying more alarms tomorrow… thank you for this "gentle" nudging 😉

  6. It had been a couple of months, but since I started reading your blog, I checked our smoke detector. I was surprised to find it was electric, and not battery. It was working fine, but the fact that we lose power from time to time (and then use the wood stove) worried me.

    I found a couple of battery powered ones at a discount store (they are the First Alert brand, I hope they are good!) and put batteries in them and put them in our bedroom and my daughter's bedroom. I still want one more for the boys' room and a battery one for the living room, but we are getting there.

    I do have to say, if it were not for your blog, I probably would not have checked the one we have or been inspired to put up the others. Thank you!

  7. You will be happy to know we have one in the basement, one in the first floor and a carbon monoxide detector and two in the second floor (one in nursery) and one in the attic! :0)

  8. Confession: my kids were so worried after you fire! What if you hadn't got their lovely friends out? What if the smoke alarm hadn't sounded? What if they had been spending the night?

    We reassured them that God would have cared for them, too! Miss Linn would have gotten them to safety too.

    But no one slept well until we put new smoke alarms in the house! And CO2 detectors as well!

    We believe in fire alarms!

    I am so sorry you have had to walk this burned, crooked, winding path the past year. My heart breaks for you and I pray for restoration in every area of your heart and mind!

    You are loved, Girlfriend!

  9. Confession: my kids were so worried after you fire! What if you hadn't got their lovely friends out? What if the smoke alarm hadn't sounded? What if they had been spending the night?

    We reassured them that God would have cared for them, too! Miss Linn would have gotten them to safety too.

    But no one slept well until we put new smoke alarms in the house! And CO2 detectors as well!

    We believe in fire alarms!

    I am so sorry you have had to walk this burned, crooked, winding path the past year. My heart breaks for you and I pray for restoration in every area of your heart and mind!

    You are loved, Girlfriend!

  10. Linny, I was thinking of you this weekend as my dear husband replaced all of our smoke alarms (7 of them) that are wired into our house. We have lived in this house for 13 years and it was time to replace them. We bought 5 of one type and brand and 2 of another type and brand – there seem to be two different types these days – one better for quick burning and the other for smoldering type fires. Anyway, several of our detectors had died in the past year, leaving us with 5 working detectors but it still bothered me. We also replaced our CO2 alarm.

    So there ya go. Checked off the list at our house and you were thought of as it was done!

    Thanks!!

  11. Mom~ :0)

    All of our smoke detectors are hard wired and battery operated, when one goes off, they all do. We test them when I cook. Naturally, with my cooking, we also have a fire extinguisher. Praise the Lord, we have not had to use it…close once though. Just wanted to let ya know. All is good here. :0)

    I gotta put a plug in for carbon monoxide detectors as well. When the kids were small, we had an old Jeep wrangler…LOVED it. My husband started it, let it warm up for about 8-10 minutes, garage door open, tail pipe pointing out, and the house door shut. About 20 minutes or so after he left for work, our carbon monoxide detector near the furnace downstairs was beeping wildly. My brother is an hvac guy, so I called him right way. He told me to get the baby and waddle myself out of the house (was VERY prego at the time) until he got there. The house was full of it carbon monoxide. We let it air out, and went back in later when the levels were safe. It was determined that it was the Jeep for which I am grateful it was nothing more major. I've always remembered that though.

  12. we have 2 on each level..one set is wired to the house electrical and one set is wired to the alarm company. we know they all work everytime we burn toast! the one downstairs (which is a smoke alarm and a CM alarm)even talks so if you wake up dazed you know what the noise is!!

    OH and carbon monoxide alarms are JUST AS IMPORTANT!! we sold our old house in a week and had to be out 2 weeks later(our new house hadn't been started yet) so we had to move into my grandma's basement, we put everything in storage but somehow our CM detector came with us…we plugged it in downstairs and one night we woke up to it BLARING …if our house wouldn't have sold, and we wouldn't have moved in with grandma, she wouldn't be with us anymore! it's silent and deadly! needless to say, it stayed at her house when we moved into the new house!!

  13. I have working smoke detectors!! I had a dream about a fire in our home recently (first time I ever had that dream) and I immediately thought of you. I know that your real fire was a million times more frightening than my dream and my heart went out to you once again. -Charissa

  14. Wow, I cannot belive you were able to get you and the kids out safely. I cannot imagine the craziness a simple fire has brought to your lives.

    I was pretty lax about having fire alarms in my house but my sister went and got me one and made me see. Thanks for your post and reminder to keep them working.

  15. duuuuuude. that was a great post. when i tell your story (which i often do, b/c we have a flippin memorial box in our house, for heaven's sake!!!) i always tell the part about you sending smoke alarms with your kids when they slept at friend's houses. (i know i'm not making that up, right?) and still you had a housefire.

    i have 9 volt batteries. i have smoke alarms. AND we change out our batteries.
    period.

    and as for you visiting me and commenting and wanting to do a post it?? this would fit, sister.
    and you, mother of many, visiting lil ole me??

    well, shucks. i'm all flattered. and humbled. and the next time i'm in colorado, (made my first trip there this past summer) i'm gonna be on your doorstep. prepare the children (and mark). i'm a HUGGER.

  16. I DO. We have three. one is in the kitchen, and we cannot make toast without it going off. The one in the family room(where our wood heater is) went off yesterday. I actually called my hubby in tears. I had a roaring fire going in the stove, and I heard popping even up in the pipe! I smelled so much smoke that was unusual, that I pulled out the ladder and looked in the attic(worried there had been ignited insulation or something weird) It was all fine. I got the fire in the stove out, and opened a window and he was home in 2 minutes, but it was scary nonetheless. And made me remember how important those alarms are!

  17. No joke when I moved into my new little place I realized that there was no smoke detector so right away I asked for them to put one in asap! Now I have one and I sleep much better at night! 🙂 All because Mrs. Linn! 🙂

  18. Girl!!
    One we had to take out b/c it kept going off all the time…with NO smoke and the other I undid (is that a word) last week because it would beep intermittently every 10 minutes or so and wake me up…only did this at night time!! NO fire…no smoke, just me a nervous wreck every 10 minutes.
    It has been bugging me BECAUSE of you that we don't have any right now. I have NO clue how to install one..but my hubby returns from Iraq tomorrow…so it's going on the list!
    Thanks for the reminder.
    love,
    Holly

  19. We do have them, and we test the batteries when we move the clocks ahead or behind. Another thing I do, every single night, is make sure that there's a clear path to all exits, picking up shoes or toys that may have been left out.

    We also have a fire plan with a designated meeting place outside.

    We checked our relatives' houses and were surprised that one set of grandparents didn't have smoke detectors. We gave them some, saying that we couldn't stay there anymore unless they were installed. Since that meant not seeing their grandchildren, they were installed in no time! 🙂

    Thanks so much for writing about this crucial topic. Deep down, I still don't believe it will happen to me. I also know how foolish it is to feel that way!

  20. I've emailed you before, last year, about me being the only person in my house that cares and worries enough to have installed smoke alarms. (when I first moved in 6 years ago, there were none. My housemate had gone DECADES without one) Old farm house? No smoke alarms? It was the first thing on my to-do list, you bet!
    And of course, I'm sure to check them regularly (the dog hates me on those days) as I've always had a huge fear of house-fires. (maybe possible that in a past life I experienced one?)
    This is one of the things that first drew me to you, Linny! It's comforting to know that I'm not the only one so worried about this issue 🙂

  21. Can I add that a fire extinguisher should be on the list too? My son had an incident repairing a lawn mower.Think of a lawnmower turned on its side spilling its contents. Repairs completed, Lawnmower started up on a concrete floor sparking, igniting the fumes which jummped to the gas can that he had just used and left the little lid off of. A shed FULL of chemicals and flammables. He kicked the can out of the shed spewing flames across his leg, saving the shed. I heard him and ran out with a fire extingusher and put out the flames. By the time the fire dept wouldve gotten there we wouldve lost it all. Not that it was a home mind you. I also keep an extinguisher by the stove right in the cabinet. I hear of people that also have a $9 one in their vehicle for emergencies. A $10 extinguisher!!! Less than $5 in batteries.Go without a starbucks! Write it on your forehead!!!!please remember the batteries. They could save your life!

  22. All three of my smoke detectors are working. I would also like to chime in on carbon monoxide detectors. Three years ago my boyfriend got me a combination smoke/carbon monoxide detector and a fire extinguisher. About a month later, I woke up in the middle of the night to a voice saying 'Carbon monoxide has been detected'. As I got up and opened windows and doors, I was already very sick to my stomach and I know I easily could have died that night without the detector. Brad and I were no longer dating when the alarm went off (although God recently brought us back together 🙂 ), but I took the time to go and find him and thank him for the precious gift he gave me. I know if I would have died that night I would have been in heaven, but God still has so much for me to do here including giving children a forever home. I am so grateful that I still have the chance to finish that work. Thanks Linny for the reminder to thank Brad again for the gift he gave me and my future children.

  23. Linny–A simple, but good tip; change all smoke alarm batteries on New Years Day….and there are always tons of coupons for the batteries arounf Christmas time…so -like you said-No excuses! Janet

  24. Hey Linny – Yes and somewhat recently, but it never hurts to test again! We have 2 battery and one hardwired. Also two fire extinguishers that I should check are still ready for action.

  25. Thank you for your concern, Linny. Yes, I have three working smoke alarms in my home. I just replaced the batteries myself for all three of them a few weeks ago. Also, I promised myself that I will follow the instructions on the alarms to test them WEEKLY from this point forward. Thank you for this crucial reminder.

  26. I have working smoke alarms on every floor, I have a spare in the closet in case one stops working and I alway have a spare battery. We check the alarms every 2 months.

  27. We are smoke detector fanatics. We have one in each bedroom, two in the upstairs hall (one is hardwired into the electrical system so doesn't need batteries), one downstairs and one in the basement. The weird thing is, we bought our house from a fireman and when we moved in he only had ONE smoke detector!! How bizarre is that? I'm glad you wrote this. I can't count the number of times I've read about someones house burning down and lives lost and then it says they had no working smoke detectors. It's sad. And I am glad you reminded me to check all the batteries in them. Going to check them all today. 🙂

  28. I have an elderly aunt who lives alone. Last year she put her supper on the stove to cook and sat down to rest. She fell asleep! Praise God a neighbor stopped by to say hi and since she has an open door policy they politely knocked and then walked in. Much to their surprise her home was full of smoke and she was still asleep. Only then did I find out that she has 1 (yes only 1) smoke detector in that large two story home of hers. And that smoke detector is in the basement way behind a locked door.

    Needless to say, my husband was at the store within minutes buying smoke detectors and lots of them. We installed them that night and made sure to put one right above her chair where she sits!

    Thank you for your reminder today about smoke detectors. I will make sure mine have new batteries and are in tip-top shape TODAY!

    -Laurie in MA

  29. What a wonderful post! And may I just add, everybody should have one, working, fire extinguisher on every floor of your house. We had two in ours, and the first one didn't work. The second one is what kept our house fire contained in just one portion instead of consuming everything.

  30. Thanks, Linny, for your concern. Ours thankfully work. Every time we cook something on high heat in the oven, the smoke alarms go off. (And yes, I keep my oven clean!) I love it that if one goes off, the others "hear" it and start as well. Great technology.

  31. Hi,

    I have followed your blog since your fire. Someone sent me the link after they saw you had a fire. Our home also burned down on March 15, 2006. I too thought it "only happened to other people". I know what you have been thru in the months following during your rebuild. I truly believe that what doesn't kill you will make you stronger. LOL

    I also shout to the rooftops about having working smoke alarms. I shudder every time I hear of someone that does not have smoke alarms or practice safe exits from your home and a meeting place out side away from the danger. Since our fire we give a donation to our fire department yearly to help defray the costs of the department giving working smoke alarms to those in need. I applaud all you do in your area for fire safety.
    I also think you are one of the most inspiring women I have ever read about!! Everything you do in your community and for your family is so wonderful. Thank you for doing your blog!
    Barb Schmitz

  32. Linny, thank you so much for "laying it out there" with no apologies or soft-talk. You are right…there is NO reason not to have an alarm! We just recently had a fire in our town where a young man died because the smoke alarm either wasn't working or had been disabled. WHAT?!? I hear that quite often, that an alarm has been "disabled". Why on earth would anyone ever ever do that?!

    Yes, we do have smoke 4 smoke alarms in our home and I change the batteries every time we move the clocks forward or backward. Thank you for caring about us!

  33. no. i havent checked them lately. and I am super fearful of fire. thanks for the reminder. I did check them now and one didnt work! the one at the top of the basement stairs! Guess I know what I will be doing when the kids go to preschool this afternoon. I remember when we moved in here there were two electric hard wired smoke detectors in the basement and one on the main floor. I insisted my husband go right out and buy some more. we need one on the stairs(we have bedrooms in the basement) one IN the downstairs bedroom where the electric box is and one in the hallway outside of the other two bedrooms on the main floor. I still think one more in the boys room wouldnt be a bad idea because well boys are boys and you just never know when one will want to roast marshmallows on his bed. Thanks for the reminder!

  34. Yes we do. Two of them (in 900 square feet). I checked them when we changed the clocks back in November. But you have reminded me to go check the expiration dates on the fire extinguishers. We're probably due to replace them. Thank you!

    My parents' home burned a couple years ago (they weren't home when it started) and since then we've all gotten even more vigilant about fire danger. (I refuse to call it "paranoid" because that word implies an UNreasonable fear.) One of the first things we looked for in the home we're trying to buy was smoke alarms–I'm sure the realtor thought we were weird because the house has four and we were talking about installing additional ones. Can't possibly be too careful!

    Also — dryer vent hoses. Dryers can be significant fire hazards so we all need to make sure we regularly clean out the lint that makes it past the lint trap from the back of the dryer and the hose.

    Sarah

  35. I always give smoke alarms as housewarming, and baby shower gifts. Even if you have an electrical one you should have battery backups 'cause if the fire is electrical and your electric fails……
    Thanks Linny for spreading the word. Check detectors twice a year…we do it when the time changes!!!
    Kathie

  36. We've had smoke detectors in our homes for years. If you build a new home in our province, it's mandatory to have them. I also found out it's mandatory to have one on each level of your home even if your home isn't new.

    So many people don't change the batteries. There have been a number of homes burned down in the North in our province and lives HAVE BEEN LOST. And in everyone, there were no working smoke detectors…mostly they hadn't changed the batteries!!!

    I agree 100% with every word you said. Keep bringing it up…IT'S VITALLY IMPORTANT!!! Hugs and love dear friend.

  37. I just checked all my smoke detectors. One had a dead battery and the rest worked. I replaced the battery as I almost always have back ups for replacing them in the smoke detectors. Thanks for the reminder.
    Christy

  38. Just checked them at teh new year because the Carbon monoxide detector had a malfunction in the middle of the night. The next day I found out that my parents, who live in a hundred+ year old house with a rusty furnace, didn't have a CO2 detector. When I went to buy my new one I bought them one too, put the battery in it for them and everything. Thanks for the vigilant reminder!

  39. How interesting that this is your post today. I had a co-worker complain (at length) about how her smoke dectectors were "chirping" in the middle of the night, reminding her to change the batteries, and how she LOST sleep. Well, hello??? All I could say is… "Hmmmmmmm, you could have lost so much more than sleep. Change your batteries sista'!!"
    As always… love your blog!
    <><, Jenny

  40. Yes, ma'am, have them, working, and fresh batteries. DH was in the fire dept. for years, and is absolutely on the ball about this. I thank God I have a husband like this. Thank you for being a spokesperson to remind those who need reminding.
    Barbara A.

  41. For our state HS, we had to have one working in every bedroom and the other meeting rooms of the house. And married to a career firefighter .. oh boy! 🙂 And since I've been in the OR working for too long, I'm sooo overly protecive about this stuff. Seen too too much and some were freak accidents that simply happened!

  42. Linny, I just went and tested all of ours and they are all working. However, I noticed that my twins' bedroom does not have one. I will get one in there and let you know. Thanks for the PSA.

    Love you, Karina

  43. I am checking my tomorrow morning with my kids, and practicing our fire drill. Don't forget how important it is to have a fire drill with your families (especially kids). Practice what to do, where your exits are, etc. Thank you for the kick in the pants.

  44. Linny, these words: "I am so sorry you have had to walk this burned, crooked, winding path the past year," from Your Home brought this scripture to mind for you and your precious family:

    When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame burn you. Is. 43:2

    And I love Daniel 3:27, that says when Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out of the fiery furnace, not even the smell of smoke was on them!

    Blessings to all of you!

  45. Just had to add a comment after reading the ones about cooking and fire extinguishers. For cooking fires: BAKING SODA thrown on top of the flames, or, if possible, smothering the flames by covering with a LID OR POT(the fire goes out when the oxygen is burned up) are the best ways to control cooking fires. DO NOT USE WATER on a grease fire. It will only spread it!

  46. Oh my… we dont have any!
    Have no $$$ so will check with the fire department to see if they give them away in either of the 2 towns near us.
    Thanks for sharing your concern on this subject. There is SO MUCH going on in our lives right now that I wouldn't ever have thought of this if you hadnt mentioned it, so thank you!

  47. Hi Linny, thanks so much for this post. We also heat primarily (only) with two wood stoves (one an insert.) We bought our house last year as a fixer-upper and we had only one working smoke alarm in the house all this time (in the kitchen.) Now we have 4 up and working in the house (one in each of the main downstairs rooms – and there is one in the attic also) and 3 more that my hubby is going to put in the bathroom/mudrooms. Thanks for the kick in the pants!! 🙂 We needed it!

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