Side by Side Comparison of: First Alert

This was a replacement unit for the one already mounted in our apartment hallway. A few weeks ago, the unit started chirping. A review of the chirp pattern indicated it wasn't the battery, but the whole unit needed to be replaced. We've only been in the apartment two years, so I don't know how old the unit is. They don't last forever, but I read that they should last about ten years. In any event, I bought this unit as a replacement, installed it which was fairly easy, just attach lead wires and screw into the mount. Now it no longer chirps, so I'm assuming the age of the unit was the problem. I am hoping that this unit will have a decent life span, but so far, I'm happy that it is functioning normally.

We had to get a few of these specific alarms because we just bought a house with these ones already installed. You can't find them at any store, so we bought a few to match the existing ones. The issue was we couldn't get any other brand alarm to work with these ones, hence why we purchased a few to install since the originals seemed to go bad when a new battery wouldn't fix the chirping. So there may be an issue with combining these specific ones with other brand alarms around the house!

Can't attest to whether it works when you really need it because I've never had the misfortune of really needing it. What I like is that they general design doesn't change. For over 20 years when it's time to change them (you should do that every 5-7 years) I just leave the original bracket in place and plug the new one in. You can even put this combo detector in the bracket that held a simple smoke detector. Easy to live with.

Had to replace the ones in my home because they died from old age. They last about 5 - 6 years. Put that on your computer calendar, so you can schedule a reorder before the things start chirping in the middle of the night. Don't buy them ahead of time because they will still age in the unopened box. This time I read the instructions and also learned that you should remove them from the ceiling and power when changing the batteries! I never knew that. It's a pain, but not a big deal.

Package arrived on time and in very good condition. I had to replace four nearly 20 year old smoke alarms. After shopping a bit, I saw the combination CO and smoke alarms. The hardest part of replacing them was locating the circuit breaker that cut the power. They installed easily and the job was done in less than an hour. The manufacture date was less than two months from installation. This is important because some alarms beep when the lifetime expires. They all tested as instructed. I would recommend these alarms.First Alert BRK SC9120B Hardwire Combination Smoke/Carbon Monoxide Alarm with Battery Backup

These are exact replacements for the detectors in my home. New construction about 5 years ago, and the old ones began the "End of Life" Chirp. Purchased several of these, and they work perfectly. As per our city building code, all devices must sound if one goes off, and these connect exactly into the system already wired into my home. While not the cheapest on the market, replacing about one a year if worth the added protection for my home.

Reviewing a smoke alarm is a rather difficult thing.Let's be honest - I'd love to provide a comprehensive review, one that will educate and give people a proper breakdown on just how well the unit works. I can't do that, and I hope I never have the opportunity to give a comprehensive review on just how fast these alarms are able to detect smoke for obvious reasons.I will say, however, that they were packaged nicely and included batteries as well. I sincerely hope that I never hear one of these things unless it's trying to tell me that the batteries are crapping out.

Gone are the false alarms, which were a daily occurrence (almost). Yes, we need a new vent hood. In the meantime, at least this is not irritating the heck out of us like our last one.

After reading many professional opinions, I learned that photoelectric smoke detectors are generally safer choices than ionzation models. From what I've read, it seems that photoelectric sensors might be very slightly slower (thirty seconds to a minute) slower at detecting strong flame fires but much, much faster (up to 30 minutes) faster at detecting smoldering fires. To me, this exchange seemed like a no-brainer, so I hopped on line looking for a photoelectric detector with good reviews. I was a bit shocked to find that there aren't many out there. I opted for this one based on its good reviews and low cost, ordering 4 to replace all the detectors in my house.Installing them was easy as pie. To install in drywall, you'll need to press the mounting plate against the ceiling and mark the holes you plan to use with a pencil. Then, using a 1/4" masonry drill bit, drill holes where you marked. Insert the plastic drywall mounts that come with the screws into each hole. Then place the back plate so the holes on the plate match up with the drywall mounts. Simply drive the included screws into the drywall mounts and you're good to go.Note that if you're screwing straight into a stud, you will not need the drywall mounts. You can drill an 1/8" or 1/16" pilot hole to help you drive your screw in straight (use a general purpose bit for this), or, if you're using a drill, you might be comfortable just driving the screw in without a pilot hole. If in doubt, drill a pilot hole first.The battery mechanism on these units is peculiar but quite a nice surprise. This unit uses 9V batteries, and it uses them in a way that axes that infamous snap-on connector. In place of that old style connector, you'll find a slide out tray on the side of the device. The tray fits a 9V battery perfectly. Stick your battery in, slide the tray closed, and bam! You're in business. So much easier than those old things, where I'd sort of prod at them very carefully to avoid accidentally hitting the test button and deafening myself while fiddling with the battery. When it comes time to replace the batteries, just twist the detector off the back plate and hold the thing in your hands as you pop out the compartment, remove the old battery, pop in the new one, and slide the compartment back in. So easy!Each unit includes a standard alkaline 9V (I believe the brand on mine was Eveready, the same company that manufactures Energizer), so you won't need to buy separate batteries. If you're interested in the long battery life offered by lithium batteries, you might consider the SA710LCN, which is the same smoke detector shown here only with lithium batteries included. Alternately, the SA710CN shown here will accept lithium batteries if you purchase them separately, and the thoughtfulness put into this unit's battery compartment has me feeling much less anxious about changing batteries anyway.All four of the units I ordered tested fine when the button was pressed. They are certainly loud enough for our 2,000sqft colonial. Fortunately, I have not yet had the opportunity to do a real-world (burning house) test, but I did set one off by holding a burning wooden wick candle up so the smoke entered the detector. That was probably a bad idea, though, because the detectors really are very loud. It scared me when it went off, and I almost dropped the candle, risking a real fire. Don't try this at home. The successful candle test is especially encouraging because we have received zero false positives in the ~two weeks we've had these buggers up, even with one alarm placed within five feet of a bathroom door.One small concern I have is the effect room ventilation will have on the sensitivity of these detectors. Two of our bedrooms have ceiling fans, and I'm not sure how the circulation of air will impact the effectiveness of the smoke alarms in those bedrooms, since photoelectric sensors are triggered by particulate matter entering the detection mechanism. Fortunately, this isn't a big concern for me because all bedrooms in our house branch off a common hallway, and I feel safer knowing that a fire that would trip our master bedroom smoke detector would probably also trip the hallway detector. And, as I said before, I'm no smoke detector expert. It could be my concerns about air circulation aren't relevant.Still, when installing these in your own home, be cautious of items like ceiling fans or odd ceiling architectures that might prevent the smoke alarm from being exposed to smoke in the event of a fire. This should be a common consideration for all types of smoke alarms. Overall, I am very happy with the design of these smoke detectors. The battery tray is really a big, pleasant surprise for me.

I personally trust the brand, and am replacing a pair of old, failed smoke detectors that my landlord installed over a decade ago. The only complaint I would make is that the battery compartment on my two units was NOT marked "+" or "-" requiring me to double-check that I was installing the 9v battery with the polarity correct. (I rectified the oversight with a fine-point magic marker so that in the future I can see which way to insert the battery without taking the unit down off the ceiling.) The directions are comprehensive and it comes with a battery so it's good-to-go right from the package.

Not sure how much one can say in a review about smoke detector . . . but it's nice quality for the price. Was very to install -- because I was able to use the existing wall bracket. I would say, if you are replacing an old detector, check sizing info to see if you are able to use your old wall/ceiling bracket. That made replacement a breeze.

This was to replace the alarm in our kitchen. We have struggled for years with false alarms. Anytime the stove was opened, even toasting toast would set our old one off. This has been a blessing and we have only had it for about a week. Before, I would find the battery compartment open, because our silence button got used so much it broke. That's not safe at all. But now I can have peace of mind, I even checked it to make sure it was functioning, because we have had no false alarms. Thank you!!!

Works well... maybe a little too well. I replaced the one next to my kitchen with this one after the sensor started going bad with 5 years of use. The old one started going off nearly everytime we cooked as it neared the end of its life. Unfortunately, this new one seems to be equally sensitive. I hope that's not a sign that it's also near the end of its life.Long story short, sensor works, but it might be too sensitive.

Bought six of the to replace all. First alert should make the holes in the back where it attaches to the wall the same distance apart over the years. It took more work than should have been necessary to attach the wall plate. Otherwise they should be fine (I hope). Cannot really tell unless the alarm goes off and always hope that does not happen. 5 stars if the wall plates were the same as the ones I replaced.

I was using a hammer chisel to lift tile and dura-rock from the floor my master bathroom during a remodel. My alarms are all connected and on a dedicated circuit. So I just had to flip the correct breaker at the sub-panel.

Our house is now 5 yrs old so I recently purchased 5 of these First Alert BRK SC9120B Hardwire Combination Smoke/Carbon Monoxide Alarms with Battery Backup to replace the originals as all 5 of mine went out within a week of each other. These alerts make a single chirp if the battery needs to be replaced but if you hear 3 chirps simultaneously you will need to replace the entire unit. I like knowing they are monitoring my house however I never thought about having to replace them every 5 years. The best price I could find on them was on Amazon and as always was glad to be a Prime member and receive them in 2 days as promised.

Just built a new home and installed six of these devices. After six months in the house we have had two "false" alarm instances. Shortly after moving into the house we started having alarms lasting approximately five seconds or so. Although I covered the alarms (with the little shower cap bonnet that comes in the box) immediately after installation I initially thought they were dusty from the construction and started to investigate. Upon inspection of the offending device I discovered a spider living inside. Interesting! I removed the spider and the alarms stopped. After about six months, the same scenario. I located the triggering alarm and upon inspection another spider; removed it and the alarms have stopped. So, I'll deduct one star for the aggravation. I'm not sure if it is the design or what; but these things don't seem to like spiders!Otherwise, these alarms have been OK; I mean what can you say about something that just sits there. No alarms from cooking and we have a grill.

These were easy to install. If you already have a similar first alert fire detector this will fit in the existing wiring which is nice. My only complaint is the batteries were nearly expired. One battery was actually dead which meant chirping sounds until I ran to the store to get a new one. But overall easy to use and seem to be effective in detecting issues. I got to test that by using a leaf blower on a clogged drier vent which set the alarms off from the fumes

I have installed 4 of these so far, My first couple are the same model without the "B" and look to be the same in every way.The older two have been in operation since 2009 and work as advertised, no false alarms and trigger only when smoke is present.I decided that since those were getting close to EOL I would buy a couple more and install where I didn't have any.So far the new units seem to be working just as the older units, but I have only had them for a mouth or so, but if they are anything like the SA710's without the "B" then I shouldn't have any issues as those have triggered when they were suppose to such as the one close to the kitchen that occasionally is set off when something on the stove has started to burn.I got these due to the simple mounting and they match my older ones and the mounting is the same.They use a standard 9v battery that I change every year with long storage life rechargeable's that I get from Tenergy here on Amazon. They seem to hold up for the year that I cycle them out with freshly charged batteries.As some have mentioned including the manufactures, you need to take note on location of a new install.Make certain it will not be in located near vents/heat/steam or areas that can set off any smoke detector if a area is prone for smoke such as a kitchen. In my case I install mine at corner locations (10in from the corner) on the opposite wall of any outside door, window or vents if all possible.

I looked online for this model as that is what I have in my home and I found it here at amazon..had to replace as when I put new battery in one of the old ones it quit chirping but continued to blast alarm every few seconds..button was broken to test/pause..in any case..i have installed the new one, tested it and so far so good! delivery was right on time as stated by the receipt, and it came new and boxed..satisfied so far!

Great smoke alarm for a very reasonable price. I'm not sure why so many people gave it a one star review because I bought one and have had no problems at all with it. The alarm works great and with the photoelectric technology I haven't had any false alarms yet. The alarm is loud enough to wake you up no matter how hard of a sleeper you are. Found that out testing it by accident while my roommate was asleep. Great fire alarm all around I'd definitely recommend it to anyone looking to replace there old alarms or just adding new ones.

Fortunately, I haven't had an emergency to really test it out, but it seems to work. I placed it on the ceiling in the hall between two bedrooms. Unfortunately, the bathroom is in the middle and the steam when the door is opened after a bath seems to set it off chirping slightly. It only chirps for a couple of minutes, but it was really confusing initially to figure out what was happening.Anyway, it tests well weekly and seems to work, so I'll assume I'm getting my money's worth.

We bought this to replace a very old ionization type alarm that stopped functioning properly. There are so many alarms out there that it required some research to decide what to buy. Ideally one wants it to work well and continually (it could save your life, after all) while not being overly expensive. I think this one fits the bill.The big issue these days is whether to buy an ionization type alarm or one with a photoelectric sensor. I opted for the latter. This is why (I'm quoting from an article which cites the professional opinion of the fire chief of Albany, CA):"An ionization alarm contains a tiny amount of radioactive material to set up an ionization chamber that creates an electric current. When the current is disturbed by smoke, the alarm sounds. It costs about $10. A photoelectric alarm, in contrast, contains a small beam of light. When smoke disturbs that beam, the alarm sounds. It costs about $15. The difference has to do with how smoke from different fires moves through the air and what is in that smoke. For example, an overcooked dinner may produce small particles of smoke that waft through the air. The ionization alarm is sensitive to those tiny flecks, prompting false alarms. The photoelectric alarm can tell better when there isn't enough smoke to be a dangerous fire. On the other end of the spectrum is the smoldering fire, which produces bigger particles. Those aren't as easily detected by the ionization alarm until the smolder becomes flames that produce the smaller particles. Virtually all residential homes with smoke alarms have the ionization type, and virtually all commercial buildings have the photoelectric types, according to several studies." This fire chief is obviously trying to get the photoelectric types into many more homes, as he believes they would save many more lives because they alert you to fire much sooner (and aren't constantly giving you false alarms -- alarms that you then ignore, even though one might turn out to be real).From that information, and other sources that confirmed it, I concluded that the best alarms are the photoelectric type. First Alert has a good reputation, as far as I can tell, so I went with one of their alarms. A little light (from the hole you can see on the right side of the alarm) give you the comfort of knowing that it's working. But of course it also has a test button (the alarm is ear-piercingly, painfully loud, as it needs to be -- the more so for our cats' ears!). It easily screws off its base, if you need to get it down (once you've fastened the base to a ceiling or upper wall). It's also much easier to change the battery that it was in our old alarm. The battery compartment is at the top left, and pops up so that the battery can be gotten at easily, and without needing a sharp object to pry it out of its compartment.

I haven't had it too long, but I'm pleased so far with this detector. Our rental's previous smoke detectors (ionizing) were constantly going off--every time someone cooked something or took a shower. And somehow the batteries always die at 3 am. Worse than useless, but anyway...This one has yet to produce a false alarm. I took off a star since, for no clear reason, First Alert seems to have changed the mounting bracket pattern from the First Alert ionizing alarm that it replaced. I feel I should have been able to unmount the old one and place the new one into the old bracket.Not really about this product, but I also feel I shouldn't have to pay $3 or $4 more to get a smoke detector that actually works. How about adjustable sensitivity or something for the ionizing variety? Every time I move, I have to replace more of the radioactive buggers and dispose of the old ionizing ones--americium, electronics, plastic and all. Not burning food is not an option since I have an electric stove and no matter how much I clean it, it still sets them off whenever I turn it on.

Got this to replace the original installed by the builder. I could not find this in the local Home Depot or Menards. The Home Depot guy suggested Amazon. Price was good. The installation was not smooth. On the face of it it seems very straight forward. But the reason I had to replace the original was that I could not get the low battery chirp to stop even after replacing the battery. When I installed this one and activated it the chirps did not stop right away. It eventually stopped after about 10 or 15 minutes of activation. I am not sure why, but I thought it may be because the alarms in the house were all interconnected and this needed some time to really 'activate'(?). Not really sure. The main reason I chose this model was to keep it the same as the original, so as not to have to replace all the alarms in the house. But I am not thrilled with this model for the reasons indicated. The battery compartment is not easy to view inside or adjust and replacing the battery on my original one did not help. I had to replace 2 of these in my house so far. If more of these break down I may replace the entire series with another brand.

I got these as replacements for the ones in my house that went out. They are pretty good but expect to replace them every 3-4 years. The chirping they make when they need a new battery is annoying and the replace battery light isnt reliable to tell you which one needs replacing.

I've used these detectors at several points in the past; and I'm sure they detect CO and Fire/Smoke just fine (thankfully, haven't needed them in any of my properties, or my mom-in-law's house.)My only complaint is one First-Alert/BRK doesn't publicize. You *need* a battery in these units, or they chirp non-stop. If that were documented anywhere in their install manual, you wouldn't get a complaint from me (I'd be mad at myself.) It took a call to the company to determine there was no way to bypass the battery circuit.Now before you chastise me for not wanting battery operated units, the hallway where my bedrooms are contain 2 wired, one CO/fire/heat/smoke on a monitored security system (wired), one battery CO, one battery smoke, and four battery operated units. We're covered. :)I was simply hoping to update the original hardwired units from 1989 with newer tech. One hardwired detector is 30 feet in the air; changing a battery every six months isn't an option. Chirping once a minute is *also* not an option. I ended up finding units with a ten-year lithium battery; not perfect, but far better than swapping 9Vs every six months.If you're looking to tidy up the amount of detectors, it's a great piece. Nice combo unit, with hardwired/battery functionality. Makes selling a home/bringing up to code easier in NY. Look elsewhere if you want the unit to be hardwired standalone.

These units seem to fail well before they indicate that their useful life is up (they have a separate beeping sequence for that). They have lasted around five years in my house at which point over the last year three have failed out of my seven. Pretty disappointing.

The quality is not great on these but the ones I purchased are working fine. I had 2 out of 6 go bad in my house which is about 3 years old. I thought the first one was a defect but it seems that this brand is just sub par quality. I couldn't even find these in the store to replace them. I may switch to Kidde if any more go bad but that requires an adapter for the electrical connection because First Alert uses a different connector. If you are replacing one you have, they work fine. If you are getting a new set, it looks like Kidde is the way to go.

I guess this is an adequate smoke/CO detector. These came with the new house in '11, and when I had one go bad, I just went for the quick fix and bought exactly the same model as the one being replaced. But I wouldn't do that again. I'm transitioning from these ionization detectors to a compatible photoelectric device (SC7010B). While ionization detectors are good in certain settings, they have two big problems that make them unsuitable for homes: (1) They're far more prone to nuisance alarms that condition people to ignore them, and (2) they're much slower to alarm in a smoldering fire with a lot of smoke, the very kind of fire that's most common in homes. That's why experts no longer recommend the use of ionization detectors in homes; they recommend only photoelectric alarms. And in case you're wondering--no, don't even THINK about a combination ionization/photoelectric device! They're virtually worthless, and I'm surprised they're still sold. First Alert/BRK is a good brand, and their photoelectric smoke detectors are perfect for residential settings.One more note: Whether or not you're getting a malfunction notification or end-of-life signal, you should replace ALL of your smoke detectors every six to eight years. All smoke detectors start to degrade after five years, and by year ten, you just can't trust them anymore with your and your family's safety. Half don't work, and the other half don't work well enough. Never wait ten years to replace all smoke alarms. Six or seven years is best; eight is okay, but anything more than eight is far too risky.

Thought it would fit an earlier mounting base. NOT! same model number but had to remove old wall mount and reinstall the new one.

It works.

After contacting First Alert, I was told this would work with my old First alert bracket. This would avoid drilling and screwing... just pop it into the bracket. This was not the case; I had to remove the old bracket. I specifically bought the same model series for this reason; I could probably have gotten a better smoke alarm if I had known First Alert was going to change the mounting bracket.

I bought and received two of these alarms in July of 2015. The sticker on both of them says 2005 SEPT 26.Apparently, these detectors have been sitting on the shelf FOR TEN YEARS!These are photoelectric detectors and I don't see any disposal or duration warnings, so I will install them BUT I'll also document this purchase very well, in case they end up failing to detect a problem. My advice for you is to pay a little extra for photoelectric alarms, so there is no doubt.(DO NOT buy ionization alarms. They don't work. You may as well be nailing frisbees to your ceiling.)New Photoelectric = GOODNew Ionization = BADOld Photoelectric = ????

The first one I had started giving me a low battery warning, despite having a new battery in it. So far, so good with the replacement. If this one starts doing the same thing, I'm going to try a different brand.

I bought in April 2013 detector only lasted till June 2014 Battery was still good I tested it with battery tester. I replaced battery anyway and periodically alarm beeped daily a few minutes each day. I will buy one more hoping this is just a lemon detector

If I didn't already have a bunch of these around my house, I wouldn't buy more.First, I've had two of these just go bad over the last year, and they are only a couple of years old.Second, they really need to find a better way to tell me about a low battery. Trying to figure out where a single chirp is coming from at 2 in the morning is a painful exercise.Third, their replacement warranty is the good old, "sure, we'll send you one for free, you just have to pay for shipping and handling". Cheap and chintzy.

This is a fairly nice device but it's too sensitive to UHF and VHF radio waves. The device has a 3-wire hookup. Black and white wires supply power and an orange wire is used to communicate with other smoke alarms installed in your home, assuming your house has the wiring to support that communication. With the orange wire properly wired in your house, if the smoke alarm downstairs gets tripped for some reason, it can tell the alarms upstairs to go off as well. Unfortunately, that wire acts like a huge antenna and the alarms seem to communicate with each other using RF (radio frequency) signals. As a result, if you're near a strong source of UHF or VHF radio waves, it trips the alarm. This is no good if you've got a ham radio operator in your home or living nearby. I have two of these alarms and they were continuously going off during radio transmissions, so I disconnected the orange wire, which helped reduce but not eliminate the problem, Next, I cut the pin out of the alarm where the orange wire connects to the alarm. That helped a little more, but the problem still isn't eliminated completely. I still get spurious beeps out of these alarms during occasional radio transmissions.UPDATE April 15, 2017:I ended up replacing my First Alert Smoke/CO alarms with the Nest Protect smoke & carbon monoxide alarm, Wired (2nd gen). The Nest Protect is the world's most expensive smoke/CO alarm, but it uses a digitally encoded point-to-point WiFi signal for the interconnect signal, so there's no RFI problems. I haven't had any false alarms since I installed them about a month ago.

We had these installed by the builder in a new home in Feb 2012. Despite battery changes like may other reviewers, two of the units failed - one after 3 years and one after 4 years. Somehow they start chirping at 3AM. At $35, they are not cheap to replace and since they are tied into our security system electrically, I don't want to have to redo the wiring. I didn't bother to call the company after reading the 1-star reviews. If you have a choice, pick another brand that is more reliable.

These consistently fail and need to be replaced. I have compared them against other units that don't give false positives, and have had furnace specialists use sensitive equipment to test and confirm false readings. That said, my house came with these so I just have to keep replacing them every year because I don't want to replace the existing wiring harness in the ceiling.

These alarms seem to only last 3-5 yrs. once the batteries go out, so does the alarm. They are kinda expensive to replace every 5 yrs so we are converting back to smoke alarms with a separate Carbon dioxide detector.

This item is not for use in the state of MA as when you buy combined smoke and carbon they need to also have a voice command. This would have been helpful when buying this item.

We bought 3 of these First Alert SA710CN Battery Smoke Alarm with Photoelectric Sensor in June 2016, so only 7 months ago.During the last few days, particularly in evening and night while colder temperature (71F inside), one in a downstairs hall has been beeping apparently a low battery warning every 30 seconds. The (supplied, Eveready) 9v battery reads 9.34 volts, should it be good still.We will call BK/ First Alert and see what they have to say.UPDATE - So we called them today. The response was, essentially, to replace the standard 9V Eveready that shipped with the device, with an alkaline as recommended in the manual (which we did not have for reading, until after the purchase); claims that the standard cells lose charge in storage (the 'failed' one is dated with 12/2017 expiration, a year in the future).So WHY do they advertise 'battery included' if they think the included battery is junk,despite the date code?Buyers, be aware that you will need to buy another battery, and it best be a really good one.We did replace, and we're now waiting for the next cold night (and it's never really very cold here in southern California) to see if chirping has ended.

Prompt and Safe Undamaged Delivery Sealed but it Didn't work!

Not a bad product but 3 out of the 7 I purchased beeped as soon as I got them out of the box. Even after replacing the battery they still chirp. I guess 4 out of 7 is not bad. Won't buy again.

My son said the voice is not loud enough

It is located on the second floor, goes off when ever I boil water in the kitchen on the floor below, and goes through a battery every month.

as the others have said, these things eat batteries. out of five 2 have already failed and i will be contacting First Alert. I can't understand why after all these years it is so hard to make a smoke detector that works and doesn't fail. years ago we never seemed to have these problems.

These were installed in my home when built in 2011. So far, two have failed and third is tuning up. (i heard the three chirps a couple of times but could not pinpoint the culprit). I am replacing them with the same unit due to simplicity of direct replacement, plus now having purchase proof for warranty enforcement. But if I had to start from scratch, I would not buy this model.

Had this item 33 days. The beeping wouldn't STOP! Had this hard wired into my new home plus battery back up. Once the incessant beeping began I took out the battery and removed from the house wire. And beeping STILL continued. I have another brand co2 and smoke detector installed near by (just outside the bedroom door) actually several installed within feet of each other due to township regulations and none of them were beeping. And I'm 3 days past the return window. $35 outside in the trash beeping. Done with First Alert products.

This product has very bad quality, it offers a 7 year warranty but it breaks in one year and there is no way to get a response from Manufacturer

I wouldn't buy again. I bought 3 of these. Hooked them all up and 1 week after pitting up I had French fries catch on fire and my whole house was full of smoke and not one of them went off.

Not legal for Massachusetts, Should not ship or sell for Mass residents. Returned product.

The problem I'm having is with the 9 volt battery - after 24 hrs. the battery started chirping. Replaced it with new battery and the same thing happened after a day the battery started chirping again. It does have power to the unit. Not sure what to do. Since writing this review I have tried to reset this unit again without success - I have given up on it.

bought these before, locally, and they worked just fine. this batch bought on amazon beeped randomly as soon as a battery was inserted (whether it was the battery that came with them or a brand new one). as the biggest concern with these is that beeping without a cause will lead to people pulling the batteries out, this was complete unacceptable and they were returned. look for the sealed/10-year battery ones from the same manufacturer, as those do not seem to have this problem.

We've had this smoke detector for six months. Recently it started beeping like the battery needed to be changed. That was odd because I had just changed the battery when we changed the clocks this fall. I thought that maybe the battery was faulty... nope same thing with new battery. I've put the new battery in and out several times, and looked to see if it was dirty. Everything looks fine, but still beeps. I would've thought that this may be an unfortunate thing that I ended up with a defective smoke detector. First Alert is thought to be a good brand. TRUTH IS that this is actually a replacement smoke detector that we received when the original one we received didn't work at all. So, fist one didn't work, second one worked for six months. I won't waste my money on this brand again.

loaded it up, lasted about 1 week before it started to lose the battery that came with it. Replaced the battery with a new one, lasted maybe 2-3 weeks before it ate that battery and started beeping. Replaced that battery, same thing. Bad quality with an internal short or something. Other detectors I have easily last a year on the high quality batteries I put in them, but this model drains them very quickly. Apparently the brand is well known but the quality is definitely not worth risking your life or your family over.

When these smoke alarms work, they are great - sleek looking, easy to install, easy to change batteries...WHEN they work. We ordered 3 of these in early 2014, and one was faulty in the first shipment - the alarm would chirp more and more frequently when there was no smoke in the house. Amazon processed a replacement for us and we have gone along for a year without any problems, until last week - when another unit started chirping again. We changed the battery and now you can't shut it off at all - it's blasting away as though it's in the middle of a fire. I will be looking for another brand of smoke alarm and will replace all three - life is too short to be awakened at night by a false smoke alert.

I bought three of these. Two work fine, one will not stop the low battery chirp no matter how many new batteries are installed. I will be looking for a better brand. I expect something to work when I buy it new. This fell short. I waited until I painted my dining room ceiling to change out this one so I would have a clean white product to blend with the fresh paint; as my other one was yellowed. I guess I need to purchase another as this one was a piece of junk that I can't even return due to my waiting to use it. Never again will I use First Alert Products. Beware of the odds of it working.

I installed one of these in the hallway outside a bathroom. It has gone off twice, while taking a shower, from the steam going into the hallway. I tried the "Silence" button both times, but the button just plain did nothing. The second time, I held the silence button down longer -- for several seconds, while the alarm was going off over my head. The alarm never went silent. I had to take the battery out, which is precisely what I was trying to avoid by getting a detector with a silence button.