Smoke alarms by type and battery life in rural households: a randomized controlled trial

Details

• Personal Author:
  Jones MP ; Nordstrom DL ; Peek-Asa, Corinne ; Taylor C ; Yang J ; Young TL ; Zwerling C
• Description:
  BACKGROUND: Although the use of smoke alarms is widely recommended, little guidance is available on the types of alarms and batteries that function best. This study examined smoke alarm and battery function 12 months after installation in rural residential households. METHODS: An RCT, involving the installation of either a photoelectric or ionizing smoke alarm with either a lithium or carbon-zinc battery, was conducted in 643 rural Iowa households in July 2003. The functionality of each installed smoke alarm was tested 12 months later. Generalized estimating equations were used to model the effects of alarm type and battery type on alarm function and false alarms 12 months after installation. RESULTS: Of 643 study homes, 98.8% had at least one functioning alarm, and 81.5% had all alarms functioning 12 months after installation. No difference was observed in alarm function between photoelectric alarms and ionizing alarms 12 months after installation (OR=1.30, 95% CI=0.88, 1.92). However, photoelectric alarms had significantly lower odds of false alarms than ionizing alarms. Alarms with lithium batteries had 91% higher odds of functioning than those with carbon-zinc batteries. The main reasons for nonfunctioning included a missing battery (30.7%); a missing alarm (28%); and a disconnected battery (11.3%). CONCLUSIONS: Although lithium batteries and photoelectric alarms are more expensive than their counterparts, the financial investment might be worthwhile in terms of overall performance. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Fires Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Batteries Carbon Cost Effectiveness Costs Equipment Design Equipment Operation Equipment Reliability Equipment Testing Fire Detection Systems Fire Protection Ionization Lithium Performance Capability Performance Tests Photoelectric Cells Safety Equipment Sensors Smoke Detectors Warning Devices Zinc

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• ISSN:
  0749-3797
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement ; Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Iowa ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 7 ; Wisconsin
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  20-24
• Volume:
  35
• Issue:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20040678
• Citation:
  Am J Prev Med 2008 Jul; 35(1):20-24
• Contact Point Address:
  Jingzhen Yang, MPH, PhD, Assistant Professor, the Department of Community and Behavioral Health, College of Public Health, The University of Iowa, 200 Hawkins Drive, E236 GH, Iowa City, IA 52242
• Email:
  jingzhen-yang@uiowa.edu
• CAS Registry Number:
  Carbon (CAS RN 7440-44-0) ; Lithium (CAS RN 7439-93-2) ; Zinc (CAS RN 7440-66-6)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2008
• Performing Organization:
  University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  19900930
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Preventive Medicine
• End Date:
  20020929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:7403a148b0c9ee05312aff634e40db9dd93e20614c1caa0e4cc09e2655b145431476183fe3efb9690903afdee1887576618dade6621f9a65395d0e5cf30a5e17
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/193466/cdc_193466_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 130.06 KB ]