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The IAFF Recommends
Changing to a Photoelectric Smoke Alarms
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About 90% of Homes Are Equipped
With Ionization Smoke Alarms
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IAFC 1980: "It is the
subcommittee's belief that only the photoelectric
detector will meet the requirements reliably when
subjected to both open flame and smoldering fires."
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BRK/First Alert Letter, 2008:
"Clearly there is a growing consensus within
state legislatures as well as the fire service
community that favors photoelectric technology."
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Vermont Legislation, 2008:
"Combination photoelectric/ionization smoke
detectors cannot be used as an alternative for these
locations because of the false alarms that are more
common with ionizations alarms. People disarms
the detectors. 38% of smoke alarms in fatal
fires had smoke detectors that had been disabled by
the occupant. These smoke detectors must be
photoelectric only."
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"....Ionization alarms
sighted in the hallway generally provide inadequate
escape times...." LA Fire Chief's Test, 1980
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"However, ionization alarms have
been shown to sometimes fail to alarm in smoldering
fires even when visibility in the room is
significantly degraded by smoke. Most
photoelectric detectors alarm substantially sooner
in these situations. In the NIST experiments
photoelectric detectors sense smoldering fires on
average 30 minutes earlier than the ionization
detectors." LA Fire Chief's Test, 1980
