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Fire Alarm Installation Best Left To Professionals
By Arthur Sneddon

When it comes to protecting your home or business from fire, a fire alarm installation is best left to those who understand how an alarm system works and have the experience to place detectors in the right place. Fire detectors differ from smoke detectors as they detect heat, which often travels a different path than smoke.

In many alarm systems, smoke detectors are available for local notifications and are not typically tied into the main fire alarm system. This type of fire alarm installation will have separate fire detectors, usually tied into a system with an automatically dialer to notify the fire department if the heat sensors are activated. Many times, the heat sensors are built into a sprinkler system, especially in commercial fire alarm installations.

Another type of fire alarm installation will additionally protect a structure in the event wires connecting the sensors are burned or broken, as this will also activate the alarm. Not only will this monitor the heat being read, it will monitor the wiring and if broken will activate the alarm. This is usually accomplished by monitoring the resistance of the signal being sent to the alarm panel.

Professional Installation Keeps System Working

Automatic notification is almost standard in a commercial fire alarm installation and some major companies rely on their own monitoring before fire department notification is activated. Once an alarm is set off, a dialer will notify their monitors, who will usually attempt to the contact the facility during normal business hours to confirm a fire before dispatching the fire department. This helps reduce the number of false alarms sent to the fire department.

If the fire is confirmed, or it is after normal hours, the fire department is notified and sent. If the call is answered and it is reported as a false alarm, the notification is cancelled and it will be necessary to find the source of the false alarm. In a residential fire alarm installation, if the homeowner has opted to include automatic notification, it works pretty much the same way as a commercial system.

Depending on the equipment hooked into the fire alarm installation any automatic fire suppression systems are typically part of the system. Even a small fire can activate the fire alarm and send an automatic notification to the fire department. While these are not considered false alarms, if the fire is able to be extinguished quickly on the local level, the alarm can be cancelled y the user.

Author Details:
Arthur Sneddon, writes for various web sites, such as The A to Z of Home Improvement, about home security, fire alarms etc.

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