Catha For Council Blog

In the 30 -35 years following 1960 about 93% of American households had their homes protected by installing fire alarms. This was not limited to any one form but apartments, single or family homes and dormitories all got their homes installed with some kind of alarms as required by the law which was made mandatory in 1980s.

How Will Fire Alarms Help
Alarm goes off hooting and alerting you in the event of fire breakout. Very sensitive, as they are, fire alarms alert you early facilitating escape with your kin and kith to safety. It protects loss of lives and property. It has been the single most important savior of lives and properties from fire hazards over years, according to a survey; no doubts about that.

It is fine, but how will it alert the hearing impaired persons who can’t hear the hooter going off? The Federal law, popularly known as Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 makes it mandatory for manufacturers of fire alarms to include strobe lights in addition to audible alarms.

Audible Alarms
Often fire fighters complain of hearing problems early in their lives. And they are not unjustified with this especially when fire alarms making loud sounds in the range of 90 - 100 decibels. The hooter or horn is designed to produce a variety of sounds depending on the distinct purposes. For example, ‘code 3 temporal pattern’ is used only when evacuation is necessary; and thus the alarm pulses too, vary in times. Other patterns include continuous tone, march time etc.

Fire alarms get triggered by sensors which detect either heat or smoke or both in fractions of a second. You can imagine the efficiency of the systems which detect the cause of fire (heat or smoke) first and trigger the hooter to go and still giving the residents enough time to escape.

Buying Fire Alarms
While buying fire alarms you may want to consider a few points. Generally, in public places where large number of people work together, ‘code 3 temporal pattern’ suits better which can well be heard over the rolling noise generated by the crowd, and for a home purpose a continuous tone type would suffice. Buy fire UL listed alarms. In case of confusion, don’t hesitate to consult the fire department. Occasionally, fire departments offer alarms at discounts too.

Offensive fire alarm pranks in hostels or dormitories, when students pull alarms are not viewed lightly in America. Students and pranksters must understand that it wastes the precious time of fire departments and needs evacuation of entire buildings at times.

Get tips on installation and mock drills from fire department.

Alan Ross is a regular article contributor on many topics. Be sure to visit his other websites Fire Alarm, Burglar Alarm and Security Alarm

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Did you know that a car is stolen every twenty seconds? When you stop to think about it, stealing cars holds a high profit margin. Many cars are valuable and they are easy to get away with. They are also fairly easy to disguise and resell to make money. It’s no wonder cars get stolen so often. To protect your vehicular investment, install a good car alarm.

Car alarms come in all kinds of shapes and sizes. The general thought behind a car alarm is to have some sort of sensor so that it draws attention if someone attempts to steal the car. The simplest sort of car alarms simply alert surrounding bystanders if someone opens the door of a car. As thieves get more sophisticated technology, the makers of car alarms have to stay one step ahead of them. Modern car alarms have a computer built in with motion detectors. Car alarms can be programmed so they make a different sound just for your car. So many times when there is a whole parking lot full of cars, a car alarm goes off and no one knows which car is making the noise until it’s too late and the thief has already gotten away with your car. If you are going to invest in a car alarm, make sure it will do the trick and keep your car safe.

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If you are like most people, you probably don’t give much thought
to where or how you park your car. However, with just a little
planning you can make sure that you are always protected. Here are
5 tips to help you avoid crimes when parking:

(1) According to police statistics, one of the most frequent mistakes
that people make is not having a locked garage. Home garages frequently
have a regular door that gives access to the outside yard. If you fail to
keep this door locked, it is an open invitation for a home invasion.

(2) If you don’t have a private garage, then a carport or driveway parking
is preferable to grouped parking away from your home or apartment. The reason
is very simple. If your car is out of sight, it makes a much easier target
for crime. Also, it makes you a personal target for assault if you have to
walk any distance in the open to get to your car.

(3) Here is another thing that you may want to consider for your own
personal safety. Underground or multi-story car parks should be avoided.
The reason—-they are breeding grounds for vandalism and crime. But, if you
must park in one of these areas, it is best to use one that has limited
gated access points with a guard or attendant.

(4) Especially in high crime areas, you should avoid open areas where cars
are grouped together. The further you park from a building or residential
area the greater your risk for becoming a victim of crime!

(5) And finally, never forget to check and make sure that the parking
area is well lit if you plan on returning after dark.

We hope that you find this information helpful. You can help to keep
you and your family safe just by observing these five simple tips.

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Virginia Waters helps everyday people with their personal self defense needs. She works with PowerfulResponse.com, a supplier of self defense and security products. View more anti-crime articles by visiting http://www.PowerfulResponse.com.

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