Smoke Detectors

During most fire incidences, smoke rises before fire guts a material.  Installing an early smoke detection system can help in reducing fire incidences by 50%.

According to Major-General Jasem Mohammad Al Marzouqi, General Commander of Civil Defense at the Ministry of Interior, 54 percent of all recorded fire accidents occurred in private villas and houses in the UAE that did not have fire safety systems like smoke detectors and measures in place.

Smoke detectors are critical in firefighting.  Smoke detectors sound an early warning of the impending inferno alerting people to the danger. When used in combination with a sprinkler, it also triggers an automatic response to the fire. It also prevents death from suffocation.

In 2018, the Sharjah Civil Defense said that all new apartments and villas must have smoke detectors to increase protection for tenants, limiting human and material casualties.

There are different types of smoke detectors with distinct working mechanisms that sound an alarm when smoke particles are picked up in a confined space. Smoke detectors are more effective when installed on the ceiling because when there is a fire, the heat makes the smoke lighter than the surrounding air so, it rises toward the ceiling.

The two most common types of smoke detectors are:

1. Optical Smoke Detectors

The optical smoke detector works with a photocell technology and is similar to the eye sensory; this is because a light beam is the trigger for this type of smoke detector. The is an opening on the casing of the smoke detector that leads to the detection chamber, inside where you find a light emitting diode (LED).

The LED sends out infrared beams that are not visible to the eyes, but it can be sensed by an electronic light detector (or photocell) in the unit. When smoke particles enter the opening in the casing, the infrared beam scatters and hits the light sensor; the circuit immediately triggers the electronic horn in the device that serves as the alarm.

2. Ionization Smoke Detectors

This type of smoke detectors were common than the optical detectors and are less expensive. It works with a chemical reaction to sense the presence of smoke in the environment; this can be better understood when you imagine it to be an electronic nose. But due to the use of radioactive elements, these are banned in most of the countries around the world

The detection chamber contains an element called americium where ions are generated to fill the chamber; the chemical element releases small alpha particles that get into the detection chamber. Ions with positive charges and negatively charged electrons move in opposite directions to keep current flowing between the electrodes in the detection chamber.

When there is a fire and smoke particles are picked up through the opening in the ionization chamber, the ions are covered by the smoke particles, and this breaks the electricity flow in the circuit. The alarm sounds immediately to warn the user about the looming fire; the alarm only goes off when the smoke is cleared, and the cure flow in the detection circuit is restored.

At firesupplies.ae, our stock includes; wireless smoke detectors that use wired or wireless signal communication, and standalone gas and smoke alarms.

Smoke from a fire threat in the daytime can easily be noticed and addressed, but a smoke threat in the night when everyone is asleep will be more dangerous. This is one of the essential reasons to have smoke detectors installed at home and our workplaces, especially high rise buildings & even in homes and villas