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7 Reasons Why You Should Have Fire Alarm System Professionally Monitored
December 27, 2018
In homes or shops where Fire devices are installed, retail standalone devices are the de facto standard. Unfortunately, for various reasons, many of these devices may not provide the protection they promise.
For example, they may have been installed incorrectly, not received required maintenance, the sensors may be expired, the batteries may be dead, or, in some cases, the home or shop owner may have disabled the device themselves. One stunning statistic: less than half of the fire detectors installed in homes or shops with fires actually operated.
Most home or shop owners are completely unaware that they have another, much higher level of Fire protection available: central station monitored, system-connected detection devices.
Monitored Fire alarms take residential protection to a whole new level. The difference is really about being connected to a Central Monitoring Station, rather than just having a local alarm that sounds off in the house, and here are the 7 reasons why monitoring makes all the difference:
1. Immediate response, whether you are home or not.
When the system is connected to a remote monitoring station, the emergency response to the incident is immediate. Both the home or shop owner, who may not be at home or shop at the time of the incident, and the fire department are alerted to the system’s alarm state. This early notification is extremely important to life safety for the following reasons:
1.Increases evacuation time for building occupants.
2.Emergency medical help can be immediately sent to those in need.
3.First responders can help people exit the building safely, including residents who may be overcome by smoke and are unable to evacuate on their own.
2. Monitoring is critical for occupants less capable.
Monitoring is especially important in cases where occupants are not capable of responding appropriately to a local alarm. Examples include the elderly or disabled individuals; small children; individuals already overcome by the effects of smoke; and even pets in an otherwise empty house.
3. Ability to make special information known.
A feature of most monitoring services is the ability to keep special information on the location, which comes up on the computer screen whenever an alarm is received from that home. Thus, if there is a disabled or elderly resident, the operator can see this information and pass it to the first responders.
4. Professional installation increases the reliability and effectiveness of devices.
A side benefit of system connectivity is that these devices are installed by professionals who increase the reliability and effectiveness of fire and life-safety devices by placing them exactly how and where they are most needed. Proper installation and placement of devices lead to the right amount of protection. Proper placement also avoids the majority of nuisance alarms, which annoys people and may cause them to disable or remove the life-safety device.
5. Professionals can help locations stay up to code
Whether a home or shop in a certain part of the country needs to meet building code, local Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) requirements or legislative mandates, it can be a bit tricky knowing what is required.
6. Equipment performance issues will be alerted
Performance of the monitored system is supervised by the central station and will alert the home or shop owner of any equipment performance issues such as malfunctioning detectors or if the system is experiencing mechanical trouble. The connected system will also send trouble signals to the panel so that homeowners are aware that there is an issue and call to schedule service.
7. End-of-life conditions will be alerted.
In addition, monitored systems proactively alert the central station and homeowner to end-of-life conditions, such as low battery life.
Overall, having the right fire and life-safety protection systems and services is critical to complete protection. With the potential of loss of human life and destruction of assets, they give home or shop owners peace of mind knowing they are protected and have the best chance of escaping.
Contact us today to find out how to have your Fire alarms monitored.
