Don’t these things run off of decaying isotopes? I don’t think you can fix that
Comment on And now I'm reminded I have two of these to repair.
cosmicpancake@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
Oh hell, that picture hit me in the gut. I have two of those exact things sitting in my closet and every time I think about fixing them I just want to cry. Whoever designed these clearly hated future owners.
Parts are impossible to find, the screws strip in 0.3 seconds, and of course the cheap plastic decides to crumble right where it matters. I swear manufacturers do this on purpose so you buy a new one.
I’ll probably procrastinate for a month, then tear one apart at 2 AM with a soldering iron and too much coffee. If it works, I pretend it was a planned restoration. If not, well, eBay scavenging spree it is.
spicehoarder@lemmy.zip 2 months ago
SlartyBartFast@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
If I could turn back time, if I could find a way
FenrirIII@lemmy.world 2 months ago
I’d take back those words that have hurt you
rumba@lemmy.zip 2 months ago
They run off batteries, using either isotope decay or light sensor (or both)
I actually have one hanging off my ceiling right now, it’s battery was fine, but it tripped likely due to dust or a spider on the optical sensor. It went off at 2am, network sent them all off, took me 10m to find the right one I wasn’t about to just blow it out and out put it back on the ceiling :)
Natanael@infosec.pub 2 months ago
Depends on model. Almost all older ones does (using radiation from the isotope to electrically charge smoke particles that pass through, which then can be detected by a sensor).
Many newer ones are optical.
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
The A-241 does not charge the particles, it ionizes the air in a small chamber that allows a steady current. Any smoke particles disrupt these currents to set off the alarm.
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
“Jerry, we have thousands of warheads full of plutonium”
MeThisGuy@feddit.nl 2 months ago
where there’s a will there’s a way
SGforce@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
Don’t know what it’s like where you live but around here if they are old enough to fall apart they aren’t to code anyway. They need replacing like every two years, I think.
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
Seven to ten years, depending on manufacturer. The newer ones use a lithium battery and last ten years.
shalafi@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Our floor plan + regulations made for a stupid setup. All three bedrooms and hallway require an alarm. All 4 are within 8’ of each other.
And there isn’t one in the kitchen!
lovely_reader@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Afaik, it’s not recommended to have them in kitchens, because harmless culinary mistakes can set them off so people end up disabling them in annoyance. You have to have one in a common area on every floor, but ideally not the kitchen.
FrederikNJS@lemmy.zip 2 months ago
The ones in the kitchen will be set off by burnt food… Leading to people disabling the alarm anyway.
In your kitchen you can get heat sensitive fire alarms instead.
samus12345@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
Bot
CompactFlax@discuss.tchncs.de 2 months ago
Parts?
Anyhow, they have a 10 year lifetime. You can’t repair it.