green-foam

Wait for it to stop (It probably has by now)

The problem with carbon monoxide is it colourless and odour less (So you can not see it) As there are renovations going on below you and the CO alarm has been ok previously its safe to assume its something the people doing the renovations that produced carbon monoxide. But as I said, they would not know they are producing carbon monoxide because you can not see it.

Have you taken the battery out of each smoke detector? (You only mention removing the mains)

Doubtful it is the tube (I assume it has hardly ever been lit) So that means the batteries have probably failed, they only have a working life of 3 - 5 years at most. Safelincs can supply you with batteries from just under £12 Click here Or you can as you suggest change the whole fitting. Safelincs can supply EM lights starting from just over £15 Click here

Since one will work with out the other it would suggest an incompatibility problem. You say you changed two smoke alarms, are there any more interconnected? if so remove them and put the other new one back to see what happens. Also make sure the connections are the same at any detector and that there is no junction where the colours could have been swapped.

Chirping every 90 seconds indicates a low battery. You need to change the batteries, I would change the batteries in all of the detectors. Most folk do not realise that although a smoke alarm is often supplied by the mains most also have a back up battery.

Not wishing to as pedantic as it may sound, but I will say you found a CO alarm, not a CO2 alarm. CO is carbon Monoxide and is the same density as air, its a by product of incorrect combustion. CO2 is carbon Dioxide and is denser than air, it is also what makes fizzy drinks fizzy and is also used in fire extinguishers,

If any soft toys are affected you can clean them but it will take a lot of time and effort, that said some may be washable (read the wash care label, if it hasn't got one don't wash it) but if you dispose of the affected toys, there will never be any doubt.

If it helps, I have some CO2 extinguishers here at home that are old, they never get serviced, and they are still full of CO2. (I know they are full because as Tom points out, its easy to weigh them) As an aside, if the contents were to cease to be CO2 what would it be? I have also had one that leaked (after being used in a video) it was so bad you could actually hear it hissing / crackling.

People often say "oh it's faulty" (About most things) when in fact it isn't. Carbon monoxide itself is odourless and colourless I would suggest that your CO detector did indeed detect carbon monoxide and that is why it activated (It was doing its job) As for where the CO came from, no one can say, but I would check that your CO alarm is working by pressing its test button and making sure it is within its age limit. (They have a life expectancy of between 5 - 10 years, depending on make / model)

{thinking out loud} polyvinyl chloride is more commonly known as PVC or plastic, so although it may self extinguish, it would melt / disfigure so letting in smoke, also in the text it says would make them Fireproof, it does not say "does" make them fire proof. {Thinking out loud}

I was going to say similar, but I added some figures. The average EM light uses 40* watts Average cost of 1KW Hour of electricity is 13p 1000 / 40 = 25 (Lets say 24 for ease of calculation) So each EM light costs around 13p / day 13p x 365 (days in a year) = £47.45 for Each light. * Average consumption of two (Fluorescent tube) EM lights that I tested. This is with the lights on standby / charging. Yours may be higher or lower. These figures are for guidance only.

Correct me if I am wrong but are you saying there are just two Emergency lights?

Smoke alarms only react to smoke, since you have an open fire and your smoke alarm activates, I can not help but wonder if smoke is coming into the room, when was your chimney last swept? and have you got a carbon monoxide alarm? you can get a CO alarm for less than £15, Click here

If a charity shop will not accept it, despite what label it has, then there is nothing you can do about it. As for where do you stand, if you keep the sofa then you will not have to.............

Neither. If the red (in your case) LED is still lit when you turn the lights off then it means that your EL is still be powered and still being charged. EL should only come on when there is a power failure to the light or the relevant test switch has been operated. Switching off lights near an EL should not remove the supply to the EL, so the EL will not come on. You need to find where the EL are fed from and turn that off to test them. You may want to get some one in to do it for you / show you next time.

Hello Darren you say the red LED is blinking constantly, if the red LED flashes once every 40 seconds (Or close to 40 seconds) this is to indicate that all is well. The green LED is to indicate that mains is present. As an aside you should also clean your smoke alarms on an as and when basis. A crevice tool (The thin one) on your vacuum cleaner is good for this.

I would say that there is no set "time" since it will depend on your exact location and surrounding buildings (Making it darker earlier) and the closer to winter it gets the earlier it gets dark, why not suggest they install a photo cell outside? That way when it gets dark the lights will come on, and when it gets light they will turn off. Never any need for anyone to visit to change any timer.

Have you considered flashing beacons on the fire sounders? These can often be retro fitted and are relatively inexpensive.

Smoke detectors in general should be replaced every 10 years, If this detector is as old as you say, then it should be replaced, thereby removing the concern for a green light. As an aside LED's do not act as capacitors, even if they did, they would (in theory) emit the colour of light they are supposed to. Are you sure the material of the detector is not Luminous?

Following on from what Tom said, you may have overlooked the obvious, some one saw you.

That would be up to the manufacturer how they make their products "fire safe" To find the definitive answer it would be best to ask them, any thing else is only a guess. Regarding washing them, again it depends on what the manufacturer used, you may find the following article of use CLICK HERE

If it was 4 beeps in succession it may be that you have a "fire angel" CO alarm and that it did detect CO But if there is lots of CO then the detector would NOT stop beeping. Why don't you press the test button on the CO alarm to find out what it sounds like.

Take it down the tip.

What do the BBQ manufacturers instructions say ?