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I performed what is apparently called a 'shoryuken' by a colleague when I became incensed over the fire alarm screaming out over a fried egg I had allowed to sm

I performed what is apparently called a 'shoryuken' by a colleague when I became incensed over the fire alarm screaming out over a fried egg I had allowed to smoke. Pulling little bits of beige plastic out of my knuckles gave me a moment of reflection to consider how technology can improve and disrupt our lives. For the 20 dollars a regular smoke detector costs, I believe they should already have a large button you can press on the side that indicates "I promise everything is fine, I am in the house, alert, and am about to cause an issue. Please unconditionally do not beep for the next 30 minutes." That would replace everything good about this wifi gizmo.

Glyptodon 13y ago
Agree. All I can ask for is a giant 'false alarm' button and maybe that the controls not be located on the damn ceiling. I think everyone hates smoke detectors because they're such a hassle.
Spoom 13y ago
Someone would inevitably sue the manufacturer after pressing that button and walking away with a fire still burning.
- Pxtl 13y ago
  Really? Because mine does that... although it only goes off for like 2 minutes. It's quite handy since mine is poorly located and will activate when there's too much cooking smoke in the kitchen. I'm short so I keep a step-stool under the cupboard, and the alarm is next to the cupboard. Works for me.
  - tanzam75 13y ago
    You probably have an ionization smoke alarm. You should replace it with a photoelectric smoke alarm, which is less susceptible to nuisance alarms. In fact, manufacturers are now starting to label them right on the package: "Best for kitchens and baths."
eli 13y ago
Have you tried pushing the "test" button while it's going off? On mine it's "test/silence" and works exactly as you describe. This is a very common feature and in some places is actually required by building code. It's unsafe to encourage people to pull the battery during a false alarm.
- JeffL 13y ago
  The ones I've had, even when you hit the "hush" button, it still makes a loud chirp every 60 seconds to let you know that it's hushed, but still detects smoke. This chirp scares the crap out of my dog.
  - eli 13y ago
    Fair enough. Offtopic, but I used to rent a room in a huge old row house here in DC with a fancy "networked" fire alarm system. When one goes off, they all go off. You could turn it off by holding a button on the alarm... but it had to be the alarm that went off first. Makes sense from a design standpoint, but as far as I know there was no immediate way to determine which alarm that was, so there was a lot of running around with a broomstick (tall ceilings) pushing buttons.
    - ilyanep 13y ago
      In the college dorm I lived in, there was one networked system for the entire building (which was four ~80-bed dorms). It was so ridiculous that most people just stopped leaving when a fire alarm went off (the buildings are made of concrete and other not really flammable materials because it's Southern California) but the administration claimed they couldn't turn down the sensitivity.
    - giardini 13y ago
      Most of these also have dual battery/120v power. So there are usually 3 wires coming into the alarm: two (black + white) for 120v power and the third (red) for 9v signal. The usual way around this feature/problem is to disable (disconnect) the signal line at each alarm.
  - 13y ago
ubercore 13y ago
That's what the test/reset button does. Try looking at it next time before becoming violent!
- aaronem 13y ago
  It can be surprisingly difficult to act reasonably when "sound pressure level" has gone from an abstract concept to a tangible sensation.
moogleii 13y ago
The problem is my last two apartments have had pretty high ceilings, so I've had to bust out the rolling pin/step stool to stab at it. Meanwhile my ears are bleeding out. And then when you have those networked alarms where after a certain amount of ringing, the rest start ringing, it turns into an "oh shit, silence the first one, gogogogo" situation
devicenull 13y ago
One of the ones I bought claims that you can point any standard TV remote at it to mute the alarm. I thought that was a pretty handy feature.
xutopia 13y ago
The wifi gizmo does a few things more. - alerts you when away - lights up when you walk under it (great for hallways) - interfaces with the furnace to turn it off automatically in CO levels are above normal - interfaces with the Nest controls to determine if you are present or not. Turns down temperature if you are away saving you money. - alerts occur on all devices letting you know where the issue was detected so you can plan your exit accordingly. Sorry but we're not talking the same thing here.
- kvnwng 13y ago
  A huge added functionality they could have implemented would have to roll in a home security function in there too. If they notice that someone has entered the home at an irregular time the app should send some kind of notification to the owner. Maybe there should be an API for other developers to add that in?

Glyptodon 13y ago

Agree. All I can ask for is a giant 'false alarm' button and maybe that the controls not be located on the damn ceiling. I think everyone hates smoke detectors because they're such a hassle.

Spoom 13y ago

Someone would inevitably sue the manufacturer after pressing that button and walking away with a fire still burning.

Pxtl 13y ago
Really? Because mine does that... although it only goes off for like 2 minutes. It's quite handy since mine is poorly located and will activate when there's too much cooking smoke in the kitchen. I'm short so I keep a step-stool under the cupboard, and the alarm is next to the cupboard. Works for me.
- tanzam75 13y ago
  You probably have an ionization smoke alarm. You should replace it with a photoelectric smoke alarm, which is less susceptible to nuisance alarms. In fact, manufacturers are now starting to label them right on the package: "Best for kitchens and baths."

eli 13y ago

Have you tried pushing the "test" button while it's going off? On mine it's "test/silence" and works exactly as you describe. This is a very common feature and in some places is actually required by building code. It's unsafe to encourage people to pull the battery during a false alarm.

JeffL 13y ago
The ones I've had, even when you hit the "hush" button, it still makes a loud chirp every 60 seconds to let you know that it's hushed, but still detects smoke. This chirp scares the crap out of my dog.
- eli 13y ago
  Fair enough. Offtopic, but I used to rent a room in a huge old row house here in DC with a fancy "networked" fire alarm system. When one goes off, they all go off. You could turn it off by holding a button on the alarm... but it had to be the alarm that went off first. Makes sense from a design standpoint, but as far as I know there was no immediate way to determine which alarm that was, so there was a lot of running around with a broomstick (tall ceilings) pushing buttons.
  - ilyanep 13y ago
    In the college dorm I lived in, there was one networked system for the entire building (which was four ~80-bed dorms). It was so ridiculous that most people just stopped leaving when a fire alarm went off (the buildings are made of concrete and other not really flammable materials because it's Southern California) but the administration claimed they couldn't turn down the sensitivity.
  - giardini 13y ago
    Most of these also have dual battery/120v power. So there are usually 3 wires coming into the alarm: two (black + white) for 120v power and the third (red) for 9v signal. The usual way around this feature/problem is to disable (disconnect) the signal line at each alarm.
- 13y ago

ubercore 13y ago

That's what the test/reset button does. Try looking at it next time before becoming violent!

aaronem 13y ago
It can be surprisingly difficult to act reasonably when "sound pressure level" has gone from an abstract concept to a tangible sensation.

moogleii 13y ago

The problem is my last two apartments have had pretty high ceilings, so I've had to bust out the rolling pin/step stool to stab at it. Meanwhile my ears are bleeding out. And then when you have those networked alarms where after a certain amount of ringing, the rest start ringing, it turns into an "oh shit, silence the first one, gogogogo" situation

devicenull 13y ago

One of the ones I bought claims that you can point any standard TV remote at it to mute the alarm. I thought that was a pretty handy feature.

xutopia 13y ago

The wifi gizmo does a few things more. - alerts you when away - lights up when you walk under it (great for hallways) - interfaces with the furnace to turn it off automatically in CO levels are above normal - interfaces with the Nest controls to determine if you are present or not. Turns down temperature if you are away saving you money. - alerts occur on all devices letting you know where the issue was detected so you can plan your exit accordingly. Sorry but we're not talking the same thing here.

kvnwng 13y ago
A huge added functionality they could have implemented would have to roll in a home security function in there too. If they notice that someone has entered the home at an irregular time the app should send some kind of notification to the owner. Maybe there should be an API for other developers to add that in?