#testittuesday - The UK Fire Service Use Twitter for Home Safety

Sep 13, 2011
Jo Harrington

Photo: A Smoke Detector - R/DV/RS

Smoke alarms should be tested once a week in our homes. The UK's Fire Service have a novel way to remind us. #testittuesday is Twitter at its best.

#testittuesday began as a good idea by Elle, a self-confessed 'geek chick' based at Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service. The Twitter campaign reminds us to test our home's smoke alarms, with a simple message posted every Tuesday. Pressing a button takes just seconds, yet it's easy to forget. If anyone knows the potential dangers in a dodgy smoke detector, then it's the fire brigade. As a result, Fire Services up and down the UK have seized upon Elle's life-saving use of social media. #testittuesday is now Tweeted by them all.

Why Is it so Important to Test Your Smoke Detector Every Week?

Drained batteries; damp in the wires from rising condensation; dust in the vents; damage from that time you accidentally whacked the detector with a rolled up carpet. There are numerous reasons why a smoke alarm might suddenly stop working. Some simply die of old age, hence the Fire Service's advice that your smoke alarm be replaced every ten years.

Often the only way of knowing that it isn't working is when it fails when it's most needed, when smoke is engulfing your home and threatening your family's lives. However, a weekly check is the preferable way of finding out and that takes seconds to do.

How Do you Check that Your Smoke Detector Is Working?

In the centre of every smoke detector is a button. Press the button and a shrill alarm should sound throughout the house. If that happens, then it is working.

If, like myself, you are deaf, then there is another step. Check that the lights are flashing on the alarm boxes, then rush into your bedroom and ensure that your bed is nicely vibrating. If that happens, then the signal has been picked up and all of your home's fire safety equipment is doing all it should.

The UK Fire Service Provide Free Smoke Alarms and Home Safety Checks.

In between tackling raging fires, the UK's fire officers also do their utmost to prevent them occurring. Part of this is a national initiative providing free home safety checks, which includes the installation of an appropriate smoke alarm. Two years ago, my family took advantage of this, so I can speak from personal experience about what happens.

The visit was arranged in advance, over the telephone, with a confirmation posted through the mail. On the day, two burly, uniformed firemen arrived on my doorstep with their identification cards in their hands. I was happy to invite them into my home! Over a nice cup of tea, we discussed my family's needs. With two hearing people and one partially deaf person in the house, it was quickly determined that we would need two types of detectors to keep us all safe. In truth, the questions took slightly longer than usual, because there are so many degrees of hearing impairment, that the fire officers needed to be sure that they were fitting the right alarm for me.

The officers then raided their van for the free detectors. One was fitted on the ceiling at the foot of the staircase and the other in a similar position at the top. In my bedroom, a vibrating pad was slotted under my pillow. It was attached to a box that stands on my chest of drawers. I lay on my bed, as the alarm was tested for the first time. My deafness couldn't guarantee that I would hear a shrill alarm in my sleep, but I would certainly notice the whole bed shaking, while the lights flashed on and off!

For good measure, the fire officers also placed carbon monoxide test pads in discreet locations around my home. All of this was totally free of charge.

How do I Arrange a Free Home Safety Check by the UK Fire Service?

The Home Safety Checks are a national initiative, but they are arranged and carried out by the regional Fire Services. The telephone numbers are all listed on the Fire Service website. As it is in the interests of the fire officers to get these detectors fitted in each home, the appointments for their visit are made to suit the convenience of the home owner.

In the meantime, don't forget to retweet #testittuesday and to use the prompt to test the alarms already fitted.