Do you know the sound of your alarms?

"Bells, bells, bells - In the clamor and the clangor of the bells!"
- The Bells by Edgar Allen Poe

Today I recommend reading "Do you know the sound of your alarms?" by WHEN SAFETY FAILS. This quote captures the heart of the problem...

"a woman was telling my wife a story about how she mistakenly thought there was a large truck backing up somewhere in the neighborhood. It turns out that the beeping she heard was a smoke detector in her kitchen that was alerting her to a burning roast in the oven."

Years ago as I parked at a farmer's market and turned off the car, it beeped at me. I made sure the lights were off and locked the car. What I didn't know was that this particular beep was trying to warn me that my keys were still in the ignition. I was locked out of my car and it took over an hour for a locksmith to arrive. Now I check lights and keys when I hear a beep.

Bottom Line

"In the home we have smoke and heat detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, security systems and even baby and child alert devices ... if we don’t know which device is shouting at us, we lose valuable time trying to determine the correct response."

You should test your alarms least twice a year when changing the batteries during Daylight Saving days. Give everyone in the house a chance to hear the sound of each alarm.