Hey all:
When the glass breaks have a low battery they send a notification which is great. However, when the smokes have a low battery they (of course) wait until 3:00 am and then start chirping, waking the entire family. Then I have to get the ladder out and change the battery. There has to be a better way!
Just checking to see if there is someway to get a notification before the chirping that maybe I missed. Thanks!
Generally, no, it is not possible to get a notification beforehand. Unlike burglary sensors, smoke and carbon monoxide detectors begin chirping immediately once they reach the low battery threshold. A low battery alert is not sent to the panel and Alarm.com until this threshold is reached. This is done because they’re considered life safety devices, and issues with them should be addressed as soon as possible.
PowerG+ smoke/heat detectors do have the ability to report battery levels to compatible panels, but that is something you would need to check manually. Once these detectors report a low battery, they will begin chirping.
Depending on your model of smoke detector, some manufacturers recommend replacing the battery at certain intervals, regardless of whether the battery is reporting as low or not. This would prevent it from beeping randomly in the middle of the night unless there is a failure with the battery or an issue with the detector.
Thank you for the explanation. Bummed there isn’t another way.
I have all Qolsys smokes. Will have to check the recommended battery change interval.