Don’t Let Smoke Alarms Tarnish Your Decor

Most smoke alarms are just plain ugly.  Certainly as some have gotten smaller they are a bit less noticeable.  But their appearance can still be a distraction in an otherwise well thought out interior.  But there is a low-profile smoke alarm solution that is different and less noticeable than the others.  This low-profile smoke alarm looks so much better that I specify for all my projects.

Joseph Metzler Kidde Smoke Alarm

The Kidde Silhouette smoke alarm is designed to be mostly recessed into an electrical box so it only projects slightly from the wall.  It is hardwired but also has a sealed rechargeable battery backup that lasts the life of the alarm so homeowners never need to worry about replacing the battery.  Kidde also makes a Silhouette carbon monoxide alarm that has the same recessed design.  While combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are more common, the ideal operational location for a smoke alarm is different than for a carbon monoxide alarms.  Because of this I mostly use the Silhouette alarms.

Unfortunately I still need to use some conventional smoke alarms, even when all alarms are hardwired and interconnected.  This is because the Silhouette is only available in an ionization sensing model.  Ionization sensing technology detect invisible fire particles (associated with flaming fires) sooner than photoelectric alarms. Photoelectric sensing alarms may detect visible particles (associated with smoldering fires) sooner than ionization alarms.  It's recommended that both type of alarms are installed in a home to insure maximum detection of the different kinds of fires that can occur in a home.

See how such practical advice can be incroporated into beatiful design on Joseph Metzler's profile page.  Here is a video demonstrating the installation of a Kidde Silhouette that gives a better view of the slim form factor of this unit.