I've also bought a bunch of Orca ones - would not buy again. They have removable batteries, but I couldn't find replacement ones after the 10 year battery died a couple of years in. Plus they go off all the time for no reason. I one bought one and when I got it home once activated it just went off continuously until I pulled out the battery.

If you get a 3 pack of Cavius ones, one is a heat alarm. It's for the kitchen where you don't want a smoke alarm because of burnt toast but the heat one only goes off when it senses a quick increase in temperature or if it senses a temperature above a certain level (don't put directly above your oven).

Disclaimer: we haven't had a fire. This comes to mind.

Edit: they are expensive, and only because they are small. You can get larger ones with 10 year batteries for cheaper. If money is a concern, I'd suggest prioritising more smoke alarms over getting these fancy small ones. One in every bedroom, living area, and connecting space (e.g. hallway) is the aim. Legal minimum has much less than the recommended number.

[–] NoRamyunForYou 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Yeah - the starter pack with the Heat Alarm did make it more attractive - was thinking of getting two starter packs which I think should be enough to cover our house pretty good.

Do you by any chance have any recommendations for some 10 year larger ones? (wanted to do a quick comparison to see if they would be worthwhile)

I was initially planning to just get the normal large 9V ones, but then I started reading reviews around the many false alarms, and many of them not working, which made me lean towards the Cavius ones.

Haha that xkcd does seem pretty inline with a lot of the product reviews I've read (though alot of them are more negative than positive for the many smoke alarms out there).

[–] Dave 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

The 9v ones need batteries replaced every few years, say every 3 well that's about $15-20 for 3 9v batteries. I think the (cheaper) 10 year ones make more sense financially if they live up to their name.

I was thinking something like this $22 one, but the reviews are terrible so maybe not. The equivalent priced ones in bunnings have equally bad reviews!

Even the $10 ones that have 9v batteries have a bunch of bad reviews, but at least there are a bunch of good reviews too? I like the idea of 10 year ones because you don't have to change the battery, but if the battery only lasts a year or two then the 9v one would have been better. Maybe just get the 9v $10 ones, it seems cheaper and less risky.

[–] NoRamyunForYou 2 points 10 months ago

Actually that's a good point re/ price of 9V batteries. I had just assumed they were cheap enough that they wouldn't factor into the equation.