Fall Back: Time to Change Your Clocks

Daylight savings time will end with a “fall back” to standard time on Sunday, November 3, at 2 a.m.

As you set your clocks back one hour, remember to change the batteries in your smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors.

For the best protection, install smoke alarms on every level of your home, outside every sleeping area, and in every bedroom. Smoke alarms should be mounted high on walls or ceilings and tested monthly.

The peak time for home fire fatalities is between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. when most families are sleeping.

A working smoke alarm dramatically increases the chance for survival and provides advance warning of a fire resulting in more time to react and put a home escape plan into action.

Help keep your family safe by following these fire safety tips:

1. Install smoke alarms on all levels of your home, including the basement.
2. Test smoke alarms each month to ensure they are working. Replace batteries annually, as needed.
3. Plan and practice home fire drills regularly. Decide in advance who will help family members that may need assistance escaping (young children, older adults or people with disabilities).
4. Retire old smoke alarms and replace with new ones every 10 years, as recommended by the manufacturer.
5. Make sure children recognize the sound of your smoke alarm and how to respond to its signal.

Haven’t replaced your alarms since 2003? It’s time! Smoke alarms do not last forever and units that are 10 years old are near the end of their service life and need to be replaced.

Maryland is one of the most recent states to require homeowners replace battery-only operated smoke alarms with units powered by sealed, long-life batteries by January 1, 2018. Smoke alarm technology has advanced over the years and the recent legislative update to Maryland’s Smoke Alarm Law is part of a nationwide trend to ensure future smoke alarm replacements possess this new technology. Visit our website for more information, www.mcfrs.org/mcsafe.

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