Shelter and safety are one of the most fundamental aspects of life, be it for any being human or not. Evolution has brought about survival at a vast range of comfort. But in the beginning of time, it was safety that was the more significant concern when one chose to hide or camouflage with nature. Predators and natural disasters were of colossal concern then. In the present time, a home is a place where one feels like they belong, feel safe and are at their most comfortable self.
To achieve that feeling of safety, one needs to be equipped to tackle situations that can threaten one’s safety. While there can be many threats that can arise depending on the locality one lives in and other factors, threats that begin at home are things that people can be equipped to handle. One of the most harmful accidents that could occur within and destroy someone’s livelihood is a house fire. Fires can be caused in a household due to various reasons. A small spark from electrical appliances or a flame left unattended could quickly spread rapidly and burn many valuables along with the house itself. The effect of fire need not be exaggerated and explained, but what one can do is to ensure that the measures needed are taken to safeguard oneself and his/her loved ones and stop the fire from enveloping the entire household by installing smoke alarms/detectors. There are two kinds when it comes to smoke alarms – ionization and photoelectric smoke alarms. While both function in a slightly different way the basic functionality of these alarms are the same – to indicate that there is a beginning of a potential fire in that particular area that the alarm is installed in.
Necessity and not a luxury:
Smoke alarms are a very essential part of a wide range of other security systems including motion sensors, glass break detectors, indoor and outdoor cameras, carbon monoxide detectors, etc. Again, each of these systems serve an entirely different purpose – things like 24*7 surveillance, sensors detecting suspicious movements outside and inside the house, sensors that activate during break-ins, etc. The rest of these are often installed in bigger residences, or buildings that operate on a professional basis and not essentially private homes. Of course these come in handy when there has been a burglary in a house or any other terrible accident, but these are often considered a luxury even though it is not.
Especially in the case of fires, these situations demand immediate damage control or all that’s left off the accident is fatal damage. Fire consumes most of the other materials in a house leaving nothing but remains if not acted upon immediately. Smoke alarms therefore are a very integral part of a security system at home, if one has not installed any of the others mentioned above, he/she needs to get this fixed. The ionization and photoelectric smoke alarms are systems that identify and alert in the case of flaming fires and smoldering fires respectively. While the presence of these alarms are essential, one needs to understand that there must be a generous number of devices set in each level, inside and outside living areas, living rooms, dining rooms and even in the basement. The level of safety is directly proportional to the number of alarms installed and the way it is maintained. It is important that one educates oneself further and takes the necessary measures to ensure maximum safety.
