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 | | HMO TRIALS NEW RADIO-INTERCONNECTED SMOKE ALARMS | | | Aico Ltd | | 18/10/2006 | | |
Knightstone Housing Association is currently trialing the new Ei Radio interconnected mains-powered smoke alarms from Aico Ltd in one of its HMO (Houses of Multiple Occupation) properties.
The Association meets the housing needs of some 10,000 people in Wiltshire, Dorset, Somerset and Hampshire. The majority of its work is with general needs housing but some 10% is with supported housing for members of the community with special needs.
Knightstone elected to try Ei's radical new radio-interconnect mains-powered smoke alarms in White Cottage, an HMO in Weymouth which is home to four residents. Each resident has an individual bedroom, and they share a kitchen area.
'As some residents smoke in their bedrooms,' observes Building Surveyor Paul King. 'They therefore need a high level of reliable protection.
'The new Ei radio-interconnected smoke alarms suited us down to the ground,' he says. 'We were able to afford to install eight mains-powered smoke alarms into the property and they could all be interconnected simply and economically by radio waves rather than by extensive hard wiring.'
The new Ei RadioLink system is based around the Ei168 RadioLink base which can communicate with all other RadioLink bases on-site via a transceiver and radio waves, rather than by hard wiring. The individual alarms are powered by a simple and convenient connection to the nearest ceiling rose.
Because the RadioLink base can be used in conjunction with any alarms in Ei's bestselling 140 and 160 series, Knightstone was able to use the optimum detection type in different places around the property. It used a heat alarm in the kitchen, ionisation-type detection in the communal hallway and individual optical alarms in the bedroom, where contamination from cigarette smoke was most prevalent.
'Our contractors installed and radio interconnected all eight alarms in three hours,' recalls Paul King, 'and the technology was completely new to him.
'As a safety-conscious body, we're led by the relevant government standards concerning fire safety. They recommend interconnection and we need to comply. However, hard wiring causes so much disruption. Where we really scored by installing Ei RadioLink from Aico was that the whole business was so much tidier and less disruptive.
'I must admit, I had my doubts at first, but three months into our trial and we've had no problems to report with the technology. As part of the trial, we even check it on a weekly basis, so we'd know straight away if any problems do arise.'
New Ei RadioLink smoke alarm technology is supplied by Aico Ltd.
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