Replace your smoke alarm batteries - it may save your life

Homeowners sometimes forget one of the most important life-saving preventative maintenance and a simple chore to do in their home or apartment is to replace the batteries in the fire and smoke alarm. This must be done on a yearly basis or as needed; when a red light flashes or you hear a slight beeping sound. If you are hardwired via your electrical current for your detectors then you are in the most advantageous position for safety.

According to an article in February 2021, by the National Fire Association with its 50,000 members, the following was found in a report that they published about home fires:

1.) Smoke alarms were present in three-quarters (74 percent) of reported home fires in 2014–2018.

2.) Almost three out of five home fire deaths were caused by fires in properties with no smoke alarms (41 percent) or smoke alarms that failed to operate (16 percent).

3.) The risk of dying in reported home structure fires is 55 percent lower in homes with working smoke alarms than in homes with no alarms or none that worked.

4.) When present, hardwired smoke alarms operated in 94 percent of the fires considered large enough to trigger a smoke alarm. Battery-powered alarms operated 82 percent of the time. Power source issues were the most common factors when smoke alarms failed to operate.

Compared to reported home fires with no smoke alarms or automatic extinguishing systems (AES) present, the death rate per 1,000 reported fires was as follows:

• 35 percent lower when battery-powered smoke alarms were present, but AES was not,

• 51 percent lower when smoke alarms with any power source were present but AES was not,

• 69 percent lower when hardwired smoke alarms were present but

BY PHILIP A. RAICES

AES was not, and • 91 percent lower when hardwired smoke alarms and sprinklers were present.

The calculations above were based solely on the presence of fire protection equipment, but the equipment’s operation was not considered.

In a 2018 study by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, less than a quarter of households in 1977 had fire/ smoke alarms. The numbers increased throughout the 1970s through the 2000s. The importance of these detectors hit home and dramatically ramped up and as of today, 97% of homes have some type of fire and smoke alarm.

I recall many years ago, in 1994, professional tennis player, Vitas Gerulaitis, who was living in Kings Point, was visiting a friend in South Hampton, Long Island. An improperly installed pool heater caused carbon monoxide gas to travel into the pool house where he was sleeping, causing his death at the early age of 40. I do not know if there was a functioning fire smoke and carbon monoxide detector at that time, but if there was it would have potentially saved his life.

The liability and agony of the loss of life not only is traumatic but can be financially devastating too. I am quite sure insurance policies require firesmoke and carbon monoxide detectors on every floor. As they say, an ounce of prevention will provide a pound of cure and save lives too!

New homes are required by local building codes to have hardwired alarms (with battery backups in case of a blackout), on all floors. However, it is a prudent idea to test your alarms regularly whether battery-operated or hard-wired to make absolutely sure they are operational. Also, they can be tied into your central dispatch system, so if away, the fire department will be notified of any incidences of fire, smoke, or carbon monoxide issues.

One final thought has to do with frozen and broken pipes that may occur (especially last week) especially with the frigid air that we all have recently experienced. When we have these types of unusual freezing temperatures for any length of time there are additional devices that some are utilizing today that will not only notify you of any type of water leakage with an application for your cell but will also shut off your main water supply preventing thousands of dollars of potential damage. For outside exposed pipes you can purchase low 24V wiring online or at your local or big box stores. Then you can wrap around your faucets, and plug-in into a local electrical outlet, to prevent them from bursting.

Just today visiting my daughter’s home we saw water running down the street at her friend’s newly purchased home across the street and I knew immediately it was a broken pipe. I called Manhasset-Lakeville Water and the fire dept showed up to shut off the water saving countless thousands of dollars and preventing further damage that would have occurred. Make sure you leave your temperature at least 55 degrees. However, on the north side (the coldest area of your home) you provide enough warmth and protection/insulation to outside pipes and inside walls so bursting pipes will be avoided.

Your life and home are important so I advise those without any type of fire-smoke or carbon monoxide devices to have them installed asap. For those who do have them; check regularly and replace the batteries as needed. This is a must needed task to consider that will protect you and your loved ones.

Continue to Donate to the Ukrainian Crisis and save a life or 2: https://usaforiom.org/iomsukraine-response/

Philip A. Raices is the owner/Broker of Turn Key Real Estate at 3 Grace Ave Suite 180 in Great Neck. He has 40 years experience in the Real Estate industry and has earned designations as a Graduate of the Realtor Institute (G.R.I.) and also as a Certified International Property Specialist (C.I.P.S.) and in 2022 has earned his National Association of Realtors “Green Industry designation for eco-friendly construction. He will provide you with “free” regular updates of sold and new homes in your town via the Multiple Listing Service of Long Island (MLSLI) or go to https://WWW. Li-RealEstate.Com and you can “do it yourself (DYI) and search on your own. For a “FREE” `15 minute consultation, as well as well as a “FREE printout or digital value analysis of what your home might sell for in today’s market without any obligation or “strings” attached. He can also provide a copy of “Unlocking the Secrets of Real Estate’s New Market Reality, and our Seller’s and Buyer’s Guides for “Things to Consider when Selling, investing or Purchasing your Home.

You can email or snail mail (regular mail) him with your request or ideas, suggestions or interview you for a specific topic and a Q & A for a future column with your name, email and cell number. He will email or call you back and respond to your request ASAP as long as he has your complete name, cell, email and/or full home or business address. Again, for a “FREE” 15 minute consultation, he can also be reached by cell: (516) 647-4289 or by email: Phil@ TurnKeyRealEstate.Com to answer any of your questions and concerns in selling, investing, purchasing, or leasing residential or commercial property.

BY DENNIS MAMMANA

Week of February 19-25, 2023

One of the most frequent questions I’ve received in recent weeks is about those two bright “stars” shining in the southwestern sky at dusk. Some folks have even noticed that they seem to be approaching each other from week to week.

Well, these aren’t “stars” at all; they’re planets -- the two brightest in all the heavens -- and they are gearing up to put on quite a show as February comes to a close.

The brighter of the two is Venus, a world the same diameter and mass as our own Earth. You may recall that last month it passed rather close to the ringed planet Saturn, and soon it will pass by the giant planet Jupiter. Jupiter is usually the second-brightest planet in the sky, but when it lies near Venus it appears rather faint by comparison!

Why planets appear to approach and pass one another is quite simple. These worlds, along with our Earth, are continually orbiting the sun. As we move through space we view them in ever-changing positions and they appear to drift independently among the more distant (and “fixed”) stars.

On the evening of Wednesday, March 1, these two planets will appear only half a degree apart, and they will form a bright “double star” in our southwestern sky at dusk. Of course, they will