Q&A for How to Test a Fire Alarm System

Test your fire alarm every few months to ensure it's functioning properly. Additionally, change the battery in your fire alarm at least once a year to maintain its effectiveness. Regular testing and battery replacement are crucial to ensuring your fire alarm is ready to alert you in case of an emergency.

It depends what state or country you're in as to whether your local fire department gives them out. In most places you'll either need to buy your own or have access to a government-sponsored concession program. You may live where the fire department will come out to fit it or check it's properly fitted, if they have spare time. Call to find out.

In theory, simplex pull stations can be "tested" by putting the alarm system in "test mode" to prevent signalling the emergency response and pulling the handle to activate that pull station. Some places do this by rotating which pull station gets tested during routine fire drills.

There is no international standard for that. Also, there may be flats with both an alarm system and individual alarms within each unit. Alarm systems are not always required (e.g., under NFPA 101: under 4 stories high or less than 11 units). Self-contained smoke alarms in residences should be tested according to the manufacturers' recommendations -- typically once per month. Commercial alarms may need additional annual inspection, testing and maintenance. Local rules may differ.

A fire alarm system is defined in the fire-safety standards as having a central control panel (FACP) with inputs from heat or smoke sensors and it sends out alarm signals to audible, visual and communication devices, when triggered. It may also release self-closing fire doors, send elevators to safe locations, shut down or start various ventilation units, and other things to increase safety during an alarm. An FACP has its own power supply (and backup) and often supplies power to sensors through direct or loop wiring. Interconnected smoke alarms, on the other hand, have individual units, each containing sensors and local alarms of their own, but they are connected to activate other units.

Generally, no. Each individual unit has its own chirp and won't activate any other low-battery or unit failure signals in connected units. The alarm conditions are what get shared by the interconnections. It's possible that some interconnected units share other information, such as how many units are working and signal other "trouble" conditions to each other.