Five things to know

Sixty-five percent of reported home fire deaths occurred in homes with either no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms, according to the National Fire Protection Association. Here are the most important things consumers should remember about smoke alarms:

1. Install both photoelectric and ionization smoke alarm technologies to optimize your family's fire protection by providing them with the best available escape time in residential fires.
2. Remember that interconnected smoke alarms also are beneficial to fire protection. When one smoke alarm senses fire, all alarms sound, regardless of where the fire starts.
3. Install at least one UL-Listed smoke alarm on every level of the home, including the basement and outside each sleeping area.
4. Never disconnect a smoke alarm or remove the batteries for any reason, except to change them. If the smoke alarm begins chirping or causing a nuisance, it's best to replace the batteries.
5. Test your smoke alarm at least once a month.