Smoke detectors are essential equipment for your family to escape a potential fire emergency. For any adult that has no sleeping disorder, the high-pitched sound of a fire alarm is sufficient to wake them from a deep slumber. However, research shows that children under the age of 13 are more likely to sleep through this sound, increasing the risk of being caught in a deadly fire. For instance, in England, a fire that was started by parents killed six children who slept through the loud noise of a smoke alarm back in 2012. However, it is not doom and gloom for parents as you can ensure the safety of your children by adhering to the following simple smoke alarm tips.

Install Smoke Alarms in Children's Rooms — Most smoke detectors are installed far away from children's rooms such as in the kitchen. Since children will take longer to wake up from a deep sleep compared to adults, you should consider installing smoke alarms as close to them as possible. The longer your child takes getting up when the smoke alarm goes off, the higher the risk of them dying of smoke inhalation. Furthermore, you can add another safety precaution by installing water sprinklers in children's rooms, akin to office sprinkler systems. When the smoke detector goes off, it gives a leeway of 30 seconds before the water sprinklers are automatically turned on, enabling the children to wake up, hear the smoke alarm, and get to safety as quickly as possible.

Call Out the Child's Name — Although calling out your child by their name may seem a traditional approach, fire experts recommend that this method is very effective. This method, however, does not necessarily eliminate the use of regular smoke alarms but can complement each other. The wailing sound of the alarm coupled with your shouting voice can be effective in awakening your child from a deep sleep, increasing their chances of survival.

Install Voice Alarms with Personalized Messages — Another effective option to save your kids from a fire emergency is to install voice alarms that are integrated into your residential smoke detection system. You pre-record a voice that the children are familiar with, probably yours or your spouse's. This personalized message increases the likelihood of waking up your kids because of their familiarity with the voice. A voice alarm equipped with a pre-recorded voice of the mother calling out the children by their names can be more effective than the actual voice of the mother in an emergency, since the mother may panic in the latter scenario.