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Smoke detectors and
carbon monoxide alarms
are very important products
to have in your home.
They are designed to alert you to
potentially dangerous conditions present
in your home. When you look closely at
these products you may notice the UL
mark (Underwriter’s Laboratories) located
on the product label.
What does the UL mark mean? How do
the manufacturers obtain the permission to
use the UL mark on the detectors?
UL is an independent testing and
certification company founded in 1894.
Public safety has always been akey part
of UL’s mission. UL is well known for its
testing expertise and thoroughness.
To qualify for the UL mark, the
manufacturers will submit their new
products to UL for testing.
For every product there is a test standard
that is used to judge the product. The
test standards are developed by ateam
of experts in the industry. The standards
are developed under the ANSI (American
National Standards Institute) process. The
process is open to anyone to propose
additions or changes to the test standards.
This helps to ensure that the standards
remain rigorous and are also in step with
changing technology.
Put to the test
Make sure your detectors
pass the UL test
The detectors have to pass all of the tests
contained in the standard. For each test,
the standard describes how the tests are
conducted and the pass/fail criteria.
For smoke detectors there are more
than 40 performance tests. There are four
separate fire simulation tests. The product
is tested to a variety of temperatures,
humidity, dust, vibration and endurance
to ensure the reliability of the products.
The detector has to be loud enough. The
detector has to chirp when the battery
needs replacement. These are just some
of the examples of the thorough testing
required.
Carbon monoxide (CO) alarms are
tested to adifferent test standard. The
performance of CO alarms requires UL to
subject the products to dangerous levels
of poisonous carbon monoxide gas. The
CO test standard contains many of the
same reliability tests as the smoke detector
standard.
Once the manufacturers pass all of
the tests they earn the ability to apply
the UL mark to their detectors. The
manufacturer can only apply the UL mark
on products that have met all of the test
requirements. UL conducts unannounced
factory inspections to make sure that
the manufacturer has not changed their
product. UL also selects samples of
detectors every three months and repeats
the fire tests. This helps to ensure that the
manufacturers maintain high quality control
of these important life safety devices.
When the manufacturers make design
changes to their products they will
re-submit them for testing the cycle of
product safety is maintained.
Remember, it is important to make sure
that your detectors are in safe working
order. Test your detectors monthly
following the guidelines recommended
by the manufacturer and look for the UL
marking.
Meets the New wiscoNsiN staNdards for health educatioN: 1:2:a1, 1:3:a1, 1:3:B2
Article submitted by Underwriter’s Laboratories Inc.
Web sites
to check out:
www.wafs.org
(Wisconsin Alliance for Fire Safety)
For Kids’ Activities
www.smokedetectives.com
www.smokeybear.com
www.sparky.org
www.usfa.dhs.gov/kids/
www.ULSafetySmart.com
For Fire Prevention
www.campusfire.org
www.campus-firewatch.com
www.homefiresprinkler.org
www.nfpa.org
(National Fire Protection Association)
www.nfsa.org
(National Fire Sprinkler Association)
www.safekids.org
www.sosfires.com
www.usfa.dhs.gov
(U.S. Fire Administration)
For Burn Prevention
www.burninstitute.org
http://burn.iaff.org
(International Association
of Firefighters Burn Foundation)
Additional sponsor
Web sites:
www.amfam.com
(American Family)
www.jsonline.com/nie
(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Newspapers
in Education)
www.pffw.org
(Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin)
www.statefarm.com
www.stmarysfoundationmilwaukee.org
(Columbia St. Mary’s Foundation)
www.uwhealth.org/kids
(American Family Children’s Hospital)
www.milwaukeemarketplace.com/specialsections | A Newspaper in Education Section | Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | Fire Safety 2012
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