Aico were the first to launch wire free alarms back in 2004 in the form of RadioLINK professional. Michael Wright, Aico’s product manager, explains why wire free alarms are cheaper to install, and more flexible than wired.

Alarm Interconnection Provides Early Warning

Interconnecting smoke alarms in a domestic property is a requirement of BS 5839-6 2004 and Building Regulations. The safety benefits of alarm interconnection are obvious. In the event of one alarm detecting a fire, all interconnected alarms will go into alarm mode, sounding throughout the property. This ensures all the occupants can hear the alarm – a vital safety point. For example, there is a very real danger that a heavy sleeper shut behind a bedroom door on the first floor may not be woken in time by the alarm if it is in a downstairs hallway and not interconnected. Interconnected alarms provide an earlier warning and the best chance of escape.

Wire Free Interconnection Makes for an Easier Install

Wire free installations are significantly less time consuming than hard wired interconnection

Hard wired interconnection is time consuming as you need to feed the wiring from one alarm to another and from one floor to the other. This in turn can cause significant disruption as it may involve lifting floor boards and using ugly trunking. As a result, interconnecting alarms in an existing property with hard wiring can be costly and difficult.

This is primarily why the introduction of wire free interconnect smoke alarms has proved so popular. Aico was the first to launch such a system in 2004 in the form of RadioLINK Professional that allows its Multi-Sensor, Ionisation, Optical and Heat alarms to interconnect by Radio Frequency (RF) signals. It has made mains powered alarms quicker and cheaper to install, made interconnection itself more popular and also makes it far simpler to make changes to a system to help meet the changing needs of different residents.

Installation is very simple. You will still need to wire each device independently to a permanent mains feed, but this can be taken from the nearest local lighting circuit and this is the only hard-wiring that you will be required to do.

All the devices intended to be on the system are programmed or ‘House Coded’ together at the time of installation – a process that simply involves a button press on each unit, then leaving the units to automatically code together. Completely unique RF messages are used and with over 16.7 million different codes possible, so you don’t have to be concerned about alarms being triggered by another system close by. Security systems will likely be on a different band, be time restricted in their use of the channel and will also use completely different RF messages. Car alarms and mobile phones use a completely different frequency so interference is impossible.

In the domestic fire field, wireless interconnect systems are recognised under the key regulations, including BS 5839-6: 2004 and Building Regulations.

Financial Implications

When adding alarms to a system, it is often more economical and convenient to add a new wireless system

Wireless interconnect technology has positive financial implications, most notably from the labour savings, reduced need for re-decorating and savings on raw materials such as trunking and cabling. Therefore, it may be possible to use those cost savings in a number of ways, such as installing more alarms per premises, or installing more systems into more premises within a fixed budget. The savings may even make the difference between whether or not a specifier can afford interconnection in a property. Cost savings achieved could of course also be used to enhance safety in other ways. A better grade of alarm may be selected - for example, Aico’s 160RC Series with ten year Lithium cell back-up. Alternatively the money saved could be spent on other safety initiatives such as the installation of Carbon Monoxide alarms.

When it becomes desirable to add more alarms to an existing system, perhaps with a loft conversion, it could even prove more economical as well as convenient to replace the existing system with a new wireless interconnect one, rather than hard-wiring in an extension. This is especially true with ‘old’ systems where the alarms might be due for replacement shortly anyway.

Building Suitability

RadioLINK wireless interconnect alarms are suitable for all residential properties, although it is more cost-effective when retro-fitting smoke alarms as this is where surface trunking often has to be used.

However, some new build properties have concrete ceilings so in these applications the use of a wire free interconnect system could play a useful role. Other applications could include:

1. Individual dwellings within a block of flats or HMOs (Houses in Multiple Occupation).
2. Connection of remote areas to a central smoke alarm system avoiding the need to run cable for extended distances.
3. Existing systems without any interconnection.
4. Existing hard wired systems which require expansion into additional rooms or areas.

One particularly useful advantage of wireless interconnect systems is their flexibility – a big advantage in blocks of flats and HMOs. In flats and HMOs where interconnection between dwellings is not required, but a connection to the communal areas is (for early warning purposes), it is easy to provide a simple yet effective system. Simply ‘House Code’ the alarms in each flat separately and then ‘House Code’ the alarms in the communal areas with, for example, a heat alarm in the individual dwellings. In this way, if a nuisance alarm should occur within one of the dwellings it will not affect the other residents. However, if a real fire has occurred, the heat alarm in the dwelling will operate the communal system – and all other dwellings – when sufficient heat has been generated.

There is an added safety benefit to be had here as well. In ordinary hard-wired installations it’s necessary to cross property boundaries with mains cable in order to interlink the alarms (and provide the mains power). This could pose an electrical safety risk if people working in the dwelling were unaware that there are two mains power supplies to the property. With wireless interconnect technology, each alarm in the system can be connected to a local power supply; the interconnection is provided by the radio signal, therefore overcoming this risk.

Wireless interconnect technology also has implications for applications where the protection of remote areas or outbuildings would ideally be brought under one system, for HMO communal systems planning and for buildings where, for example, a warden might need to be notified of an alarm sounding in a remote property.

System Control

A RadioLINK fixed wall switch for testing, silencing and locating

The ability to interconnect wirelessly has had other knock on safety benefits, including the capacity to connect to other devices such as Carbon Monoxide alarms, sprinkler systems and alarms for the Hearing Impaired. However, with a number of alarms interconnected in such a system, it’s important to put control switches in place.

A variety of control options are available from Aico for use with its RadioLINK system, including a fixed wall switch which allows alarm Test, Silence and Locate functions to be performed without having to reach up to the alarms, Manual Call Points for use in larger installations and relays to signal to other devices such as a Warden Call Systems.

Wire free alarm interconnection really is a breakthrough in domestic fire detection technology and makes alarm interconnection easier and more affordable. It also makes a fire alarm system all the more flexible as it becomes simpler to adapt.

Aico Ltd is the exclusive supplier of RadioLINK Professional wireless interconnect alarms and devices. For more information, or for free technical assistance, please contact Aico on 0870 758 4000 or go to www.aico.co.uk

Download Aico factsheet

Click here to download Aico's frequently asked questions factsheet on wireless interconnect smoke alarms