Daylight saving ends on April Fool’s Day. Got any advice for people out there? Make time to put aside the jokes for a moment and get serious about fire safety. When we put our clocks back an hour, April 1 is the perfect time for busy families to check and test smoke detectors and alarms.

Mine are 240-volt hard-wired. Do I need to test them? Their nine-volt, long-life, back-up battery needs to be tested according to the manufacturers’ instructions. It’s a pretty easy process.

Is it a legal requirement to have smoke alarms? Penalties are applicable for any homeowner without a smoke detector fitted (battery-operated in buildings built before 1995 and hard-wired after 1994). The Metropolitan Fire Service says: “Smoke obscures vision and causes intense irritation to the eyes. This, combined with the effects of the poisons in the smoke, can cause disorientation, impaired judgment and panic, reducing the victim’s ability to find an exit. Most fire-related deaths result from the inhalation of toxic fire gases rather than from direct contact with flame or exposure to heat.”

Wow. So what’s the best upgrade option? Correctly located smoke alarms give you vital survival time. We supply and install hard-wired photo-electric smoke alarms from $195 with a 10-year warranty. Fire authorities say photoelectric smoke alarms are the preferred option for houses. They are less prone to false alarms from activities like cooking.

A regular Electrical Safety Service and Inspection will help you avoid dangerous and costly damage to your property.