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(More customer reviews)We recently needed to replace our smoke detectors -- did you know you need to replace them after a certain period as well as the batteries? They are all wired into the house so any one sets them all off, and they all have battery backup. One thing I've always hated every year is replacing the 9 volt battery. It wouldn't be such a big deal to remember and do it, but the alarms always started the incessant chirping when the battery is removed (low battery backup indicator) even though the power wiring was still strong. Even that wouldn't be so bad if the chirping would stop when a fresh battery was put in. However they always continued chirping for a *very* long time, sometimes due to improper seating of the battery I guess. But since they'd go for a long time, I'd never know if they were going to stop when the chirp circuit slowly charged up fully or if there was a battery insertion problem! Multiply that by 7 smoke alarms, and the uncanny way the chirps sound like they are coming from different room alarms, and it was a dreaded annual ritual.
So when I started to look for a new smoke detector and came across a smoke detector that said I wouldn't need to replace the battery for 10 years -- I was sold. I had to hunt though to find one that advertised the wired-in alarm and the promise of 10 years of chirp-free life. I found this detector on Amazon and ordered 7. I discovered when they arrived, the 10-years is due to a new lithium 9-volt battery that is apparently new to the market. The detector itself seems very similar to all the other detectors and just included this new battery. Still, that was fine and the replacement worked well (actually was a much nicer twist and secure insert than my old alarms) with the included battery inserted into the battery compartment. Now the reason I'm giving this 3 stars is because 2 of the 7 alarms started the dreaded chirping within a few weeks. One was immediate and I thought about sending it back, but decided to just look for a replacement battery. The other one started a few weeks after installation.
I actually figured I'd have to order these new batteries online because I didn't see them at Lowe's. I decided to pick up a couple of regular 9 volt batteries in the meantime so the alarms would be working while I did so. However, a nice surprise was finding Energizer Advanced Lithium batteries at the local Wegman's grocery store with the same 10-year backup battery for smoke detectors label! They were $6.99 each. I just put them in the 2 alarms and so far (fingers crossed) it's chirp-free silence! I thought I'd write this review for others in a similar situation. If you need to replace your alarms (whether in-wired or not), or even if you don't, you can just pick up these new 9-volt lithium batteries as your alarm battery and don't have to hunt for unique alarm that advertises the 10-year promise. This alarm here is fine, but the special part is the 9-v battery. And "apparently" the batteries included with the alarm weren't that good if 2 of 7 failed in a few weeks. The included batteries don't indicate a particular brand other than, ironically, "ultralife". Maybe as many products, the batteries are inferior to what you can get off the shelf from a brand name, but given the "10-year" expectation -- that's due to the battery life -- you'd expect the batteries to be super high quality.
So maybe you can get just as good an alarm at a better price by ordering your alarm and these new batteries separately.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Universal Security Instruments USI-1103 120-Volt AC/DC Wired-In Ionization Smoke and Fire Alarm with Silence Feature and Lithium Battery Back-Up
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