How to Wire First Alert Smoke Alarms

Wiring smoke alarms is slightly different depending on whether you are installing one alarm or interconnecting more than one alarm. Your electrical code will likely say that you have to be a licensed electrician to do it, too, so check your codes. Installing a battery-powered alarm may be a simpler way to go depending on the code in your city.

Instructions

- 1
  Connect the power connector to the household wiring using wire nuts. For a stand-alone alarm connect the white wire on the power connector to the neutral wire in the junction box. Connect the black wire on the power connector to the hot wire in the junction box. Ignore the orange wire inside the junction box.
- 2
  Strip off about 1/2-inch of the plastic wrapper on the orange wire for interconnected units. Connect the orange wire on the power connector to the interconnect wire in the junction box in addition to the other wires.
- 3
  Repeat this process for each unit that you are connecting.
- 4
  Plug the power connector into the back of the smoke alarms and mount the alarms. Repeat for each unit you are connecting.
- 5
  Restore power to the junction box and check to ensure that the green light is on at all the smoke detectors. Check the connections. Replace any unit that doesn't light up.
- 6
  Test the smoke alarms by pressing and holding the Test/Silence button. All the hooked-up alarms should sound. You also need to test each alarm's operation in addition to the interconnectivity. Press and hold the Test/Silence button on each alarm.

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