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    How to Reset a Smoke Alarm That Won't Stop

    Plus, Consumer Reports' top picks if you need a replacement

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    How you deactivate a false alarm depends on your smoke alarm's power source.

    Always assume a sounding smoke alarm means thereā€™s a fire and get to safety if need be.Ā 

    But what about when your smoke alarm sounds and itā€™s a false alarmā€”but then it doesnā€™t turn off? In 2019, 31 percent of false alarms that fire departments responded to were caused by system malfunctions, according to the National Fire Protection Association. These include malfunctions of smoke alarms, CO alarms, heat detectors, and other systems. Those false alarms can be caused by dust, humidity, electrical malfunctions, and even spiders crawling inside smoke detectors, says Bernie Deitrick, a senior test engineer at CR.

    To know how to resolve a false alarm quickly, you first need to understand how your homeā€™s smoke alarms operate. There are three types of smoke alarm power sources:

    • Replaceable batteries
    • Long-life lithium batteries
    • 120-volt hardwiring (with batteries as backup power sources)
    More on Fire Safety
    CR's Smoke/Carbon Monoxide Detector Ratings & Buying Guide
    Best Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors of the Year
    The Right Way to Use a Fire Extinguisher
    Your Smoke Detectors Can Save Your Life. It's Time to Start Taking Care of Them.
    Safety Rules: CR's Guide to Fire Pits

    Your approach will vary based on the type of power your smoke alarm uses. Your first step is to find the device thatā€™s going off and reset it by pressing and holding the reset button.

    If that doesnā€™t work, take the smoke alarm down. If you can, remove the batteries. If your smoke alarm has a lithium battery that you canā€™t take out, muffle it in a blanket, under a sofa cushion, or in your freezer until it stops.

    As for hardwired smoke alarms, ā€œtheyā€™re interconnected through the electrical wires, so if one smoke alarm sounds, theyā€™ll all sound, and it can be difficult to figure out whatā€™s going on,ā€ Deitrick says. First, try the reset button on each smoke alarm. If that doesnā€™t work, flipping the circuit breaker off and back on might stop the noise. If all of that fails, your ultimate solution may be to disconnect the smoke alarms and remove their backup batteries one by one. A small connector at the back of each alarm can be unclipped to let you safely remove it from the network.

    Then it may be time for new smoke alarms. Here, youā€™ll find some of the top picks from our tests, listed in alphabetical order. For more options, check ourĀ smoke and CO detector ratingsĀ and ourĀ smoke and CO detector buying guide.

    Top-Rated Smoke Alarms From CR's Tests

    Here are some top-performing standalone smoke alarms and combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms from our lab tests.

    Home Content Creator Daniel Wroclawski

    Daniel Wroclawski

    I'm obsessed with smart home tech and channel my obsession into new stories for Consumer Reports. When I'm not writing about products, I spend time either outside hiking and skiing or up in the air in small airplanes. For my latest obsessions, follow me on Facebook and Twitter (@danwroc).

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