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I would like to put a smoke detector in my attached garage and barn, with a wireless/remote signal with a a receiver inside the house.

So far I have found this one

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I am assuming that with that one, you buy some number of them (maybe 2 or 3 in my case) and they all broadcast to each other?

Are there any other similar products that you have experience using?

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I would not recommend installation of a smoke dector in the garage or the barn. Smoke detectors monitor particles in the air and could be set off by vehicle exhaust or dust. A heat detector would best be used for applicaitons in a garge or barn. – RSMoser Jan 19 '11 at 18:55
Thanks. One issue is that it could get quite cold out there (well below freezing certain times of the year, like right now actually!)... I wonder if that affects the smoke detector in any way... hmm... The "garage" part is partitioned from the main barn area, so I wouldn't normally have to worry about car exhaust, but it could be an issue under some conditions or if I bring a car into the main part to work on-- thanks for that note. – Reed Hedges Jan 26 '11 at 22:22

3 Answers

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I have First Alert Onelink in my home. It has a voice notification that indicates the location of the module activated to all other modules. (I have 4 in my home) There are hard-wired and battery powered units. They also use a photoelectric smoke sensor that reduces nuisance alarms from normal smoke or steam.

I personally don't know about the barn issue or the wireless range; but they have quite a few options among the models on the First Alert site.

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I wired a remote siren to the smoke detector in our attached shed, so that we will be alerted in the house if there is a fire in the shed. Seven dollar basic smoke alarm, $5.00 piezo from radio shack, some wire, a relay, and an extra 9v battery. It's pretty easy to do.

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Really great answer. Do you have some references on how to build something like this based on your products? – ppumkin Aug 10 '12 at 10:11
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I tested the First Alert Onelink and the Kidde Wireless System side by side for range. I was able to get over 300 feet. The Kidde system is older and is a direct radio link. The First Alert system can 'hop' from detector to detector, so you can form a chain of units each 300 feet apart. Just get two or more units and they talk to each other.

Or: if you get a hardwire unit, you can use the interconnect wire to trigger just about anything (e.g. a garage door opener, siren, radio, alarm system, etc).

Or: get a BRK HD6135FB heat detector (no problem with cold weather or condensation!) and wire it to a OneLink alarm. If the HD6135FB goes off, it activates the OneLink, which relays the message to all linked alarms.

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