Daylight Savings Begins This Weekend, Time to Check Your Smoke Detectors

Time to spring forward this weekend.

Daylight Savings Time begins this Sunday at 2:00 a.m., so remember to set your clocks ahead one hour Saturday night before going to bed.

Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner John F. King says it’s also a good time to change your smoke alarm batteries when you change your clocks.

“The annual change to daylight savings time is the perfect opportunity to make sure your smoke alarms are working properly,” Commissioner King said. “We recommend changing the batteries in these devices twice a year. A great habit to pick up is to make this change when you move your clocks forward or backward each year. This small task is one of the easiest ways to ensure continued protection of your family and property.”

According to Commissioner King, fire safety experts advise that smoke alarm batteries should be changed twice per year, and the beginning of Daylight Savings Time is the perfect opportunity to replace the batteries in your smoke alarms.

Smoke alarm batteries can be the difference between life and death for too many Georgians.  Since January, 22 people in Georgia have died in house fires, according to King’s office.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, nearly three out of five home fire deaths occur in properties with no smoke alarms or smoke alarms that fail to operate.

Now if you don’t have a smoke detector and need one or if you’re not sure how to check your smoke alarm, King says you can contact your local fire department and someone will come to your home and either check yours or bring you a new one free of charge.

Commissioner King also encourages Georgians to test and clean dust from their smoke alarms monthly and to practice an escape plan in case their home is ever impacted by a fire.