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Pryor on Fire posted:Can bugs crawl in and set off smoke detectors? Losing my mind trying to figure out why my smoke/CO detectors go off every few weeks despite there being no smoke and no CO. Just a bunch of those wired together Kidde detectors I think. Yes, if they are photoelectric. It's a lot more likely one of them is going bad. How old are they? If 10 years or more they should be replaced. Edit: way to leave a window open for too long and have the conversation move past this. In any case, if they are due in 2019 may as well get on it.
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Jun 14, 2017 01:54
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The value of my home has grown to the point where my outstanding balance looks to be hovering at ~72-75%. I'm currently paying PMI and would like to start the process of getting it removed. Do I essentially just have someone reappraise the property, go to my lender and say "The appraiser thinks my home is worth X, since my balance is 72% of that I shouldn't pay PMI anymore." ? Considering this is a 6 figure loan and they desire to milk as much PMI out of me as I can, I presume it's more complicated than that.
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Jun 14, 2017 08:15
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I got rid of it through refinance.
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Jun 14, 2017 08:56
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Kirios posted:The value of my home has grown to the point where my outstanding balance looks to be hovering at ~72-75%. I'm currently paying PMI and would like to start the process of getting it removed. Do I essentially just have someone reappraise the property, go to my lender and say "The appraiser thinks my home is worth X, since my balance is 72% of that I shouldn't pay PMI anymore." ? Considering this is a 6 figure loan and they desire to milk as much PMI out of me as I can, I presume it's more complicated than that. The rule, as I've heard it, is that you have to get to the original specified point in time on the loan where you would have paid 20% on the amortization table. Otherwise you have to refinance.
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Jun 14, 2017 12:57
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EAT FASTER!!!!!! posted:The rule, as I've heard it, is that you have to get to the original specified point in time on the loan where you would have paid 20% on the amortization table. Otherwise you have to refinance. That depends on your lender's terms. Mine will drop PMI as soon as I hit 20% LTV - but only if I ask them to. If I hit it through payments that's the end, if it's through appreciation I'll have to pay for an appraisal. Otherwise they'll stick to the schedule.
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Jun 14, 2017 15:06
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Kirios posted:The value of my home has grown to the point where my outstanding balance looks to be hovering at ~72-75%. I'm currently paying PMI and would like to start the process of getting it removed. Do I essentially just have someone reappraise the property, go to my lender and say "The appraiser thinks my home is worth X, since my balance is 72% of that I shouldn't pay PMI anymore." ? Considering this is a 6 figure loan and they desire to milk as much PMI out of me as I can, I presume it's more complicated than that. If you have FHA you must refinance. Thanks government! Otherwise just have a conversation with your bank. Unless your area has appreciated so substantially that you could use what amounts to an appraisal waiver if you were refinancing at 78% (which if you're at 75%, you might) then they will tell you to fork out $500 on an appraisal. From there it's just paperwork.
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Jun 14, 2017 15:31
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Pryor on Fire posted:Can bugs crawl in and set off smoke detectors? Losing my mind trying to figure out why my smoke/CO detectors go off every few weeks despite there being no smoke and no CO. Just a bunch of those wired together Kidde detectors I think.
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Jun 14, 2017 15:38
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On that topic, is there a goon-approved smoke detector? I'd like to get one of the ones with a 5 or 10 year life because I hate having to replace the batteries.
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Jun 15, 2017 19:43
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I like my Nest because I can silence it from my phone when I'm searing the goddamn out of my steaks. In theory knowing that there was a fire while I'm away could be helpful, but it's not like I'm going to call 911 because of a push notification.
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Jun 15, 2017 19:47
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I want nothing to do with Nest based on so many horror stories, however, I am interested in this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00XMX4GUC/_encoding=UTF8?coliid=IXZ3OVO8UAKH2&colid=2S3IUKG08JHJJ It basically "listens" for your pre-existing alarms and notifies you if they go off.
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Jun 15, 2017 20:00
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Ashcans posted:On that topic, is there a goon-approved smoke detector? I'd like to get one of the ones with a 5 or 10 year life because I hate having to replace the batteries. Smoke detectors have a life span on the order of years but you'll still need to swap the batteries yearly.
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Jun 15, 2017 20:45
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HEY NONG MAN posted:Smoke detectors have a life span on the order of years but you'll still need to swap the batteries yearly. They make alarms that have a lithium battery good for the lifespan of the actual unit, so that you don't have to replace the batteries every year (I feel like we're replacing them more often than that anyway, but maybe it's just because we never seem to get them all on the same cycle). I've been looking over some, but I don't know if they're really a good choice.
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Jun 15, 2017 21:02
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Ashcans posted:On that topic, is there a goon-approved smoke detector? I'd like to get one of the ones with a 5 or 10 year life because I hate having to replace the batteries. I am happy with my Kiddie 10-year lifetime battery ones. They came in a 4-pack. By happy I mean I can fit my thumb over the speaker when I press the test button.
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Jun 15, 2017 21:06
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Ashcans posted:They make alarms that have a lithium battery good for the lifespan of the actual unit, so that you don't have to replace the batteries every year (I feel like we're replacing them more often than that anyway, but maybe it's just because we never seem to get them all on the same cycle). I've been looking over some, but I don't know if they're really a good choice. IIRC alarms with lithium batteries come in flavors that do and don't connect to a wired-in system (just like alarms that take normal batteries), so be sure you're getting the right kind. They're nice, though. You're still advised to test them like any other smoke detector, but they should last the whole 10 years when you're due to replace the detector anyway. They're not much more expensive, either. Also, firefighters around the world recommend just getting photoelectric smoke detectors; not the old-style ionization detectors, and not the hybrid/combined kind. Once you've settled on buying photoelectric detectors, there's not really much difference between brands. These are somewhat simple devices that sit on the ceiling and detect smoke. If you have a wired-in system, get smoke detectors that can be wired in (but that still have a battery). If you don't, then get the battery-only kind. If you're installing it in an area where CO can be a problem, then get a detector that also detects CO. There are several brands that do any/all of these and price differences are often just do to the specific combination of features that you need (lithium models cost more, combination photoelectric smoke+CO detection costs more than photoelectric alone, etc). Nest smoke detectors aren't any better at detecting fires, and they aren't any better at preventing nuisance alarms than normal photoelectric detectors, but they do self-test and can connect to your phone, and if a nuisance alarm is about to go off then it'll warn you and let you cancel it if you have your phone nearby. If you care about these features and don't mind shelling out ~3x as much money, then get a Nest.
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Jun 15, 2017 21:20
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Maybe my house is just small and easily monitored, but I don't find much hassle in replacing a couple batteries a couple times a year, at most.
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Jun 15, 2017 22:03
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Thesaurus posted:Maybe my house is just small and easily monitored, but I don't find much hassle in replacing a couple batteries a couple times a year, at most. You are forgetting that the Millennial generation is so lazy it spawned a service to move your garbage cans from the side of your house to the street on garbage day. http://www.trashday.co/
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Jun 15, 2017 22:08
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Holy poo poo.
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Jun 15, 2017 22:08
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Droo posted:You are forgetting that the Millennial generation is so lazy it spawned a service to move your garbage cans from the side of your house to the street on garbage day. That'd be perfect if you're in an HOA that tags you if your cans are on the street for more than an hour after pickup. *is a millennial*
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Jun 15, 2017 22:14
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Higgy posted:That'd be perfect if you're in an HOA that tags you if your cans are on the street for more than an hour after pickup. *is a millennial* Lol wtf is this no way
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Jun 15, 2017 22:32
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Droo posted:You are forgetting that the Millennial generation is so lazy it spawned a service to move your garbage cans from the side of your house to the street on garbage day.  e: I thought millenials didn't own homes anyway thanks to avocado toast? I'm gonna go ahead and blame boomers, the laziest and FYGM-ist generation in history.
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Jun 15, 2017 22:40
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Higgy posted:That'd be perfect if you're in an HOA that tags you if your cans are on the street for more than an hour after pickup. *is a millennial* Example #382 of why you should never buy in an HOA.
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Jun 15, 2017 22:53
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Thesaurus posted:Maybe my house is just small and easily monitored, but I don't find much hassle in replacing a couple batteries a couple times a year, at most. I agree. The 10-year sealed units cost a few dollars more than the 9v replaceable battery ones on Amazon. I hate chirping more than I hate a few dollars, and they are cheaper to operate over the lifetime of the unit. This is technology bringing a small improvement to your life. I wouldn't replace a non-expired one for it, but if it's already expired there is no reason not to get a 10-year lithium battery detector. (AmazonBasics 8-pack of 9V batteries is arguably a lifetime supply if they last over a year, and they cost $1/battery. If they last 6 months it's a annual supply for a 4-dector house. The cost difference between a 10-year lithium and a 9V one was $3. Why bother with alkaline?)
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Jun 15, 2017 23:15
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QuarkJets posted:Also, firefighters around the world recommend just getting photoelectric smoke detectors; not the old-style ionization detectors, and not the hybrid/combined kind.
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Jun 15, 2017 23:31
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Alereon posted:I was rather curious about this since combo units are nearly universally recommended over photoelectric units, including by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission and the National Fire Protection Association. It looks like there is one crazy Australian guy (the World Fire Safety Federation) who hates combo detectors because he once installed ionization-only detectors in properties he managed and feels bad about it. Ionization and Photoelectric detectors both have their strengths, and while Ionization-only detectors are dangerous because they cause false positives that encourage disabling them and don't react quickly enough to smoldering fires, dual-sensor smoke detectors react more quickly and with lower false-positive rates than either kind of sensor alone. Indeed, Consumer Reports only recommends dual-sensor models because their independent testing shows they performed drastically better than photoelectric-only models. The International Association of Fire Fighters endorses only photoelectric units. They say that the additional protection provided by combination/dual-sensor alarms is negligible, and they can be dangerous for the exact reason you described: statistically they are much more likely to be disabled for nuisance reasons. Combination alarms and Ionization alarms both suffer from this effect. http://www.thewfsf.org/iaff
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Jun 16, 2017 00:27
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Thanks for the water heater advice guys. Does $520 for an AO Smith 40 gallon gas powered tank with six years of warrantee sound about right?
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Jun 16, 2017 00:43
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Thesaurus posted:Maybe my house is just small and easily monitored, but I don't find much hassle in replacing a couple batteries a couple times a year, at most. I dunno, maybe we have too many, but I feel weird about reducing the number just because of convenience. We have two in the basement where the dryers/furnaces/heaters are, two in each front and rear stairwell, one in the kitchen, one in the living room and one in the hallway.
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Jun 16, 2017 01:03
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QuarkJets posted:The International Association of Fire Fighters endorses only photoelectric units. They say that the additional protection provided by combination/dual-sensor alarms is negligible, and they can be dangerous for the exact reason you described: statistically they are much more likely to be disabled for nuisance reasons. Combination alarms and Ionization alarms both suffer from this effect. This seems very silly to me because I've never gotten a false alarm and the Nest  makes it trivial to snooze the alarm if you do something like burn toast in the kitchen without disabling themvOv
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Jun 16, 2017 01:20
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That's a benefit of just having normal photoelectric IR alarms, burnt toast won't set them off unless you threw the on-fire toast into a bunch of kindling and started a for-real fire
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Jun 16, 2017 01:21
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HEY NONG MAN posted:Lol wtf is this no way It's a slight exaggeration. slight.
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Jun 16, 2017 03:03
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Steve Yun posted:Thanks for the water heater advice guys. Does $520 for an AO Smith 40 gallon gas powered tank with six years of warrantee sound about right? Sounds reasonable.
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Jun 16, 2017 18:13
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My smoke detectors need replaced (well like a year and a half ago) and I've mostly been putting it off because I've been looking to replace them with ones that can tell the fire company which one(s) are going off and I haven't figured out a good brand yet. Does anyone have experience with the different brands for smokes like that ?
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Jun 17, 2017 07:39
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Does the fire company even care which specific smoke detector is going off in a house before arriving on the scene?
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Jun 17, 2017 07:57
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QuarkJets posted:Does the fire company even care which specific smoke detector is going off in a house before arriving on the scene? If your house is big enough yea. It can help them respond to the correct location more quickly.
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Jun 17, 2017 07:58
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QuarkJets posted:The International Association of Fire Fighters endorses only photoelectric units. They say that the additional protection provided by combination/dual-sensor alarms is negligible, and they can be dangerous for the exact reason you described: statistically they are much more likely to be disabled for nuisance reasons. Combination alarms and Ionization alarms both suffer from this effect.
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Jun 17, 2017 19:37
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QuarkJets posted:Does the fire company even care which specific smoke detector is going off in a house before arriving on the scene? It mostly helps us leave quicker, especially in larger apartment buildings. If you know which detector was activated, you can go straight to it and make sure it was only burnt food/construction dust/shower steam/pot smoke instead of having to walk around everywhere to make sure everything is okay (because if you don't and you miss something you get sued). If you have fire alarm system (vs. just wired smoke detectors) it's super helpful if you silence it but don't reset it, so the firefighters can walk to the detector head in question, confirm that its red light is on, and reset the system if whatever set it off has cleared up.
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Jun 17, 2017 21:39
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Alereon posted:That's the crazy Australian dude I mentioned, he managed to convince some people to go along with him 10 years ago but you'll notice they've scrubbed all references of this from their website today. I don't think that the IAFF would go along with some crazy guy for no reason. And they never repealed the resolution from 2008 where they adopt a photoelectrics-only position; that's still part of their bylaws. This report from the CSPC explains the reasoning, which is still true to this day: combination smoke detectors result in as many nuisance alarms as ionization smoke detectors. They take the stance of using the right type of detector in the right place (aka a photoelectric alarm near the kitchen) You're acting like the IAFF had no reason to suggest photoelectric alarms over others, but the reasoning is pretty clear. In accordance with those reasons, I think it makes sense to place combination alarms away from the kitchen, where habitual smoke generation is less likely to occur, and to use only a photoelectric alarm near the kitchen.
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Jun 17, 2017 22:05
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QuarkJets posted:which is still true to this day: combination smoke detectors result in as many nuisance alarms as ionization smoke detectors.
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Jun 17, 2017 22:48
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Alereon posted:This is the crux of the issue: a single Australian guy has made it his personal mission to convince the world this is true, and either to shut him up or because they assumed someone who cares that much MUST know what he's talking about, a handful of firefighters' labor unions have gone along with him. However, there's no evidence that it's true on the detectors sold today when installed per the directions (yes, you shouldn't put a combination unit in the kitchen), and the organizations that actually promote safety consistently recommend combination sensor models. You gave the impression that there's a general opinion among experts against combination units, when in fact there's only a few outspoken holdouts against them. The CSPC report shows statistics demonstrating that it's true, with references. But it also seems like it obviously should be true; why would you expect a combination detector (with an ionization detector in it) to not experience as many nuisance alarms as an ionization alarm? Note that I'm saying you should just have a photoelectric detector near the kitchen, where ionization detectors are most likely to produce nuisance alarms. Many US states require the same thing in their building code: 5-10 feet from the kitchen should have photoelectric detectors only. This is in accordance with NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) recommendations QuarkJets fucked around with this message at 22:54 on Jun 17, 2017 |
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Jun 17, 2017 22:49
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QuarkJets posted:But it also seems like it obviously should be true; why would you expect a combination detector (with an ionization detector in it) to not experience as many nuisance alarms as an ionization alarm?
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Jun 18, 2017 00:51
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Alereon posted:With two independent sensors providing data the unit can make a much more intelligent decision about whether there is a fire, to reduce false positives and improve alarm times compared to single-sensor units. At the very least the ionization alarm threshold is set higher on dual-sensor units. It's not like there's just two detectors in a box and they race to set off an alarm. I'm pretty sure that last sentence is actually how a fire alarm works. Can you show me some resources demonstrating that a $20 combo alarm has intelligent decision-making abilities beyond "is a sensor detecting smoke?"
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Jun 18, 2017 01:22
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