A popular brand of smoke alarms, one distributed by the Vancouver Fire Department, has been recalled due to a possible manufacturing error.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission notified the department that two models of Kidde-brand dual-sensor smoke alarms, which includes up to 425,000 smoke alarms in the U.S., may be unable to detect smoke due to mistakes in manufacturing.
The recall is for Kidde smoke detector models PI2010 and PI9010.
Yellow caps covering one of two smoke sensors in these alarms may have been left on during the manufacturing process, which may compromise their ability to detect smoke.
The Vancouver Fire Department is urging residents who received a smoke alarm from the department between September 2016 to March of this year to remove their smoke alarm and inspect it.
Owners can look through an opening of the side of the alarm to check for the yellow cap.
Those who find the cap, or are unable to check their alarms, can call the Vancouver Fire Department at 360-487-7219 to arrange for a staff member to come check and, if needed, replace an alarm.
If there is no yellow cap, the smoke alarm is OK to reinstall and use.
If the date code printed on the back of the alarm falls between Sept. 10, 2016, and Oct. 13, 2017, the model is affected. The brand “Kidde” is visible on the front center of the affected alarms, and the model number and date code can be found on the back.
The smoke alarms were widely available through retailers and online.
No injuries have yet been reported due the malfunction, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
More information about the recall is available on the commission’s website, www.cpsc.gov, through the manufacturer at www.kidde.com and 833-551-7739.
Correction: The above article incorrectly reported that if there is a yellow cap present on a recalled smoke alarm, it should be reinstalled and no further action is needed. Those directions apply if a yellow cap is not present. If a cap is found, call Vancouver Fire Department.
