How would you guys have handled this? Fire Department had to go into the basement...

[Nickelless]

I got a call from my next-door neighbor about an hour ago saying that my smoke detector was going off. I hurried home and, sure enough, the smoke detector in the kitchen was going off. I couldn't smell any smoke, but I wasn't taking any chances, so I called 911, the fire department sent a single tanker truck with two firefighters, and when they got there one of the firefighters went down to the basement. I've got most of my preps in the basement at the moment, since it's the most easily concealable part of the house, not to mention the coolest--a constant 60 degrees. I've got about 50 five-gallon buckets stacked up in one corner, with a couple large-ish shelves of canned goods and dehydrated stuff in mason jars on the far wall, with several extra boxes of canned goods piled up as well. I guess it's too late to make the firefighters "unsee" my preps, and now I'm a little worried, wondering if I should move them. Have any of you had situations like this with emergency responders, and if so, what did you do?

For that matter, last night was the first night I slept with all of the windows open, since it was relatively cool out, and I left the windows open (with my alarm system on) when I left the house earlier and I'm wondering if humidity could have set off the smoke alarms, which are not connected to my service with ADT. Any insights?

[newmisty]

Any insights?

Don't stress. You are doing nothing wrong.

[Nickelless]

Don't stress. You are doing nothing wrong.

But if these firefighters think I'm "hoarding" food and TPTB pass immoral laws at some point prohibiting the hoarding of food...

[goldie40]

an oder may have blown across the sensor or a fly or bug may have got in it.i wouldn't worry abvout the firemen saying anything, they usually forget about the last place when they leave unless it smelled real bad or there were snakes in the basement, other than that they see all kinds of things in houses.

[Hystckndle]

But if these firefighters think I'm "hoarding" food and TPTB pass immoral laws at some point prohibiting the hoarding of food...

Don't sweat it Nkckeless.
By the time they get to doing something like that there will be mucho more problemos about my friend.

[GodspeedMetals]

Nah, chill out Nick. Lots of people store food. But it doesn't mean you should keep your guard down.

Different story if you had rows and rows of guns and C4.

Hope the new job search is giving you some good leads.

[Armed.peasant]

Nothing to worry about, if they ask tell them you are mormon and its required that you have a one year supply of food.

[southfork]

Change your smoke detector so it wont happen again, they corrode and get dirty over time and become more sensitive to dust ect.

[Goldhedge]

Yeah, much ado about nothing.

Now, if you had bongs, roaches and hookers and blow lying about...

...but you wouldn't be a Mormon then would you....

[Argentium]

I'm sure the FD didn't give it a second thought. They probably see a lot weirder stuff on calls, than a bunch of preps

[Juristic Person]

I wouldn't worry about it at all.

But I'm wondering why you called the FD in the first place...

[ttazzman]

I agree with the above post........also you should be prepared to have utility companies and/or other officials looking around

[Wellsburg]

A neighbor of mine had their smoke detector go off several times over a few week period, and no fire or smoke in the house. They found that a very small spider had build a tiny web in the little hole of the detector. The tiny web blocked the red light inside the detector causing it to activate. Unfortunately, their detectors are hard wired in with their alarm system so the fire trucks arrived for false alarms and they were fined several hundred dollars before figuring out the problem.

They disabled the system and went around the house with a damp Q-Tip and cleaned out all of the detector holes, problem solved.

[Nickelless]

I wouldn't worry about it at all.

But I'm wondering why you called the FD in the first place...

I'll keep the Mormon line in mind if anything happens again where people have to go into my basement on short notice. I didn't smell smoke, but I didn't want to take any chances. If something had happened and my fiancee, who is handicapped, had been there alone, there could have been major problems if she had to get out in a hurry. My house was built in 1900, so I worry about things happening, even though a pre-purchase inspection and subsequent upgrade of the electrical system from 60-amp to 100-amp cleared everything with the electric company when they came out to inspect the property before switching service to my name.


Change your smoke detector so it wont happen again, they corrode and get dirty over time and become more sensitive to dust ect.

I went out and got two brand-new smoke detectors this afternoon. I'd changed the batteries in the smoke detectors when I moved in and then again about a month ago but hadn't thought about changing the detectors themselves until today. Then again, the woman whose estate I bought the house from had lived there about 56 years before she died last spring, and when I took possession of the house, I found a box of baking soda in the freezer with a "best by" date of 1995! So if she hadn't changed the smoke detectors in a long time, that would've made perfect sense.

[Treasure Searcher]

Since I am a fire chief for a volunteer fire department and have served on other VFD's as well, I have been in many basements.

Unless you have a meth lab or someone tied up in the basement, the FD could not care less. I've been in so many basements, I do not remember what was in any of them.

Do not sweat anything. Most basements have canned jars of beans, carrots, etc. on shelves and bags of potatoes stored there. That is what basements are for.

[Not Sure]

Step 1) go to Goodwill or Wal-Mart, and acquire some Queen- or King-sized flat bed sheets.

Step 2) cover all preps with said bed sheets, neatly.

Step 3) when asked what's under the sheets, "old books and knick-knacks, haven't had a chance to properly dispose of them yet."

Given the circumstances, you did what you had to do. But before something happens again and requires another "inspection," follow my advice above.

And yes, humidity will set off an ionization smoke alarm. We've got one in the garage, and it went off one day recently, because the drier vent hose came undone from the wall and was filling the garage with steam.

[Unclad Lad]

In the unlikely event someone asks, tell them, "Oh, that's all left over from Y2K. I know none of it is any good, but I keep it as an expensive reminder to myself so I never fall for that 'end-of-the-world' crap again"!

[90%RealMoney]

"Oh, those buckets? There's nothing in those". Then, go on to tell them how much you liked "Silence of The Lambs", and the Showtime series "Dexter". LOL!

[Usury]

You only have 100 amp service? Wow...you must have all gas heat and appliances...

[Juristic Person]

when asked what's under the sheets, "old books and knick-knacks, haven't had a chance to properly dispose of them yet."

Or just be honest and tell them, "food. Armageddon is coming!" ;)

[dacrunch]

hmmm.. built in the 70s or 80s...

My brother bought a house built in those times, there was a brief period where aluminum wiring was "code" for house wiring...

That was a big boo-boo...

Aluminum wires heat up and expand and contract, and over time the connections get loose, leading to shorting (and poor contacts that make you have a higher utility bill). So every couple of years you have to pull the main breaker, and tighten the screws on the individual breakers in the panel box, and if you want to be thorough, remove the covers of your power outlets and re-tighten the connections...

Even more thorough is to pull the meter outside, so you can tighten the main wiring to the fuse panel - but gotta let your utility know, 'cause you're going to break the seal at the meter...

Long live copper (for water piping too... I'm guessing all that CPVC is gonna fall apart within a couple decades...).

:bandit:

[__hoot__]

Was in a zillion basements putting in satellite dish wireing and remember what was in very few of them. A few machine guns in one did get my interest though. Turns out he did have a class 3 license and was the local DEA snitch[did offer me some]

[earplugs]

You sound like a teerrrositZr with al quesadilla and the Taliban Isi hoarding all those deadly beans and rice and corn. Those are deadly weapons. Tell us where you live so we can repet you to Dhs

[Nickelless]

You sound like a teerrrositZr with al quesadilla

LMAO! :haha:

[Nickelless]

Step 1) go to Goodwill or Wal-Mart, and acquire some Queen- or King-sized flat bed sheets.

Step 2) cover all preps with said bed sheets, neatly.

Step 3) when asked what's under the sheets, "old books and knick-knacks, haven't had a chance to properly dispose of them yet."

Given the circumstances, you did what you had to do. But before something happens again and requires another "inspection," follow my advice above.

And yes, humidity will set off an ionization smoke alarm. We've got one in the garage, and it went off one day recently, because the drier vent hose came undone from the wall and was filling the garage with steam.

I'll keep that in mind about the humidity. And FYI, I have a few large tarps from Walmart that I normally keep my preps covered with, but I just did a major reorganization a few days ago in moving everything dated 2012 to the secondary pantry off of my kitchen and kept everything dated 2013 and later in the basement and elsewhere.


You only have 100 amp service? Wow...you must have all gas heat and appliances...


hmmm.. built in the 70s or 80s...

Actually, the house was UPGRADED to 100-amp service from 60-amp as a condition of my closing on the house last fall. The same lady had lived in the house for more than 50 years before she died last year. The house was built in 1900. I have gas heat but use an electric stove. I'm in the process of figuring out how to set up solar water heating, per TnAndy's suggestion a while back.

[ttazzman]

your big power users would be

Stove (but it varies depending on how many elements are going at once) (but they are usually set up on a 50amp breaker)
AC (usually needs 10amps per ton)(most homes are 3 ton)
Clothes dryer (usually 30amp breaker)

I have seem many houses with the above set up with 100amp services in the past but most these days are a minimum of 200amps

Most utilities can put a meter on your house for a period of time and give you back a Load chart of what your home is using on a minute by minute basis which can be helpful in figuring out what your true electrical demand is.

[horseman1]

your big power users would be

Stove (but it varies depending on how many elements are going at once) (but they are usually set up on a 50amp breaker)
AC (usually needs 10amps per ton)(most homes are 3 ton)
Clothes dryer (usually 30amp breaker)



No way. His big power draw is caused by running 10 dehydrators in parallel :). I thought about you (Nickeless) today... I was dehydrating some carrots and was wondering whether I needed to boil/steam them first?

[Nickelless]

No way. His big power draw is caused by running 10 dehydrators in parallel :). I thought about you (Nickeless) today... I was dehydrating some carrots and was wondering whether I needed to boil/steam them first?

Guilty as charged on the Nescos, Horseman1! :biggrin: Seriously, I dehydrate frozen vegetables (which I thaw first), and since frozen veggies have already been blanched, they're ready to be heated and served and/or dehydrated and stored. There's no need to boil them first.