Introduction
First Alert® OneLink® is a line of wirelessly interconnectable alarms designed to meet the
needs of contractors that retrofit or remodel existing properties. First Alert®
OneLink® offers the same interconnected functionality as hardwired alarms,
without the wires. Because there are no wires to pull through existing walls,
First Alert® OneLink® offers a very cost effective way to bring existing
properties up to code. Using First Alert® OneLink® provides faster job
turnaround vs. hardwire retrofitting applications. Up to 4X more jobs completed
means increased profits and customer satisfaction.
WIRELESS
The product line consists of mostly battery operated alarms making installation fast and easy.
A hardwired bridge unit is used to connect existing hardwired alarms to the new First Alert®
OneLink® enabled alarms providing a complete system, old and new. With exclusive features
like Voice Warning with Location™, Optipath 360 Technology™ and Spread Spectrum Horn
Tone, First Alert has the most complete lineup of wireless smoke and CO products:
Battery Smoke/CO
Combination Alarm
with Voice
Battery
Smoke Alarm
with Voice
Bridge Unit
120V AC Hardwired
Smoke Alarm
Battery Carbon
Monoxide Alarm
with Voice
**Interconnected alarms provide added
warning as compared to single alarms.
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installation. With First Alert® OneLink® there is an extremely small chance of a
duplicate code programmed in an adjacent apartment’s units as with the
competition. No trying to remember dip switch locations for each apartment’s
units. Easier programming means a more cost effective installation.
Question: What is a “Mesh Network” and how does it work?
Answer: First Alert® OneLink® alarms operate on a “mesh network”. All of the First
Alert® OneLink® alarms send, receive and resend the initiating alarm’s signal.
The competition only sends and receives or is a one-way communication. It does
not resend. Why is this important? In the following illustration, the initiating
alarm is in the basement. Let’s say the signal is blocked from reaching the
Master Bedroom alarm either by distance or some obstruction in the home. With
First Alert® OneLink®, the mesh network of alarms re-routes and resends the
signal via the other alarms, providing a greater chance all alarms will receive the
signal. With the competition, only the initiating alarm is sending a signal.
Therefore, the Master Bedroom never receives a signal and is deadly silent. The
“mesh network” is a more reliable means of wireless communication. Again,
seconds count in an emergency.
**Interconnected alarms provide added
warning as compared to single alarms.
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Question: How do I program and link the alarms?
Answer: TO PROGRAM FIRST ALARM:
1. Insert batteries (2, AA batteries).
Alarm Will Say: “Welcome, First Alert
Smoke Alarm.” “No location
programmed” if first time or
“[Location, example: “Basement”]
location programmed” when changing
batteries. “To select location, press
and hold test button now.”
2. Press & Hold Test Button if you
would like to program the location or
change the location of the Alarm.
Release button after Alarm responds. Alarm Will Say: “To save location, press
and hold test button after location is heard.” Alarm will speak list of locations.
3. After you hear the location of where you are placing the Alarm, Press & Hold
the Test Button. Alarm Will Say: “[Location, example: “Basement”] location
saved.” If no location is chosen: “No location saved.”
Your Alarm has now been programmed for the location of your choice.
ADDING AND LINKING ADDITIONAL ONELINK® ALARMS
NOTE: Steps 1 through 3 below need to be completed within two minutes. If
more than two minutes pass, the Green power LED will stop blinking. Simply
open the battery drawer of the second Alarm and repeat steps 1 through 3.
1. Insert the batteries into the battery drawer of the next Alarm. DO NOT CLOSE
THE DRAWER.
2. Press and hold the test button and then close the battery drawer.
3. Once you hear the unit chirp, release the test button. The Green power LED
will start to blink indicating the ONELINK® Alarm is waiting for program data
from one of the other existing setup ONELINK® Alarms.
4. Press and hold the test button on the first Alarm, until the second Alarm
chirps and its Green power LED stops blinking. Then release the test button.
5. You will now be prompted to set the Alarm's location. Follow the directions
given by the Alarm.
6. Repeat steps 1-6 for additional ONELINK® Alarms.
You have now successfully linked your new ONELINK® Alarms. To add additional
Alarms at a later time, follow steps 1 through 6.
**Interconnected alarms provide added
warning as compared to single alarms.
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Question: What is the Spread Spectrum Horn Tone?
Answer: The Spread Spectrum Horn Tone
is a lower and varying horn
frequency that sweeps through
the 2200 – 3400 Hz range. As we
age we lose the capability of
hearing higher frequencies. This
lower frequency and sweeping
tone make it easier for the
elderly with normal age related
hearing loss to better hear the
horn as compared to a standard
horn. This is an important
feature to discuss with
customers as the overall
population is getting older as the
Baby Boomer’s population segment moves into their 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. The first
US Baby Boomers will turn 65 in 2011. (The baby boom refers to people born in
the post-World War II period from 1946 through 1964). This market potential is
already being targeted by builders as evidenced by the increase in the
development of more “Over 55” communities. American’s 55 and older will head
40% of the nation’s households by 2012. No other alarm manufacturer has
recognized this potential and has this feature to date.
Question: How can First Alert® OneLink® alarms be relevant for contractors who have
existing home additions projects?
Answer: When dealing with new construction for existing home additions, the First Alert®
OneLink® “Bridge” unit (SA520B) is a perfect solution. It is often difficult to
connect to the existing alarm circuit when dealing with home additions.
Concrete, steel, laminated beams, etc. are blocking easy access. Building codes
state that the alarms must be hardwired for power, but do not have to be
hardwired for interconnect. Therefore, the SA520B can be used in the new
addition, where power can be obtained locally from a lighting or outlet circuit.
In the existing part of the home, just replace one of the existing hardwired units
with the SA520. Link the two alarms to “bridge” the old and the new sections.
**Interconnected alarms provide added
warning as compared to single alarms.
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Now all alarms will be interconnected, including other existing hardwired alarms
that were interconnected in the old section. First Alert® OneLink® smoke alarms
will interconnect with most competitive smoke alarms, so retrofitting will not
require replacement of existing competitive alarms. (Note: this is not true for
competitive carbon monoxide alarms). In the new section, additional 9120B’s can
be used and in the old section, other First Alert® OneLink® battery operated
alarms can be used to bring the bedrooms, hallways, etc. up to code. First
Alert® OneLink® alarms are a cost effective solution to renovation and
remodeling.
Question: How can Property Owners and Facility Managers benefit from installing First
Alert® OneLink® alarms?
Answer: Property Owners and Facility Managers of existing buildings can save an average
of $150 - $200 per alarm on installation when compared to hardwired alarms,
when they do not have pay for the retrofitting costs of time, material and labor
to connect to an existing alarm circuit and incur drywall repairs, painting, etc.
This does not account for special cases requiring conduit (in some parts of the
country), wire mold, concrete drilling, etc. Turnaround time is much faster. Case
in point, Penn State University in State College, PA accepted First Alert®
OneLink® alarms as a viable alternative to hardwiring alarms in existing off-
campus housing. Code officials are recognizing the benefits of First Alert®
OneLink® alarms.
Question: How can Electrical Contractors benefit from installing First Alert® OneLink®
alarms?
Answer: Electrical Contractors can benefit from installing First Alert® OneLink® alarms
when they have remodeling projects. When new construction is down, Electrical
Contractors are looking for jobs to maintain sales and keep their crews busy.
Using First Alert® OneLink® alarms provides a solution for a faster job
turnaround and cleaner installation – 4X more or greater than retrofitting with
hardwired alarms. Their customers are happier because of the speed the job is
completed and they do not have to hire drywall installers and painters after they
are gone. The point is that even a contractor that makes his living primarily on
electrical installations can benefit from installing battery operated alarms.
**Interconnected alarms provide added
warning as compared to single alarms.
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Question: What are the latching features on the First Alert® OneLink® alarms?
Answer: There are two latching features on these alarms: Alarm Latch and Low Battery
Latch. The latching features are an easy way to see what unit initiated an alarm
or what unit is in low battery condition. Alarm Latch is activated after an Alarm
is exposed to alarm levels of smoke or CO. After smoke or CO levels drop below
alarm levels, the Red LED will begin to flash On for 2 seconds/Off for 2 seconds.
It will continue to flash or “latch” for about 15 minutes, to give time to
determine which unit initiated the alarm. Low Battery Latch is activated when
the Alarm is in the "low battery condition". When this occurs, the Power LED
flashes Green On for 2 seconds/Off for 2 seconds for about 15 minutes. This
feature is designed to help you identify which Alarm needs to have the battery
replaced. Although, the alarm will sound the low battery chirp approximately
once every minute, sometimes during the initial stages of "low battery", the
alarm will chirp in greater intervals than once per minute, sometimes up to
several hours, until the battery reaches a steady low battery level. This
innovative feature eliminates the frustration of waiting for and/or identifying
which unit is chirping.
Question: What is Optipath 360 Technology™?
Answer: Optipath 360 Technology™ is an exclusive patented feature that
provides 360° of direct access to the smoke chamber. The
Photoelectric sensor actually is mounted on the bottom of the
circuit board so that when the alarm is installed the sensor points
towards the ceiling. The sensor has virtually an unobstructed path
to smoke that enters through the slots on the bottom of the alarm.
Question: Are First Alert® OneLink® alarms listed to ANSI/UL Standards?
Answer: Yes. All First Alert® OneLink® alarms are listed by ETL,
an accredited NRTL (nationally recognized testing lab) to
ANSI/UL 217 Standard for smoke alarms and ANSI/UL 2034
Standard for carbon monoxide alarms.
**Interconnected alarms provide added
warning as compared to single alarms.
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Question: How many First Alert® OneLink® alarms can be interconnected together?
Answer: As with hardwired units, NFPA states that up to 18 total units can be
interconnected (RF or hardwired) with a maximum of 12 of those being smoke
alarms.
Question: How long will the batteries last on First Alert® OneLink® alarms?
Answer: As required by the ANSI/UL standards, a battery operated alarm must have the
batteries last for at least one year. First Alert® OneLink® battery operated
alarms meet these requirements.
Question: What other features do the First Alert® OneLink® alarms have?
Answer: First Alert® OneLink® alarms other key features include:
• A photoelectric smoke sensor. The competition uses ionization sensors.
Photoelectric sensor technology is nuisance resistant around kitchens and
bathrooms, which traditionally are more prone to nuisance alarms from
cooking smoke and steam from showers. Nuisance issues with tenants is time
consuming and costly. Some areas of the country require photoelectric alarms
near high nuisance areas like kitchens and bathrooms.
• Requires only 2 “AA” batteries vs. 3 AA batteries with the competition. This
saves 33% in annual battery replacement costs. For large apartment
complexes, this can add up to thousands in savings per year.
• Two Silence features: Alarm Silence can quiet nuisance alarms for several
minutes. Low Battery Silence can temporarily silence the low battery chirp
for up to eight hours before replacing the battery. This is a key feature when
the low battery chirp begins in the middle of the night and you do not have
any replacement batteries. You can quiet the chirp and then replace the
batteries when it’s more convenient.
• Perfect Mount mounting bracket allows for adjustments to the alarm
orientation without it disconnecting from the mounting bracket. This allows
for a cleaner installation.
• Tamper resistant pins to lock the battery drawer and alarm to mounting
bracket. This is a requirement in many multi-family installations.
**Interconnected alarms provide added
warning as compared to single alarms.
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• Pull out battery drawer makes it easier to replace the batteries. No need to
remove from wall or ceiling. The competition’s battery access on the back of
the unit.
• The SA520B hardwired alarm has the same contractor preferred features like
a AC power quick connector, large opening in mounting bracket for easy
access to wiring, keyhole slots in the bracket to eliminate the need to
completely remove the electrical box screws to install the bracket and a
universal bracket that fits any standard electrical box up to 4” in size.
• All smoke alarms have a 10-year limited warranty and CO’s or Smoke/CO
combos have a 5-year limited warranty.
First Alert® OneLink® Competitive Comparison Summary
Feature
Competitive Wireless
Smoke and CO alarms
(4 SKUS)
Smoke alarms only
(2 SKUS)
SKU Lineup
Smoke-Sensing Technology
Photoelectric
Ionization
Patented Optipath 360™ Smoke
Technology
Yes
No
Electrochemical CO Sensor
Pullout Battery Drawer
Yes
Yes
No CO Alarm
No
Voice With Programmable
Location
Yes (First Alert Exclusive)
No Voice
CO Peak-Level Memory Recall Yes
No CO Alarm
Battery
2 AA batteries
9V and 3 AA batteries
Automatic Software-programmed 255-location 8 position dip switch
Unique House Code
65,000 unique codes
(manual)
915MHz with 3-channel frequency
hopping
Frequency
433 MHz w/o frequency hopping
Nuisance and low battery silence
for up to 8 hours
Silence Feature
Mesh Network
Nuisance only
No
Yes
**Interconnected alarms provide added
warning as compared to single alarms.
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