How to Install a Wired Smoke Detector

So this is what our foyer was looking like.

That would be our doorbell (the giant ugly almond-colored box), our thermostat (also almond), and our (non-working, almond) smoke detector. I don't know what it was with almond and the eighties guys, but I'm not feeling it.

However, the main issue here was the fact that our smoke detector wasn't working. Lest you think we were living in a total fire trap, we did have a working smoke detector upstairs. This downstairs one is wired into the wall, so we knew it was more than just a matter of swapping out some batteries.

I took the opportunity to buy this wired smoke detector in white (I will get rid of you almond, one device at a time!). Here's how we (and by we I mean David) installed it.

Disclaimer: We are not electricians! If you know nothing about electricity, please call a professional rather than electrocuting yourself and/or burning your house down!

First he turned off the foyer electricity by flipping the switch in the breaker box. Then he twisted off the main part of the smoke detector to see what we were working with.

The wires were plugged into the back of the face of the old smoke detector, so he unplugged them.

It was plugged in right where those three prongs are in the middle.

Then he unscrewed the old backplate that was attached to the wall.

Next he had to unscrew the connectors that connected the wires in the wall to the wires that were plugged into the smoke detector. The yellow caps just twist right off.

Here are the old smoke detector wires after the disconnected them from the wall.

He tested the wall wires with a voltage tester just to double check he wouldn't shock himself attaching the new wires.

The new wires came with caps on the ends. He pulled off the caps to the white and black wires. We weren't going to be using the orange wire, so he left the cap on that one.

Then he used the yellow wire connectors to twist the new white wire to the old white wire, and the new black wire to the old black wire.

Then he plugged the new smoke detector in and went to go flip the power back on. We wanted to make sure it was working before we screwed in the new backplate.

Once we confirmed it was working (the smoke detector beeped and a green light turned on), he attached the new matching (white!) backplate.

Then he plugged the smoke detector back in . . .

 . . . and we were off to the races! We pulled out that plastic piece to activate it fully.

It's nice to know we are now more fully protected in our home. And as for that almond . . . one step at a time.