Can Vapes Set off Smoke Alarms? (Yes it Can)

Are you a vape lover and wondering whether vapes can set smoke alarms? The question is logical! Several types of fire alarm systems get triggered with specific kinds of gases and smoke. In addition, the sensitivity of fire alarms keeps increasing over time as the manufacturers find new technologies to upgrade these systems.

So, can vapes and cigarettes set off a smoke alarm?

Typically, yes, vapes and cigarettes may set off smoke alarms. But it depends upon the type of smoke alarm you own. Sometimes the smoke may be little and so couldn’t trigger the fire alarms, but you never know, so it’s necessary to be conscious.

Keep reading to learn the difference between cigarettes and e-cigarettes. Also, we shall discuss whether the vapes and cigarettes may set off a smoke alarm or not. We may also address the types of smoke alarms in this post.

can vapes set off smoke alarms

What is the difference between cigarettes and e-cigarettes?

Today, a major population is well aware of e-cigarettes since many have shifted from typical cigarettes to the latter ones. The basic difference between these two types of cigarettes is that the latter ones do not produce smoke when burnt!

If you have never used an e-cigarette, a question may pop up in your mind: How do these not produce smoke?

Well, as the name suggests, e-cigarettes are electronic devices that work on batteries. Therefore, you can enjoy the real feelings of smoking only when you have charged the cigarette device. One such device is a vaporizer, which is popular as vape.

Since it is an electronic device, the vape does not produce any smoke, but vapors only, which get dismissed in the air pretty quickly!

As we know, typical cigarettes can ignite fires when smoked indoors, like you can get your bedding and carpeting burnt if you do not dispose of the cigarette properly. However, when it comes to vapes, they do not come with any such threat.

Do cigarettes set off smoke alarms?

The cigarettes may or may not set off smoke alarms. Though the smoke that comes off from a single cigarette is pretty little to trigger fire alarms, you never know! You can conclude that it will depend on the number of cigarettes lit up in a closed unventilated area.

As a precautionary measure, it is always preferable to smoke typical cigarettes in outdoor areas where the smoke gets disappears within seconds or less.

When people smoke cigarettes outside, there are no chances of triggering fire alarms. Besides, smoking cigarettes outside a closed area or home also prevents the burning of household items, which is typically common, though most cases are unintentional.

Can vapes set off smoke alarms?

Yes, vapes can set off smoke alarms! Different types of fire alarms work on high-tech principles like the scattered infra-red light owing to vapors can set off an optical fire alarm.

Similarly, later on, you will find out that if the smoke particle or vapors interrupts the electricity between the charged plates of an ionization fire alarm, it sets off! Therefore, you cannot conclude entirely that vapors and smoke are unable to set off alarms.

However, a very noticeable amount of vapors and smoke fumes must be present in an unventilated area to set off the fire alarms.

Can cigarettes and e-cigarettes turn on sprinklers?

No, Cigarettes and E-Cigarettes can’t turn on sprinklers. Well, the answer to the question lies in the working principle of fire sprinklers. Whenever a place catches fire, firstly, the fire alarms set off secondary to the smoke produced.

But the fire sprinklers do not respond in the early stages. It is because these sprinklers respond to enormous amounts of heat and not smoke.

When the affected area heats up so much that the liquid present in the sprinkler’s head boils, the result is breakage of the sprinkler’s glass, which leads to the sprinkling of water in the area.

Hence, we conclude that fire sprinklers do not get triggered with any smoke and vapors.

Different types of fire alarm systems

There are four very important types of fire alarm systems in which vapor is more likely to set off alarm.

Below are the types of fire alarm system:

1. Alarms that respond to heat only

One of the fire alarms is that which sets off by detecting the heat only. Until and unless you do not bring the heat source near the fire alarm, it will not set off. In these alarms, smoke fumes and vapors do not set them off because they respond to heat only.

Besides, you can find these types of fire alarms in kitchens mostly.

2. Fire alarms that work on the ionisation principle

These fire alarms consist of a chamber on the inside, which contains air. The air uses a minute amount of radiations to become ionized; it contains positive and negative charges. Besides, there are two electrically charged plates in the chamber between which the ions keep flowing.

However, if the flow of the ions gets interrupted with smoke particles or vapors, this alarm is usually set off quickly. Hence, everyone considers these alarms as highly sensitive to smoke and vapors. Therefore, you do not find them in bathrooms and kitchens. However, industries and factories may have these installed, but these alarms are very annoying since they get triggered by smoke and vapors.

3. The photoelectric alarms

These fire alarm systems are pretty much easier than other types to understand. Inside these fire alarms, it requires a beam of light to maintain silence. However, whenever smoke particles or vapors mess up with the flow of the beam of light, the alarm sets off!

The typical cigarettes that produce smoke are very likely to trigger a photoelectric fire alarm. However, if vapes, a noticeable amount of vaping fumes must be present right below the alarm to set it off.

A major disadvantage of photoelectric fire alarms is that they cannot differentiate between smoke produced by cigarettes or any source and moisture. Therefore, when the weather turns extremely humid, these alarms set off, giving false alarms.

4. Fire alarms containing dual sensors

Unlike the fire mentioned above, this type of fire alarm contains both photoelectric and ionization fire alarm systems. Therefore, these dual sensor fire alarm systems get triggered by both smoke and vapors produced by e-cigarettes.

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In Conclusion

Without any doubt, it is very important to know whether your cigarette smoking can set off fire alarms or not. This way, you can stay cautious! Therefore, we have tried our best to brief whether cigarette smoke and vapes can set off fire alarms in this article. In addition, we also mentioned different types of fire alarms and their working principles. Hopefully, it will prove helpful!

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