A quartet of fire products were recently awarded by the Home Safety Council for their contributions to home safety. The innovations included a wireless smoke alarm, a switch-based gas outlet, an interior wall ladder, and a stovetop burner safety device.
"Many [companies] are grateful to get recognition for doing the right thing," said Home Safety Council President, Meri-K Appy. "It shows their investments are a good decision."
The Home Safety Council is a D.C.-based nonprofit organization solely dedicated to preventing home related injuries.
Descriptions of the award winners are listed below. Each product was tested by third party technical safety leaders to ensure their viability. The awards are attributed to the innovations themselves, and are not endorsements of the manufacturers that produced them.
Kidde -- Wireless Smoke Alarm System: An innovative product that makes it easy for families to upgrade the level of fire protection in their homes, the Kidde Wireless Smoke Alarm System features the only wireless smoke alarms listed by UL. The system uses radio frequency to link devices, so that when one alarm sounds, they all will sound regardless of where the fire started, giving families more time to escape safely. A voice sounder was also added to provide extra warning for children and older adults.
Maxitrol Company -- Plug1 Gas Outlet: The Plug1 gas outlet makes it easy and safe to move, store, switch or disconnect gas appliances. A self-contained gas outlet offering multiple safety features, the Plug1 is a circuit breaker for gas. By simply pushing a standard gas plug into the Plug1 and flipping on the switch, gas, either natural or propane, is safely and efficiently supplied to the appliance. Gas will not flow with the switch in the OFF position. Under normal use, the gas plug cannot be pulled out of the socket with the gas switch in the ON position. Gas will not flow if the gas plug is not connected and the gas switch is in the ON position.
PEARL Protected -- Permanent Escape And Rescue Ladder (PEARL): Committed to reducing the thousands of injuries and deaths caused by fires and other home emergencies, PEARL Protected created PEARL, a permanent escape and rescue ladder that is installed into the interior wall space beneath windows of second and third-story homes. In the event of an emergency, PEARL is always where you need it, when you need it offering a safe secondary escape option and peace of mind to homeowners.
Pioneering Technology Inc. -- Safe-T-element: The Safe-T-element cooking system is a patented technology that helps prevent stove top cooking fires (the #1 cause of household fire in North America) and reduces the amount of electricity required to cook. Safe-T-element is a set of four cast iron plates that attach to the top of each of the electric range burners. The Safe-T-element controls the source of the electric current going to the burner element thereby regulating the element's temperature in a manner that prohibits the ignition of cooking oils and other household materials without sacrificing cooking efficiency.
