IRC research has implications for type and placement of smoke detectors in homes

Working with the Underwriters' Laboratories of Canada, researchers in IRC's Fire Risk Management Program have found that using ionization-photoelectric smoke detectors is more effective than using ionization or photoelectric detectors alone in homes. These findings are the result of a series of full-scale experiments in Kemano, a deserted company town built by Alcan Smelters and Chemicals Ltd. during the 1950s and donated to British Columbia's Office of the Fire Commissioner for training and research.Peer reviewed: NoNRC publication: Ye