Had a smoke detector start chirping inside a finished wall in a Phoenix condo

I was doing a panel swap at a high rise near Camelback Road, and this faint beep kept coming from behind the drywall every 30 seconds. Turns out the original installer from years back left a backup battery in an old unit they just sealed over. I had to cut a small access panel, fish it out with a magnet on a stick, and patch it up. Anyone else run into a 'ghost' detector like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

elliot_johnson313d ago

That "cut a small access panel" method seems like a lot of extra work. I would have just found the stud bay with the chirping and cut a proper hole for a new access door. A patch is never as clean, and the next guy will need to get in there anyway. Fishing it out with a magnet is clever, but you still have a hidden void with old wires now. I always make things accessible for future repairs.

harper6933d ago

My old landlord once painted over an access panel and we had to smash the wall later.