As vape detector for schools we are always keen to avoid the potential for triggering fire alarms, especially in places where we aren’t supposed to be, like hotels. However, if we really are determined to vape against the rules then the answer to the question of do smoke detectors detect vape is that it depends on what type of alarms you have and how dense your cloud is.

Photoelectric Smoke Alarms

The most common type of fire alarm used in homes and small businesses is the photoelectric smoke detector. These use a light-emitting diode (LED) and a light-sensitive sensor to measure the presence of smoke. When smoke particles pass through the chamber, they diffract or scatter the light rays, which causes the sensor to trip the alarm. It takes quite a lot of smoke to trigger this type of smoke detector, but it’s not impossible.

“Clearing the Air: Understanding Vape Detectors

Ionization smoke alarms use a chamber with charged plates and an ionization source. The air in the chamber becomes ionized, which creates a current between the two plates that is triggered when smoke particles break the circuit. It is much less likely that e-cigarette vapour will trigger an ionization smoke detector than it is a real fire, but sadly stories of ionized smoke detectors being triggered by vapour have been reported in the past.

Heat Alarms