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Shoutout to the guy at the supply house who convinced me to try a 4-wire smoke over a 2-wire for a retrofit in a 1920s building.
I was doing a panel swap and adding smokes in an old brick apartment complex. My plan was to use 2-wire detectors to avoid running new cable for power. The guy at the counter said to just bite the bullet and pull 18/4 for 4-wire smokes. I argued it was more work and cost for the same result. He was right, I was wrong. Having that separate power feed meant zero nuisance trips from the old wiring's voltage drop when other units kicked on their AC. The super hasn't called me back once in six months. For a tricky old building, when has going with the simpler 2-wire option actually been the better call for you all?
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ray_miller8414d ago
That whole debate reminds me of a buddy who insisted on using cheap two-wire units in his restaurant reno to save cash. He figured the kitchen hood system was on its own circuit, so it was fine. Fast forward to a Friday night rush, a fridge compressor kicks on, and half his dining room alarm starts screaming because of a voltage sag. Had to comp a bunch of meals. Sometimes the simpler option just ends up being more expensive when you factor in the callback and the pissed-off customers.
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the_grace15d ago
Read a forum post once where a guy swore by two-wire smokes in a small, standalone house with all new wiring. That setup worked fine because the circuit was clean and dedicated. In older shared buildings with shaky power, the extra cost for four-wire seems totally worth the peace of mind.
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sarah_patel2515d ago
Okay but "shaky power" is exactly why two-wire can be a BAD idea even in a new house. @the_grace, a dedicated circuit doesn't stop a voltage spike from a lightning strike or a bad transformer down the street. That surge can fry a two-wire unit and you'd never know it's dead until it's too late. The four-wire interconnect gives you that constant check-in so the system tells you when something's wrong. Saving a few bucks on safety gear in your own home is just not smart.
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