Customer Ratings & Reviews

I recently upgraded my home safety system by installing the First Alert SC5 Hardwire Smart Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Alarm, and I couldn't be happier with my choice. I wanted something that would not only keep my family safe but also integrate seamlessly with my existing Google Nest smart home system. One of the standout features for me is the ability to receive alerts on my phone, whether I'm at home or away. It's a comforting thought knowing that if smoke or carbon monoxide is detected, I’ll be notified immediately. Of course, I hope I never have to test this feature, but it’s reassuring to know it’s there. Installation was a breeze thanks to the Quick Connect plug. I didn't have to worry about complicated rewiring, which was a huge plus for me. The hardwire interconnect feature is also great because it means that if one alarm goes off, all compatible alarms will sound. This gives me peace of mind, especially when I have guests over or when the kids are sleeping. I also appreciate the voice alerts that tell me the type and location of the danger. It’s much better than just a beeping sound; it feels more informative and less panic-inducing. Plus, having a 2-in-1 protection system for both smoke/fire and carbon monoxide is a huge advantage. No need for separate alarms, which is truly cost-saving. Another feature that I find comforting is the battery backup. Living in an area where power outages can happen all of a sudden, it’s nice to know that we’ll still be protected even if the lights go out. Before this, I had a simple 'plug-and-play' alarm from a different brand, but I wanted to upgrade to something smarter and more reliable. The First Alert SC5 fits the bill perfectly. Overall, I feel more secure in my home, and I would definitely recommend this alarm to anyone looking to enhance their fire safety measures.

I got this unit to replace my current unit that was 19 years old. What I particularly like about this unit is the combined smoke/CO2 detection. The smart feature is nice, but not necessary. Knowing that a detector has an advertised 10 year lifespan, I got this unit to replace an existing unit. As a hardwired unit, the installation is straight forward. Twisting off the old unit, unplugging it, removing the old mounting ring, and disconnecting the wiring was easy. The installation of this unit's own mounting ring, connecting the wiring to this new unit, and installing the new mounting ring was similarly easy. The wiring harness snaps onto the unit and the unit then easily twists on to the mounting ring. Once powered on, the voice prompt gave instruction to connect the mobile app. That was easy enough to locate, download, and configure the mobile app. Adding this device within the mobile app was familiar - it was very similar to adding devices via other apps (click the add button, scan the QR code on the side of the detector, following prompts). I like the idea of this being network-connected - to get alerts for smoke or CO2. I guess this provides a bit more peace of mind. I'm sold on this unit, so now I'll buy a second unit to replace the remaining dated unit - and to interconnect the two smoke + CO2 detectors together.

I have a hardwired smoke and carbon monoxide alarm system in my house, but it doesn’t connect to any kind of monitoring system and there’s no way for me to know if they are going off if I’m not at home. This solves that! It hardwires directly into my existing system (I didn’t need any other cables) and then connects to my wifi. Setup took only a couple minutes and I connected the app with my google home ecosystem to receive alerts. I tested it with my other first alert smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and they both communicate with each other when an alarm signal goes out. There is a big button in the middle for testing and silencing alarms and a clear LED indicator to easily see that the system is online and functioning properly. My only nit is that it doesn’t mount super flush to the wall so there’s a clear half inch gap above it where you can see the mounting hardware. My other first alert alarms have a much smoother transition piece so I don’t know why something wasn’t included here.

I've used First Alert products for over 20 years. I've also used other "smart" smoke and carbon monoxide detectors (such a Nest) over the last several years. We moved into a 17 year-old home where the smoke and carbon monoxide detectors were "old school" devices using 9 volt batteries. It was time to replace them so we went with First Alert. I had to install the new mounting bracket as the old brackets couldn't be used with the new device. That only took about 5 minutes to do it properly by ensuring the bracket was secure on the ceiling. The rest of the installation was pretty simple. One of the benefits of this device is that it is compatible with the Nest and Google Home apps. I didn't want another one-off smart home app so I was able to complete the setup on my Google Home app. The Google Home app is far from perfect but I use it for my Nest Thermostats, doorbell and video cameras. Once I connected the wiring harness it was simple to add the device to my Google Home app. I wanted the hard-wired version as I have used battery-operated smart home detectors in the past. These need constant monitoring for battery health. For now, I am very pleased with the First Alert device. Time will tell in the next couple years if it holds up for a longer period of time.

The set up was straight foward and easy, bought it to replace my nest