WAKE FOREST, N.C. (WNCN) — Smoke detector alarms.

It’s a sound you don’t want to hear but it could save you from a fire. 

“Three out of every five fire deaths are because there isn’t a smoke detector in the house. It’ll increase your chances of survival by I think 50%. So it’s always important to have them in the house. That and CO detectors,” said Ed Barrett, Wake Forest Fire Department Battalion Chief. 

With daylight saving time ending this weekend, there have been constant reminders to change your clocks.

However, fire fighters are also stressing, not to forget to check your smoke detectors.

“It’ll guarantee safety. When you also do that, you want to look at the date of the detector when it was manufactured. Because if it’s anywhere over seven years old or older, you may want to think about replacing them because they tend to go bad toward the end of their lives,” said Barrett. 

Fire departments do typically respond more to house fire calls this time of year, because of the colder weather and people using heat sources such as fireplaces and candles.

Barrett says it’s key to have a plan at home in case of a fire emergency.

“If you wake up. If the smoke detector alerts you and you do have smoke in the house, know how to react to it. Have a plan to get out. try to have more than one way to get out two routes of egress. get down, stay low, crawl out, and then call 911,” Barrett said. 

For more information on the Wake Forest Fire Department’s safety plan, click here.