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Question:

Will dry ice set off smoke detectors?

I am planning on doing a science project that involves dry ice and the fog that it creates. Will the fog set off smoke alarms? (I can t find any clear answers)

Answer:

Maybe they lived in the Montana State University-Billings dorms for a while. The fire alarms would often go off at 3 in the morning on the worst days for weather out of the year, for reasons such as a pipe froze and dripped water on the control panel or a random glitch in the system. This would sometimes happen more than once in a night. It became nearly impossible to take the fire alarm seriously. Especially considering that in the probably 15 or more fire alarm soundings they experienced during the four years I was there, NONE of them were for an actual fire! The closest thing to an actual fire was some burnt toast in the cafeteria. No actual fire, just a thin cloud of smoke and a barely perceivable black circle on the ceiling. I can't say that I really take any fire alarm seriously after that. I take notice when I start seeing smoke.

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