This Sunday, most Americans get an extra hour of sleep. Fire departments across the country use that same night to repeat one simple request, every single year. It takes about a minute, and it can make the difference between waking up in time or not waking up at all.
In short
- Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 1: clocks go back one hour.
- Firefighters use the date as a reminder: test your smoke alarms and change the batteries.
- Almost three out of five home fire deaths happen in homes with no smoke alarm or no working one.
- Every alarm, even a hardwired one, should be replaced after 10 years.
When the clocks change
Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. local time on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026, when clocks move back to 1 a.m., as FOX 5 New York reminds. Hawaii and most of Arizona don’t change their clocks. Your phone will update on its own. The oven, the microwave and the car won’t. Most people spend a few minutes that weekend walking from room to room resetting clocks, which is exactly why firefighters chose that moment for their reminder.
The one thing firefighters keep repeating
The message has a name: “Change your clock, change your batteries.” Departments like the Champaign Fire Department in Illinois repeat it every fall, because the clock change is the one date almost everyone remembers.
The reason is simple. According to the National Fire Protection Association, “almost three out of five home fire deaths happened in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms,” and working alarms cut the risk of dying in a reported home fire by 54%, as its report summed up. An alarm with a dead battery is just a plastic disk on the ceiling.
What to do before bed on Sunday
Fire officials in Loudoun County, Virginia, spell out the routine:
- Test every alarm. Press the test button. “All smoke alarms should be tested monthly.”
- Change the batteries at least once a year, and right away if an alarm chirps.
- Check the date on the back. All smoke alarms, hardwired or battery-powered, should be completely replaced every ten years.
- Don’t forget carbon monoxide alarms. They belong outside each sleeping area and on every level of the home.
“It’s critical that these life-saving devices are tested frequently to ensure they work when you need them most,” said Chief Keith Johnson of Loudoun County Fire and Rescue, quoted by a local department.
Why this weekend matters more than it seems
The clock change also kicks off the heating season, when space heaters and other appliances run longer and later. That’s why firefighters also insist on the one kitchen appliance to unplug before bed, and why the safest way to stay warm matters, as we explained with the low-energy alternative to space heaters.
The limit
Changing a battery doesn’t fix an alarm that’s too old: past 10 years, the sensor itself can fail, and the whole unit must go. Some newer alarms have sealed 10-year batteries and no battery to change at all. Pressing the test button still applies. And if you’re adjusting the thermostat while you’re at it, here’s the real temperature to keep at home this winter.
That’s the trick.
