Changing Smoke Detector Batteries Saves Lives When we are at home sleeping at night. Smoke detectors are our first line of defense against a fire, but these smoke detectors will only activate if they have a working battery. Fire officials recommend changing your batteries twice each year. An easy way to remember to do thid is to change your smoke detector batteries when you change your clocks in the spring and in the fall. This simple tip can be the difference in life or death for your family in