"This survey demonstrates that confusion about smoke alarm placement, maintenance and testing persist, which ultimately put the public at continued risk to home fires," NFPA spokeswoman Lorraine Carli said in a statement.
The telephone survey was taken by more than a thousand people and was conducted by Harris Interactive in September.
The survey comes at an appropriate time as NFPA's theme for this year's Fire Prevention Week is "Smoke Alarms: A Sound You Can Live With!"
Educational materials have been pushed in communities through the country this week emphasizing newer requirements and recommendations for smoke alarm placement, installation, testing and maintenance.
When working properly, smoke alarms can cut the chance of dying in a fire in half, according to the organization.
The survey found that most American homes do include a base level of smoke alarm protection. Ninety-six percent have smoke alarms in their homes, with more than two in five (42 percent) owning two to three.
Hallways are the most popular area for people to place them, while 42 percent reported having one in each bedroom. The NFPA recommends at least one smoke alarm on every level of the home, including the basement, as well as outside each sleeping area and inside each bedroom. Larger homes may need additional smoke alarms.
"Over the past 30 plus years, we have seen a significant increase in the number of homes that have at least one smoke alarm, which represents a big step toward increased home fire safety," Carli said.
While the organization says interconnected smoke alarms provide the best level of protection, the survey found that less than one quarter reported having interconnected smoke alarms.
Another area for improvement the survey revealed was testing of smoke alarms. While all smoke alarms should be tested monthly, a large portion of the population doesn't check them as often as they should, according to the survey.
The findings show:
- 40 percent of smoke alarm owners test their smoke alarms at least every few months, while about a quarter only test them twice a year, and 11 percent rarely or never check them.
- Most adults (71 percent) reported having a home fire escape plan, but more than half said they never practice it.
