Here in California, the law requires that all homes have working carbon monoxide detectors. So I headed out to my local Home Depot and picked up a combo fire and CO alarm.
When I got home, I removed the packaging, but I couldn't separate the unit from its base. Assuming it must be defective, I returned it to Home Depot and picked up another one of the same model. This time, I wanted to make sure I could remove the unit from its base before heading home. I opened the package, and I still could not separate the unit from its base. Some Home Depot employees said they had the same problem with the product.
At this point, I read through the manual, and it turned out this particular model had a feature that was supposed to prevent closure of the unit when batteries were not installed. Could this be the problem? I looked the unit over and, through the slots in the base, saw a latch in the battery cavity. When I pushed this button in (as it would be with a battery present), I was able to remove the base.
On further inspection, I realized that the design of this feature actually had the opposite effect as intended. The angle of the knob (attached to the latch) that was used to prevent closing of the unit without batteries actually allowed the base flange to ride over it, locking the unit into the base without batteries.
Once the base and unit were closed, this feature actually prevented opening it again if batteries were not installed.
Now just imagine what would happen if the base were installed in a wall or ceiling before the batteries were placed in the unit, and then you attached the base to the unit. You would end up with a useless alarm, and you wouldn’t be able to remove it without breaking it apart.
This entry was submitted by John Muren and edited by Rob Spiegel.
Tell us your experiences with Monkey-designed products. Send stories to Rob Spiegel for Made by Monkeys.
Even when an owner can open a smoke/CO detector, getting to it can pose a problem. I have vaulted ceilings, so to change batteries I must bring in an extension ladder and move it from room to room to get to the battery compartment. It beats me why some company hasn't figured out how to create a battery cartridge that could go into a detector and latch in place. Pushing on the cartridge would eject it. A long pole similar to the one I use to replace light bulbs would do the trick. Think how a retractable ball-point pen works and you'll get the idea. It sure would save time and energy.
Good point about the smaller retailer, Ann. My guess is that the big store probably gave the author a credit, sold him another one, and left the rest of the old ones on the shelf.
... why legislators think they can mandate private citizens in the United States to buy anything, be it CO detectors or health insurance. How did we ever survive before the Nanny State came along?
Naperlou, I agree. We have seen that happen as well – for multiple reasons, often cost or availability related. There may also be engineers at the other end who simply disagree with the initial design...or perhaps they have an overstock on one type of connector when the initial design calls for another...
Your lament:
"What ever happened to design for manufacturing where the engineering team was colocated with manufacturing???"
While that would be ideal, I believe it is simply a matter of driving down the cost by manufacturing in other countries, but companies still want to maintain control of the design inhouse. One company I worked for, I worked in R&D where we developed the test sets that would be used to test the products manufactured in our plant in another country. A LOT of money and time was devoted to our test engineering staff travelling back and forth to initially set up the test sets and then to maintain them. Finally, our department was transferred to that country which made better sense and was more cost effective for our company. Unfortunately, it also eliminated the need for my job...
There are no easy answers, what works well for one company may not work well at all for another, depending on cost, staffing and industry contacts just as much as anything else. Yet another challenge of our global economy that continues to be a mixed blessing.
Larry, I know that customer returns mean lost revenue. But then, lots of practices mean lost revenue and I see lots of companies keep doing the same things that lose them revenue, many of which we've covered here at DN. What I meant was that most big-box stores I've complained to about crummy product quality--like this one--don't care and keep selling the same crummy products. And I've had the same experience with the manufacturers of the same crummy products, even when they get lots of returns. I'm glad your experience seems to be different. But I wouldn't hold my breath assuming that the monitor manufacturer will even notice that the covers are stuck on. In my experience, if the product can be sold at a big-box store and costs less than $100, there's little motivation to change much.
Nancy, you post bring to mind a disturbing trend I have run into consulting over the last few years. Many of the products made off-shore are not made to the design. Changes are made in manufacturing without telling the "customer". My experience was with small companies so I assumed that the problem was that these small companies just didn't have the resources to do the proper quality control. I was telling a friend of mine who worked for a large company about a particular example in the industry he was in. He related that his competitor, another very large company ran into exactly the same problem. The only difference is that the large company had the resources to correct the problem. The small company I was consulting with did not.
What ever happened to design for manufacturing where the engineering team was colocated with manufacturing???
Mr. Muren is partially wrong about the California requirement. All homes are not required to have working carbon monoxide detectors. A detector is not required if there is no natural gas, propane, butane etc., service. We have a rented-out condominium in San Diego that is "all electric". I had a hard time convincing the property manager, to not spend several hundred dollars & have a c-m detector installed.
I agree TJ - and it is definitely a valid point. Poor design is poor design, wherever it takes place. My husband and I designed a product for the company he works for and they manufactured it in China. Any design flaws if they exist are our responsibility - not China's. I was simply suggesting another possibility as to why what happened could have happened...it is almost more plausible to me that a designer was given a project that he did not understand properly because he had no prior experience with the product, then for such a blatant design flaw to occur in the U.S. where these products are common. I could certainly be wrong, it was just a thought...
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