We have three mains powered, battery backed, linked fire sensors. Last
week - beep, beep, beep - then silence for several minutes. Usually the
sign that a battery needs replacement. None of the three are flashing,
so difficult to work out which one is complaining and the complaint is
irregular anyway.

So I decided they had been in a while, get three new batteries, so a
special trip to a local centre to get them, plus a spare. This after
checking the alarm's leaflet and seeing alkaline PP3.

Got back, more reading of the leaflet, to see how to remove head to
replace the batteries, then steps and remove an head. Remove head and
search inside in vain, to find a replaceable battery. Reread leaflet
and only the none mains version uses a PP3. Mains version uses a none
replaceable lithium. Admit defeat, put it all back and decide to ring
supplier, because it suggests it has a 10 year guarantee.

I delayed making the call until yesterday morning, sat down in my
office chair, in the small bedroom where I have a bit of office like
space to make the call.

Chair mechanism for the nth time slipped, so chair tries to deposit me
on the floor. Its a hydraulic up/down, with a lockable sprung lean
forward/ back. Lean lock keeps slipping.

It is a chair I was given 20 years ago from an office which was closing
down. I had a quick look at the locking system before, but ran out of
time before any progress.

Yesterday, I looked at buying replacement - around £70 plus the council
disposal cost another £20 and decided to have another go at fixing it.
Four hours later, I was still at it lean springs had both broken,
locking system worn out from slipping, hydraulic up/down fine, so I
decided to simply permanently fix the lean system, so it would no
longer move. Weld up a tubular T bracket, between under seat bracket
and hydraulic stem. That took the remainder of the day and too late to
ring about the fire alarm problem.

6am this morning, the beep-beep-beep starts again. Just a short series,
still not long enough to be certain where it is coming from,
but....This time I think I know where it is actually coming from. A
battery powered fire alarm in my loft workshop/radio shack.