Do you have one of those fancy Ring doorbells? If so, this latest recall notice is for you. Earlier this week, a recall was issued for an estimated 350,000 Ring doorbells sold throughout the U.S. According to the notice, the recall involves “improperly installed 2nd-generation Ring doorbells can catch fire, causing property damage and potential burn hazards.” 

Fire Hazard Sign; image courtesy of TheDigitalArtist via Pixabay, www.pixabay.com

What makes these particular doorbells so dangerous, though? Well, nothing is wrong with the doorbell itself, but rather the way they are being installed. According to the notice:“As long as the Ring doorbells were installed using the screws provided with the devices themselves, they're fine…The issue is that quite a few homeowners substituted their own screws for the ones included in the package—and longer screws may reach places inside the Ring device that they shouldn't, causing a short-circuit that can lead to overheating or fire.”So far, Ring and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) claim 85 incident reports “involving the use of improper screws” have been reported. Twenty-three of those cases involved “ignition involving minor property damage and eight cases of minor personal burns.”The affected product affected by the recall includes model number 5UM5E5. If you have a Ring doorbell, you can check to see if it is included in the recall by checking the serial number here. But again, it’s not the actual doorbell that’s faulty, it’s the way they’re being installed. If you use the wrong screw length or design to install the doorbell, which is an electronic device, it can cause short-circuiting or fire.

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Improperly installed Ring doorbells are catching on fire350,000 Ring doorbells can catch fire if improperly installed