Well, on the smoke alarm side, it seems that Kidde has basically bought up all their competitors. I was in Home Depot the other day and Kidde smoke alarms were the only ones on the shelf. By the way, I've had endless problems with their smoke alarms... after about a year or so of use, the units start chirping as if the battery has gone low but it won't stop even with a new battery replacement. This has happened with three replacements of the alarm now.....
There are other fire alarms— much better. Course Home Depart doesn’t stock any but the cheapest, subject to misfunction.
As to the extiguishers— the marine model they make works fine, plastic handle and all. This is a mega-company and this is Consumer Product Safety folks. Again, the citation is based on one proven failure causing a death.
Where’s Ralph Nader— must be in a nursing home.