What issue might arise if fire and smoke alarms are connected to a circuit protected by a GFCI breaker?

When fire and smoke alarms are connected to a circuit that is protected by a GFCI breaker, one potential issue that often arises is nuisance tripping. GFCI breakers are designed to provide ground fault protection and protect individuals from electrical shocks by tripping the circuit when they detect an imbalance in electrical current.

Since smoke and fire alarms have sensitive electronics, these devices can sometimes produce ground faults due to environmental factors, such as humidity or dust, as well as normal operational characteristics. If such ground faults are detected, the GFCI will trip, cutting off power to the alarms. This can lead to situations where the alarms are unintentionally deactivated, compromising safety during a fire or emergency when they are needed most.

In contrast, other potential issues such as overheating, voltage drops, or inadequate power are less likely to affect the operation of smoke and fire alarms in relation to GFCI protection. Overheating typically relates to circuit load and is less relevant here, while voltage drops concern the performance of devices under load and aren't specifically linked to GFCI functionality. Inadequate power could impact performance but doesn’t specifically correlate to the function of a GFCI breaker in the context of nuisance tripping of fire and smoke alarms.