If anyone finds this thread going forward here is the fix that worked for me.
I put in new Lithium batteries.
Excluded the First Alert from my Z-Wave network.
Did a shutdown, remove power, restart of the hub.
Did the factory reset on the First Alert. (Remove battery, replace battery while holding test button for ten seconds after sliding in the battery compartment.
Re-include the First Alert using the select by device type option.
All is well. Battery reporting nicely.
PS: I included the First Alert with security. I understand this may improve communication. Guess I need to exclude and include my other First Alerts with security at battery change time.
