SMOKE DETECTOR REQUIREMENTS
FOR
1. Electric hard-wired and interconnected smoke detectors are required.
2. Smoke detectors are installed on the ceiling and not the wall. (Note: Smoke detectors may only be installed on walls with fire department approval due to a structural issue that would prohibit ceiling mounted detectors.
3. Location of smoke detectors:
a. No less than one (1) smoke detector shall be provided on the highest habitable level and on each floor, story or level below, including basements or cellars.
b. One (1) approved smoke detector shall be located outside of each separate sleeping area.
c. One (1) smoke detector shall be located on the ceiling, at the base of, but not within, each stairway.
d. For any floor, level or story exceeding twelve- hundred (1200) square feet in area, one (1) approved smoke detector shall be provided for each twelve- hundred (1200) square feet, or part thereof.
e. Smoke detectors shall be a minimum of four inches away from a wall.
f. The maximum allowable distance from a hallway smoke detector to a bedroom is twenty feet on an unobstructed ceiling.
4. It is recommended that any smoke detector located within twenty feet of a kitchen or a bathroom with a tub/shower be of the photo-electric type to reduce nuisance alarms due to cooking smoke or bath steam.
5. Any questions regarding number or placement of smoke detectors should be directed to a fire prevention officer for clarification.
** This document is to be used as a guideline and is not all- inclusive of all regulations relative to residential smoke detectors