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RECOMMENDED LOCATIONS FOR SMOKE ALARMS
Installing Smoke Alarms in Single-Family Residences
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), recommends one Smoke
Alarm on every floor, in every sleeping area, and in every bedroom. In new
construction, the Smoke Alarms must be AC powered and interconnected.
See “Agency Placement Recommendations” for details. For additional
coverage, it is recommended that you install a Smoke Alarm in all rooms,
halls, storage areas, finished attics, and basements, where temperatures
normally remain between 40˚F (4˚C) and 100˚F (38˚C). Make sure no door
or other obstruction could keep smoke from reaching the Smoke Alarms.
More specifically, install Smoke Alarms:
• On every level of your home, including finished attics and basements.
• Inside every bedroom, especially if people sleep with the door partly or
completely closed.
• In the hall near every sleeping area. If your home has multiple sleeping
areas, install a unit in each. If a hall is more than 40 feet long (12
meters), install a unit at each end.
• At the top of the first-to-second floor stairway, and at bottom of the
basement stairway.
Specific requirements for Smoke Alarm installation vary from state to
state and from region to region. Check with your local Fire Department for
current requirements in your area.
It is recommended AC or AC/DC
units be interconnected for added protection.
INSTALLING SMOKE ALARMS IN MOBILE HOMES & RVS
For minimum security install one Smoke Alarm as close to each sleeping
area as possible. For more security, put one unit in each room. Many older
mobile homes (especially those built before 1978) have little or no insula-
tion. If your mobile home is not well insulated, or if you are unsure of the
amount of insulation, it is important to install units on inside walls only.
Smoke Alarms should be installed where temperatures normally remain
between 40˚F (4˚C) and 100˚F (38˚C). WARNING: Test units used in RVs
after the vehicle has been in storage, before every trip, and once a
week while in use. Failure to test units used in RVs as described may
remove your protection.
This equipment should be installed in accordance with NFPA (National Fire
Protection Association) 72 and
101. National Fire Protection Association,
One Batterymarch Park, Quincy, MA 02269-9101. Additional local building
and regulatory codes may apply in your area. Always check compliance
requirements before beginning any installation.
AGENCY PLACEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS
NFPA 72 (National Fire Code)
Smoke Alarms shall be installed in each separate sleeping room, outside
each sleeping area in the immediate vicinity of the bedrooms and on each
additional story of the family living unit, including basements and exclud-
ing crawl spaces and unfinished attics.
In new construction, Alarms shall be so arranged that operation of any
one Alarm shall cause the operation of all Alarms within the dwelling.
Smoke Detection-Are More Smoke Alarms Desirable? The required
number of Smoke Alarms might not provide reliable early warning protec-
tion for those areas separated by a door from the areas protected by the
required Smoke Alarms. For this reason, it is recommended that the
householder consider the use of additional Smoke Alarms for those areas
for increased protection. The additional areas include the basement, bed-
rooms, dining room, furnace room, utility room, and hallways not protect-
ed by the required Smoke Alarms. The installation of Smoke Alarms in
kitchens, attics (finished or unfinished), or garages is not normally recom-
mended, as these locations occasionally experience conditions that can
result in improper operation.
California State Fire Marshal (CSFM)
Early warning detection is best achieved by the installation of fire detec-
tion equipment in all rooms and areas of the household as follows: A
Smoke Alarm installed in each separate sleeping area (in the vicinity, but
outside bedrooms), and Heat or Smoke Alarms in the living rooms, dining
rooms, bedrooms, kitchens, hallways, finished attics, furnace rooms, clos-
ets, utility and storage rooms, basements, and attached garages.
LOCATIONS TO AVOID FOR SMOKE ALARMS
For best performance, it is recommended you AVOID installing
Smoke Alarms in these areas:
•
Where combustion particles are produced. Combustion particles form
when something burns. Areas to avoid include poorly ventilated
kitchens, garages, and furnace rooms. Keep units at least 20 feet
(6 meters) from the sources of combustion particles (stove, furnace,
water heater, space heater) if possible. In areas where a 20-foot dis-
tance is not possible – in modular, mobile, or smaller homes, for exam-
ple – it is recommended the Smoke Alarm be placed as far from these
fuel-burning sources as possible. The placement recommendations are
intended to keep these Alarms at a reasonable distance from a fuel-
burning source, and thus reduce “unwanted” or “nuisance” alarms.
Unwanted alarms can occur if a Smoke Alarm is placed directly next to
a fuel-burning source. Ventilate these areas as much as possible.
• In air streams near kitchens. Air currents can draw cooking smoke into
the sensing chamber of a Smoke Alarm near the kitchen.
• In very damp, humid or steamy areas, or directly near bathrooms with
showers. Keep units at least 10 feet (3 meters) away from showers,
saunas, dishwashers, etc.
• Where the temperatures are regularly below 40˚ F (4˚C) or above 100˚
F (38˚C), including unheated buildings, outdoor rooms, porches, or
unfinished attics or basements.
• In very dusty, dirty, or greasy areas. Do not install a Smoke Alarm
directly over the stove or range. Keep laundry room Smoke Alarms
free of dust or lint.
• Near fresh air vents, ceiling fans, or in very drafty areas. Drafts can
blow smoke away from the unit, preventing it from reaching the sens-
ing chamber.
• In insect infested areas. Insects can clog openings to the sensing
chamber and cause unwanted alarms.
• Less than 12 inches (305mm) away from fluorescent lights. Electrical
“noise” can interfere with the sensor.
• In “dead air” spaces. “Dead air” spaces may prevent smoke from
reaching the Smoke Alarm.
Avoiding Dead Air Spaces
“Dead air” spaces may prevent smoke from reaching the Smoke Alarm. To
avoid dead air spaces, follow the installation recommendations below.
On ceilings, install Smoke Alarms as close to the center of the ceiling as
possible. If this is not possible, install the Smoke Alarm at least 4 inches
(102 mm) from the wall or corner.
For wall mounting (if allowed by building codes), the top edge of Smoke
Alarms should be placed between 4 inches (102 mm) and 12 inches (305
mm) from the wall/ceiling line, below typical “dead air” spaces.
On a peaked, gabled, or cathedral ceiling, install the first Smoke Alarm
within 3 feet (0.9 meters) of the peak of the ceiling, measured horizontally.
Additional Smoke Alarms may be required depending on the length,
angle, etc. of the ceiling's slope. Refer to NFPA 72 for details on require-
ments for sloped or peaked ceilings.
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