Fire detector installation
Fire alarms, also known as smoke alarms, smoke detectors, or fire detectors, are crucial household safety items. They genuinely save lives and protect property, making them essential in all homes and businesses. However, fire detector installation isn’t always the first thing on people’s minds. Many people don’t pay attention to them until they need them.
Without a fire alarm, you may not have enough time to evacuate the home safely in the event of a fire. In this guide, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about fire alarm system installation and why it matters.
The importance of having a fire alarm system
There is a reason that fire alarms are compulsory in all homes, with even tighter laws taking effect in 2027. It’s all about making homes safer and reducing the impacts of a household fire. There are a few specific reasons you should upgrade your fire alarms system today. Let’s explore the importance of reliable, working smoke alarms in modern homes.
More time to take action
Perhaps the most obvious reason to have a smoke alarm is to alert you quickly to a fire. If there’s a fire anywhere in your house, it can spread quickly, leading to difficulties escaping the property. For example, consider a fire that broke out in your kitchen while you were sleeping. Without a smoke alarm, you may not even realise there’s a fire until you smell the smoke. By this time, any number of rooms or exits could be blocked.
We’ll touch on this later, but it highlights the importance of having multiple fire alarms throughout the home. The earlier you’re alerted to a fire, the faster you can either address the fire or get out of the house.
Be alerted to fires anywhere in the house
In older homes, it wasn’t a requirement to have several smoke alarms. You might typically find a smoke alarm in the kitchen and hallway, but not everywhere else. The problem with this is that you might not be notified of a fire until it’s too late. So, just having a smoke alarm in the hallway is fine if a fire starts there, but it’s not effective for any other fire locations.
Again, we’ll touch on the laws shortly, but this is why you should have interconnected smoke alarms in practically every room. That way, you’ll be notified as soon as a fire starts anywhere in the house. With interconnected alarms, if one detects smoke, all of the others will sound.
Protect your family and assets
Obviously, fire can be incredibly destructive. Homes can be destroyed quickly if a fire breaks out, and that includes putting all inhabitants at risk. Most people have insurance to protect them against fire events, but the reality is that some things can never be replaced. Certainly, human lives are priceless, and proper fire detector installation can save your family members from injury or worse. In addition, personal items of sentimental value can’t be replaced following a fire, either.
Your home is probably your most expensive asset, and while insurance covers you for a fire, it doesn’t take away the enormous inconvenience of moving and rebuilding.
Compliance with fire alarm system installation laws
As we mentioned, there are laws governing the installation of fire alarm systems in Australian homes. Since 2017, new homes have been required to install hard-wired photoelectric alarms. Alarms 10 years old must be replaced, as do all faulty alarms. The bigger changes are yet to come, though.
From 2027, smoke alarms must be installed on every storey, in each bedroom and in the hallway. Fire detectors must be photoelectric, hard-wired and interconnected, so if one is triggered, the others sound an alert. This won’t become law until 2027, but upgrading now is in the interest of safety.
Where to install fire alarms
As stated above, there are new guidelines coming into effect in 2027 that increase the number of smoke alarms you are required to have. Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) also offers some sound advice on where you should install fire alarms.
Firstly, fire detectors should be installed on the ceiling where practical. Here’s some other advice from QFES about where you MUST NOT install alarms:
- Within 300mm of the corner between the wall and ceiling.
- Within 300mm of a light fitting
- Within 400mm of an air-conditioning vent
- Within 400mm of the blades of a ceiling fan
If you have stairways, sloping ceilings or exposed beams, you should refer to the Building Fire Safety Regulation 2008. This provides guidance on where to place smoke alarms.
Interconnected smoke alarms for increased safety
We’ve mentioned this before, but we can’t stress the importance of using interconnected smoke alarms. To ensure proper fire alarm system installation, alarms should be connected wirelessly or hard-wired to your mains power. This isn’t a law yet, but it will be in 2027.
For comprehensive fire alerts, your alarms must be interconnected. When alarms are linked, if one of them detects smoke, the others in the house will also alert. This gives all occupants more time to vacate the premises, no matter how far away from the fire they are.
Using a licensed electrician
Finally, it’s important to mention that you must use a licensed electrician for hard-wired smoke alarms. Since 9V battery-powered smoke alarms don’t meet modern requirements, most detectors will be hard-wired. Even if this wasn’t a legal requirement, we would always advise having a qualified electrician install your fire alarm system. Proper installation ensures your smoke detectors all work as they should and provide maximum protection against a fire event. For the sake of your family’s safety, it simply isn’t worth cutting corners and doing it yourself.
Need help with fire detector installation?
Sorted Electrical offers a complete fire detector installation service, and we can even handle regular maintenance and checks to ensure your fire alarm is in good working order. If you’re looking for a certified fire alarm electrician in Camp Hill, Carina Heights or any surrounding Brisbane suburbs, we’re here to help. Don’t take the risk with old or ineffective smoke alarms. Contact our team today, and we’ll be there fast.
