Required Smoke Alarms

(1)  Except as permitted in Article 9.10.19.8., smoke alarms conforming to CAN/ULC-S531, “Smoke Alarms”, shall be installed in,

    (a)   each dwelling unit,

    (b)   each sleeping room not within a dwelling unit, and

    (c)   each interior shared means of egress and common area in a house.

    (2)  Smoke alarms required in Sentence (1) shall have a visual signalling component conforming to the requirements in 18.5.3. (Light, Color and Pulse Characteristics) of NFPA 72, “National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code”.

    (3)  The visual signalling component required in Sentence (2) need not,

    (a)   be integrated with the smoke alarm provided it is interconnected to it,

    (b)   be on battery backup, or

    (c)   have synchronized flash rates, when installed in a house or an individual dwelling unit.

    (4)  The luminous intensity for visual signalling components required in Sentence (2) that are installed in sleeping rooms shall be a minimum of 175 cd.

    (5)  Smoke alarms required in Sentence (1) shall be installed on or near the ceiling.

Article 9.10.19.1 Ontario Regulation 332/12 Building Code,   Information published by oncodes.ca for educational purposes only.

Smoke Alarms

The National Building Code and most local building codes require early-warning, fire- and smoke-detecting devices in dwellings. Smoke alarms must be located in or near each bedroom on each storey including basements and mounted on or near the ceiling. Building codes usually require smoke alarms to be permanently connected (hard-wired) to an electrical circuit. There must be no disconnect switch between the smoke alarm and the electrical service panel, and the circuit should not be connected to a wall outlet.

Where electric power is not available, battery-powered smoke alarms may be used. These units are designed to operate for at least one year and provide a seven-day trouble signal when the battery runs down.

Smoke alarms in houses are not required to be interconnected such that one alarm activates one or more others. However, smoke alarms in a house with a secondary suite are required to be wired so that the activation of any one alarm causes all alarms in both suites to sound.

Only install smoke alarms that are certified by a recognized testing agency such as the Underwriters’ Laboratories of Canada.

Source : Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC)