Smoke Alarms Hard wired!!

oharaf · 19 May 2008

I don't know how this one has slipped by me but I thought I would check.

Is it a requirement that when a house is re-wired that a hard wired smoke dectotors are installed?

Any feed back greatfully accepted

RF Lighting · 19 May 2008

Certainly a good idea, and I recommend it to all my customers, but not an electrical reg.

I think it is only a requirement for building regs for new builds and refurbishments.

BCO do usually specify them for a proper loft conversion when a property made a three storey dwelling.

oharaf · 19 May 2008

Cheers RF, so I would assume full re-wire counts as a refurb

RF Lighting · 19 May 2008

No, a refurb is where the property is gutted and redone. The sort of job where all the plaster is removed from the walls, ceilings dropped etc.

A rewire is just putting new wires into a house which is not getting completely knocked to pieces.

mikeyd · 20 May 2008

I looked into this for my new extension and building control required mains supplied interlinked detectors if supplied from a seperate dedicated mains circuit, or battery backed interlinked units if supplied from an existing circuit (e.g. lighting)

Lectrician · 20 May 2008

mikeyd said:
I looked into this for my new extension and building control required mains supplied interlinked detectors if supplied from a seperate dedicated mains circuit, or battery backed interlinked units if supplied from an existing circuit (e.g. lighting)

They need to be battery backed if on their own circuit. If fed from a well used local lighting circuit, battery backup is not required as it is assumed you will notice no lights and get these fixed.

oharaf · 20 May 2008

So Lectrician let me get this right.

A rewire is not a refurb so the smoke detector thing is not a requirement, however, LABC 'like' to have this.

I can connect to new lighting circuits and link together, and not have to run a seperate circuit

Right Guys?????

Taylortwocities · 20 May 2008

Yes that's right.

Note that LABC would normally not be involved in a rewire unless you are having them to do the inspection work (ie because you are not a registered Part P-er).

oharaf · 21 May 2008

Cheers Guys, that has saved me alot of heart ache and ball breaking tomorrow

ebee · 21 May 2008

Just one caveat.

If there are already smoke detectors then they must be kept or replaced so you are not making the situation worse than it is now.

Chri5 · 23 May 2008

If you doing 17th with 2 x RCD rails then smoke detection should be via an RCBO and seperate from either RCD rail.

This is to prevent the smoke detector circuit going off due to other circuit fails that trip an RCD.

It keeps the smoke circuit direct and is the best way to insure the circuit (maybe the most important one in the property) is kept 'up'' even if the property has other circuit fails.

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Smoke Alarms Hard wired!!

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