Smoke alarm installation & testing

Install and maintain smoke alarms Brisbane north

Our team of experienced Brisbane north electricians can carry out the installation, updating, replacement, testing, and servicing of your home or businesses smoke alarms in line with the new legislation requirements.

Queensland smoke alarm requirements

We all know that smoke alarms save lives. Statistics show that your risk of dying in a house fire is three times greater if you don't have working smoke alarms. Furthermore, nearly half of all deaths caused by house fires occur when people are asleep. By law, all home's in Queensland must be fitted with smoke alarms.

The legislation has recently been updated to require all residences to be fitted with interconnected photoelectric smoke alarm systems. The updates state that every home must have:

• an interconnected smoke alarm system - either wired or wirelessly connected
• photoelectric smoke alarms only
• alarms either hardwired to the mains power or 10-year lithium battery-powered alarms
• smoke alarms fitted in all bedrooms or sleeping areas
• smoke alarms fitted in hallways between the bedrooms and the rest of the house. Alternatively, if there isn't a hallway, between the bedrooms and the rest of the story.
• at least one smoke alarm must be fitted on each story

Homes are affected by the updated legislation roll-out depending on their situation.

• homes built or significantly renovated and completed after 1 January 2017 must comply with the new requirements
• homes leased or sold after 1 January 2017 must comply within 5 years (by 1 Jan 2022)
• owner-occupied homes must comply within 10 years (by 1 Jan 2027)

Every smoke alarm replaced from 1 January 2017 must be a photoelectric smoke alarm.

For more information on the updated Queensland smoke alarm legislation and how it will affect you read our blog post - Interconnected smoke alarms for every QLD home

Photoelectric smoke alarms

There are two types of photoelectric smoke alarms:

• 240-volt smoke alarms , which are also known as hard-wired smoke alarms. They are connected to the electrical system of your house and have a backup battery.
• 9-volt smoke alarms , also known as battery operated smoke alarms, are straight forward, battery operated alarms.

Both of these photoelectric smoke alarms detect visible particles of combustion, such as smouldering cigarette smoke. They respond to a wide range of fires but are particularly good at detecting smouldering fires and dense smoke. Advantages of photoelectric alarms also include:

• they are suitable for general use
• they are not prone to false alarms, such as from cooking
• contain no radioactive material

Please note: Ionization smoke alarms are being phased out in Queensland.

Upgrading your current smoke alarm system