2022 Scottish Regulation Alarms
2022 Scottish Regulation Alarms
To comply with the new law in Scotland, all rented and owned homes must have interlinked smoke and heat alarms in place and functioning by February 2022. It is the responsibility of property owner’s to ensure their home meets the new legislation, which has come about due to the tragic Grenfell Tower fire in London in 2017.
Interlinked alarms ensure that when one alarm goes off in the home, the rest join in, which means you’ll hear an alarm wherever the potential fire has been found. There are two types of alarms you can use: either battery or mains-wired alarms, interconnected either by using wireless technology or physical wires.
Which Alarms Do I Need In My Home?
All homes in Scotland have to have the following alarms installed by February 2022:
● One Smoke Alarm in the living room, or the room you use the most
● One Smoke Alarm in every hallways and landing
● One Heat Alarm in the kitchen
These must be mounted to the ceiling and interlinked. You can choose to install more alarms than the minimum requirement for additional protection.
Your home might also need One Carbon Monoxide Alarm to be installed in every room with a carbon-fuelled appliance (such as fires, stoves, boilers and heaters) or a flue. The CO detector does not need to be linked to the fire alarms, but it will need to have a sealed battery for the duration of its lifespan.
The alarms should also comply with the following standards:
● Smoke Alarms – BS EN14604:2005
● Heat Alarms – BS 5446-2:2003
● Carbon Monoxide Detectors – British Kitemark EN 50291-1
Which Types of Alarm Are Suitable?
Not every heat and smoke alarm available on the market is compatible with the new Scottish regulations, so it’s important to check.
You can either have one which is powered by a sealed long-life lithium battery that is tamper-proof, or an alarm that is connected to the electric mains. The mains-powered versions will feature a backup battery to ensure protection even during a power outage which should be installed by a qualified electrician. The long-life battery versions are often simple to install and have batteries that cannot be removed – any alarm only powered by a replaceable battery, such as AA and 9V, are not compliant with the new laws.
There are also two methods of interlinking your smoke and heat alarms: either through a wireless radio connection or a hard-wired link. The former is often a cheaper solution as the hardwire interlinked option requires an interconnecting cable that runs through all the alarms, which works best when installed by an electrician. The wireless option is easier but more expensive, and it can be achieved either by choosing an alarm with this feature built-in or using additonal wireless bases.