Smoke Alarm Installation in Adelaide

The Rules in South Australia

Which smoke alarms a home needs depends on when it was built and when it last changed hands:

• Built From 1 January 1995: the home needs mains powered, 240 volt smoke alarms.
• Bought On or After 1 February 1998: the owner has six months from the title transfer to fit 240 volt mains powered alarms, or 10 year sealed battery alarms that cannot be removed.
• Bought Before 1 February 1998: replaceable battery alarms are the legal minimum, unless the home was built from 1995.
• Rental Properties: the owner is responsible for installing and maintaining the smoke alarms.

Every smoke alarm must comply with AS 3786, and any alarm more than 10 years old should be replaced, whatever powers it. Not sure where your property stands? Tell me when it was built and when you bought it, and I will tell you what it needs.

Photoelectric and Interconnected

Fire services recommend photoelectric smoke alarms, which respond well to the slow, smouldering fires that are common in homes. I also recommend interconnecting them, so when one alarm goes off, every alarm in the house goes off. That matters at night, when a fire in the lounge room needs to wake someone in a back bedroom.

How the Job Runs

• Check: I look at what is already there, how old it is, and where the alarms need to be.
• Install: the new alarms go in the right places, wired into the mains or as 10 year sealed battery units, depending on what the property needs.
• Test: every alarm is tested, along with the interconnection.
• Certify: you get a Certificate of Compliance for the electrical work.