New Smoke Alarms Installation Requirements & Your Family

New Smoke Alarms Legislation in Queensland

There have been recent changes to the Smoke Alarm legislation with the roll out over the next few years for different properties in Queensland. Currently, you need to ensure your smoke alarms are at a minimum, the Photoelectric style. These types of alarms sense a smouldering fire and will alert you much earlier than the old ionisation style which only alarms when it senses smoke. Let’s face it, once there is smoke, it may be too later to escape the fire.

Smoke Alarms also need to be hard wired and have a battery backup. They are all manufactured with a 10 year lifespan and you can easily check the date on your current alarms yourself but dropping the cover down. If you find your alarms are out of date, it is very important to make sure you replace these very quickly.

In addition, the new legislation in Queensland requires alarms to be interconnected- this will ensure no matter where you are in the property, you will be alerted to the fire. This will help if you have people in your home who like to have ear phones in their ears to listen to music or the like.

You must also make sure that the alarms being installed are compliant with the Queensland Legislation which may be different to other states. We recently had a customer who had purchased alarms from a very large national Office Supplies Store and they thought they were doing the right thing as they were compliant with Australian Standards. Unfortunately, they were not compliant with the Queensland Legislation and would not have been suited to her property here on the Gold Coast.