Legislation was passed in Queensland Parliament on the 31st of August, 2016, meaning households in Queensland are set to become the most fire safe in the nation. This legislation has eventuated as a result of the recommendations handed down following the tragic 2011 Slacks Creek house fire.
What are the major changes?
¨ All smoke alarms must be photo-electric.
Ionisation alarms will no longer be permitted to be installed in domestic dwellings. This includes dual sensor alarms with an ionisation sensor.
¨ Smoke alarms must be installed at egress paths between storeys.
at the top and bottom of stairways that connect the storeys and levels of the dwelling.
¨ All smoke alarms must be interconnected.
This amendment applies to all existing domestic dwellings in Queensland, regardless of their age.
In many cases, wireless (Wi-Fi) technologies will need to be utilized to meet these requirements.
¨ Smoke alarms must be installed outside dead air spaces.
They must be installed away from wall corners, lights and forced air circulation (fan blades, air con ducts/intakes, split cycle air conditioners etc) and must not be installed too low on walls.
¨ All smoke alarms must be powered by consumer mains power or if battery operated must have a ten year non-removable lithium battery.
This is subject to existing minimum requirements set down by the National Construction Code (BCA), eg. Dwellings built or substantially renovated after 1 July 1997 must have 240v hard-wired alarms installed (cannot have ten year 9v lithium alarms). Effectively 9v stand alone battery operated smoke alarms with removable batteries will be phased out by 1 Jan 2027.
¨ Smoke alarms must be replaced no later than ten years from the date of manufacture.
Previously, alarms were to be replaced in accordance with the manufacturers expiry information. In most cases, this was ten years from the date of manufacture; however in some cases, the manufacturer expiry date was greater than ten years.
¨ All existing consumer mains powered (240v) smoke alarms must be replaced with 240v smoke alarms.
This now requires all dwellings that were built prior to 1 July 1997 that had not undergone any renovations but do have existing 240v hard-wired alarms, where the current minimum requirement is only 9v stand alone battery operated alarms, that any 240v alarms must be replaced with 240v alarms and cannot be replaced and/or substituted with 9v stand alone battery operated alarms.
¨ Smoke alarms must be installed in all bedrooms.
When will these changes take effect?
Property owners have a phase-in period of 10 years ending on 1 January 2027 to have these changes done.
What does this mean for you and your investment property??
The Solutions team will continue to work closely with our smoke alarm compliance providers to ensure all properties under our management are compliant and meet the new legislation in the required timeframes.
For more information:
http://www.complied.net.au/new-smoke-alarm-laws/
https://www.qfes.qld.gov.au/communitysafety/smokealarms/new-legislation.asp
Recent Comments