2. Recommended Locations
• Locate the smoke alarm in all sleeping areas. Try to monitor the
exit path, as the bedrooms are usually farthest from the exit. If
more than one sleeping area exists, locate additional alarms in
each sleeping area (Image 1A).
• Locate additional alarms to monitor any stairway as stairways act
like chimneys for smoke and heat.
• Locate at least one alarm on every floor level (Image 1B).
• Locate an alarm in every room where electrical appliances are
operated (i.e. portable heaters or humidifiers).
• Locate an alarm in every room where someone sleeps with the
door closed. The closed door may prevent an alarm not located
in that room from waking the sleeper.
• Smoke, heat, and combustion products rise to the ceiling and
spread horizontally. Mounting the smoke alarm on the ceiling in
the center of the room places it closest to all points in the room.
Ceiling mounting is preferred in ordinary residential construction.
• When mounting an alarm on the ceiling, locate it at a minimum
of 10 cm (4”) from the side wall (Image 2A).
• When mounting the alarm on the wall, use an inside wall with
the top edge of the alarm at a minimum of 10 cm (4”) and a
maximum of 30.5 cm (12”) below the ceiling (Image 2A).
• Put smoke alarms at both ends of a bedroom hallway or large
room if the hallway or room is more than 9.1 m (30’) long.
• For mobile home installation, select locations carefully to avoid
thermal barriers that may form at the ceiling. For more details,
see Mobile Homes.
• Install smoke alarms on sloped, peaked or cathedral ceilings
following the mounting guidelines outlined in image 2B and 2C.
Smoke alarms in rooms with ceiling slopes greater than 0.3 m in
2.4 m (1 foot in 8 feet) horizontally shall be located on the high
side of the room (Image 2B and 2C).
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