Can I add one smoke detector to my dental clinic and monitor it through my burglar alarm system?
a) Yes
b) No
c) It depends
“Burglar alarms are art. Fire alarms are science.” Fire alarm designers and technicians used to be taught that in our licensing courses. It meant that there were very few codes and standards applied to burglar alarm systems….but there were several that shall be followed when designing, installing, and servicing fire alarm systems.
Codes and standards establish a bare minimum level of protection to keep you safe. They have helped reduce the number of fire deaths from 4,500+ in 1984 to 3,704 in 2019 per FEMA. Failure to have a minimal fire alarm system leads to a false sense of security and leads to more injuries or deaths. Even if everyone makes it out alive, insurance underwriters may fail to cover claims if fire codes weren’t met.
Fire alarm systems MUST be installed to the adopted and referenced codes and standards. The answer to our question above is “No.” Installing a single smoke detector on a burglar alarm system does NOT meet any adopted or referenced codes and standards.
References:
IBC / Arkansas Fire Prevention Code 901.2
IBC / Arkansas Fire Prevention Code 907.2.2
IBC / Arkansas Fire Prevention Code 907.5
NFPA 72 10.3.1
NFPA 72 17.5.3.3