smoke detector wiring?

[Rosco]

OK guys, almost finished wiring the bonus room apt and the insulation contractor is coming in the a.m.

After going over everything I just realized I left out the smoke detector wiring. I plan on wiring two (one in garage, one in apt) together as required. My question is; do I need a dedicated circuit or can I branch off of the AFCI outlets in the bedroom area? I currently have 9 single outlets on that one circuit (can never have enough).

If I need to run a dedicated line ok, just do not want to buy another AFCI breaker if I do not need to for the smoke alarms.........

 

[Grumpy365]

I have heard someme places require smoke detectors to be on a general circuit. The idea being the homeowner will just shut off a dedicated smoke alarm circuit when they burn something in the oven, BUT if it is tied to the room lighting they would be less likely to shut it off.

That being said, all my smokes are on a dedicated 15 amp circuit. (The only 15 amp circuit in my whole house).

I cant find a reference either way (General circuit or dedicated circuit)in the Code.

If you have a "SYSTEM" thier is an exception to requiring them. NEC 760.41 B. and 210.12 B states smoke alarms "SYSTEMS" dont have to have Arc Fault Protection on smoke detectors (To me once you hook 2 things together you have a system but the inspector will differ).

 

[jkeyser14]

I have heard someme places require smoke detectors to be on a general circuit. The idea being the homeowner will just shut off a dedicated smoke alarm circuit when they burn something in the oven, BUT if it is tied to the room lighting they would be less likely to shut it off.

That being said, all my smokes are on a dedicated 15 amp circuit. (The only 15 amp circuit in my whole house).

I cant find a reference either way (General circuit or dedicated circuit)in the Code.

If you have a "SYSTEM" thier is an exception to requiring them. NEC 760.41 B. and 210.12 B states smoke alarms "SYSTEMS" dont have to have Arc Fault Protection on smoke detectors (To me once you hook 2 things together you have a system but the inspector will differ).

What I've heard: It doesn't have to be on it its own dedicated circuit, but it has to all be tied together on the same circuit and can't be on a GFI or arcfault. The reason being that they need to be tied together to all go off at once (obviously) in case someone is almost legally deaf or has a McMansion and can't hear an alarm going off at one end of their house. Also, they don't want a GFI or arcfault outlet/breaker tripping and powering off the smoke alarms without you knowing it. In my house it's tied to a circuit with a lot of lighting.

 

[oleguy]

they can go on arc-fault.i put them off of the master bed light ckt which is arc-fault.just tie them into the light ckt.they don't bother afci's

 

[nate379]

The common sense thought I have is to tie it to the light circuit in an often used bedroom. My smokies and Co2 are wired that way anyhow. They are battery backup though, but who know how long it would go if they are on their own circuit and it would trip the breaker.

I have to say it's freaking annoying. The one that is in my living room/kitchen is about 15ft off the ground on the wall. When I first moved in it was really sensitive and any smoke off the stove, like cooking bacon, would set it off. I was thinking... well I'll just turn the breaker off. Yeah... didn't think about the battery backup!

 

[Rosco]

Thanks guys, I am in a timeline bind and for now will just tie it in to the bedroom outlet circuit. I have read it needs to be AFCI breakered and cannot be GFCI breakered. I have plenty left on my outlet run, so tied into the bedroom outlets it goes. I decided not to string the garage and apartment together. No code requirement and exhaust gasses can set them off.

Again, Thanks!

 

[nate379]

I had one in the garage for a while but after setting it off what seemed like everytime I fired up the welder or torch I took it down.

 

[JohnJL]

You can go wireless. ADT has these as does Home Despot. The ones at HD also sense each others status so if one goes off they all go off.

 

[Norcal]

Garages,kitchens,& bathrooms are poor places to install smokes, all one gets is nuisance alarms................

 

[Stuart in MN]

Yes, I'd recommend a heat detector in the garage instead of a smoke detector. They sense a rapid rise in heat and aren't affected by exhaust smoke or dust.

 

[Rosco]

Good call on the heat detector. I will probably do that eventually. I am just going to put it in the bedroom area of the bonus room although that is only about 15 feet from the kitchen area..........

If I get a bunch of nuisance beeping it will get unplugged before the cigar/beer poker nights

 

[hillbilly1]

They can be on a Ground fault or arc fault protected circuit, but many jurisdictions require them to be interconnected, so that means all will be on the same circuit. Since many times they are in bedrooms, I put them on one of the bedroom arc fault circuits because code requires all outlets in a bedroom to be arc fault protected. (and yes, a smoke detector, light fixture, etc. is classified as an outlet)

 

[tfi racing]

Not in Canada.Smoke alarms(the correct description)MUST NOT be on a dedicated circuit or one protected by an AFCI or GFCI.

 

[hillbilly1]

Not in Canada.Smoke alarms(the correct description)MUST NOT be on a dedicated circuit or one protected by an AFCI or GFCI.

In the states, unless it's a listed and supervised system, we are not required to have it on a dedicted circuit. Most of the residential systems here are not supervised, unless it is part of a monitored system.

 

[Dragster Racer]

I went through all the trouble of running three wire so that I would have a communication wire between detectors when we built the house. Then we looked for detectors, and all there was availible was the wireless. they work great.