New Place, No Smoke Alarms Fitted

[Monkey]

i've just started renting a new place, but there are no smoke alarms fitted, i thought that it was a legal requirement to have them fitted on rentals.

before i question this wit hthe LA, and i right or wrong?

[zebbedee]

Unless its an HMO I'm pretty sure they don't have to fit them, if it's an HMO they have to be fitted and hard wired with battery backup.

http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/pdf/FireSafety.pdf

http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/fire_safety.htm

Edited April 12, 2012 by zebbedee

[Damik]

i've just started renting a new place, but there are no smoke alarms fitted, i thought that it was a legal requirement to have them fitted on rentals.

before i question this wit hthe LA, and i right or wrong?

IKEA sells one for £9.9

[porca misèria]

i've just started renting a new place, but there are no smoke alarms fitted, i thought that it was a legal requirement to have them fitted on rentals.

before i question this wit hthe LA, and i right or wrong?

I should keep quiet about it. Smoke alarms are a serious PITA. Mine got triggered by steam from a hot shower when I first moved in ...

[tomandlu]

I should keep quiet about it. Smoke alarms are a serious PITA. Mine got triggered by steam from a hot shower when I first moved in ...

That's an unusual set of priorities...

To quote Stellios "If you think safety's expensive, try having an accident."

[porca misèria]

That's an unusual set of priorities...

To quote Stellios "If you think safety's expensive, try having an accident."

Twaddle. Do you call the police every time you hear a car alarm, or do you just curse idiots who disturb the peace with vehicles that scream every time it rains?

When I hear a fire alarm my reaction is where is it? If my flat then go downstairs to deactivate the wretched thing. If another flat in the same house, let them go and deactivate it. If nearby managed by same agent, well that's most likely the monthly test, and they'll be doing ours next. If further afield, just wait for it to SHUT UP.

[bkkandrew]

No smoke alarms... where do you stand?

Well, outside, I guess.

[zebbedee]

Twaddle. Do you call the police every time you hear a car alarm, or do you just curse idiots who disturb the peace with vehicles that scream every time it rains?

When I hear a fire alarm my reaction is where is it? If my flat then go downstairs to deactivate the wretched thing. If another flat in the same house, let them go and deactivate it. If nearby managed by same agent, well that's most likely the monthly test, and they'll be doing ours next. If further afield, just wait for it to SHUT UP.

And the time you lackadaisically go to switch it off and find your kitchen ablaze instead of just sitting waiting until its well underway and you are trapped in the house?

Is there an intellectually challenged smiley.

Edited April 20, 2012 by zebbedee

[The Ayatollah Buggeri]

What this thread demonstrates is that the existence of a widespread perception that smoke alarms are the archetypal "boy who cries wolf", and that the number of false alarms they generate outweighs their safety benefits.

Personally, I wish that they'd fit them with a "temporarily deactivate" button, which switches them off for, say, an hour, and then they automatically come back on again. Being able to press the button before you start cooking in the kitchen, for example, rather than faff about removing the battery, would end that false alarm problem while still restoring the protection once the room is unoccupied.

[tim123]

What this thread demonstrates is that the existence of a widespread perception that smoke alarms are the archetypal "boy who cries wolf", and that the number of false alarms they generate outweighs their safety benefits.

Personally, I wish that they'd fit them with a "temporarily deactivate" button, which switches them off for, say, an hour, and then they automatically come back on again.

They do. The fact is you CBA to RTFM.

tim

[@contradevian]

In my last BTL apartment block the damn fire alarm would go off constantly as the "up and coming executives" burned their beans on toast.

Someone would wander down eventually and turn the thing off.

I'm pretty sure it was disabled most of the time.

If you are worried about it just get a cheap smoke alarm from Wilko or Ikea. I carry a carbon monoxide alarm with me, even though my council flat has sensors. But I just didn't trust BTL equipment!

If you have a gas boiler or stove, then carbon monoxide is the silent killer.

If I was a BTL landlord I would ensure at least these were fitted, but given the dodgy shyster nature of the industry I doubt many of them do.

Edited April 28, 2012 by "Steed"