domestic smoke alarm comissioning

[James sparks]

Hi all,

Looking for a bit of advice on this subject. Have gone through the electricians guide to fire alarms and the aico electrical contractors book and another book but am a bit confused.

Typical domestic smoke alarms - what (if at all) does the sound level have to be (ie, min 75db) and where do you test it? The Amtech fire detection cert for dwellings mentions a reference to clause 13.2 of I guess BS 5839. I don't have this publication.

I've read several things on the IET forum via google but they conflict a tad!



Thanks for any help!

 

[James sparks]

just found this on the net:

Bedroom sounders needed
Generally, doors are considered the weak link in sound reduction but caution is needed with this assumption. Modern, factory assembled doorsets now consistently provide impressive performance levels with, for example, 36 Rw dB easily achievable without special measures. This is largely due to the sealing up of door edges to minimise air – and smoke – flow. BS 5839-6 recommends achieving a sound level of 75 dB(A) at the bedhead. It also recommends more than 85 dB(A) at the doorway of each bedroom where doors exceed 20 dB ..."unless there is a sounder in the bedroom". As domestic smoke alarms usually generate 85 dB(A), neither of these levels can be achieved in most situations and a bedroom alarm or sounder is justified. Also, research has shown that young children can sleep through loud alarms while elderly people and others with hearing impairments may also not respond.