Forsyth County, GA Building Safety: Carbon Monoxide Detectors (2026)
Key Facts
- Applies to
- Licensed short-term rentals
- Coverage
- Each habitable floor
- Maintenance duty
- Kept in good working order
- First violation fine
- Up to $250.00
- Third violation
- Up to $1,000.00 plus revocation
Summary
Every licensed Forsyth County short-term rental must have a working carbon monoxide detector on each habitable floor, meeting state law standards and kept in good working order at all times. The requirement sits alongside the rental's smoke detector and fire extinguisher standards in the same life-safety subsection.
(3)Each habitable floor shall be equipped with an operational carbon monoxide detector that meets applicable state law standards and shall be maintained in good working order at all times.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 43).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 22-268(d)(3) requires each habitable floor of a licensed short-term rental to be equipped with an operational carbon monoxide detector meeting applicable state law standards, maintained in good working order continuously. This detector requirement is part of the broader 'life safety and sanitation' standard in Sec. 22-268(d), which also requires smoke detectors in every bedroom, hallway, and common area (Sec. 22-268(d)(2)) and a charged fire extinguisher on each floor (Sec. 22-268(d)(4)). The article applies only to short-term rentals licensed under Sec. 22-264 in the Agricultural (A1) and Agricultural Residential (Ag-Res) zoning districts with a conditional use permit; it is not a general building code requirement for every residence countywide.
Compliance is checked at the licensing stage: Sec. § 25-2-40, the state's smoke detector statute, in the fire prevention chapter's state law references, underscoring that these detector duties track state fire-safety law as applied to the licensed rental.
Violations & Fines
A short-term rental missing a required carbon monoxide detector, or maintaining a non-functional one, is treated as a violation of the article's standard operating conditions and follows the same progressive penalty schedule in Sec. 22-270(a): up to $250.00 with a written warning for a first offense in 12 months, up to $500.00 with a 30-to-90-day license suspension for a second, and up to $1,000.00 with revocation and a 12-month reapplication bar for a third. The board of commissioners may immediately suspend or revoke a license if the rental no longer meets its licensing qualifications under Sec. 22-269(3).
Frequently Asked Questions
Are carbon monoxide detectors required in Forsyth County short-term rentals?
Does the carbon monoxide detector rule apply to every home in Forsyth County?
What happens if a Forsyth County short-term rental lacks a working CO detector?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Forsyth County
Compare Forsyth County to another location·View the Georgia building safety overview
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