Tacoma, WA Building Safety: Carbon Monoxide Detectors (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing code
- TMC § 2.01.060.W.2
- Applies to
- Apartments, condos, hotels, homes
- Installed per
- Fire Code standard
- Violation points
- 50 points, Table A item 77
Summary
Tacoma requires carbon monoxide alarms in every existing apartment, condo, hotel, motel, and single-family home, installed to the Fire Code's technical standard.
Carbon Monoxide Alarms shall be installed in existing apartments, condominiums, hotels, motels, and single-family residences in accordance with the Fire Code.
3. Fire alarm systems.
a. Group R-2 occupancies three or more stories in height or containing 16 or more dwelling units shall be equipped with a fire alarm system.
b. Group R1 occupancies containing 20 or more guest rooms, or as part of a high-rise building shall be equipped with a fire alarm. EXCEPTIONS:
a. A manual fire alarm system need not be provided in buildings not over two stories in height when all individual dwelling units and contiguous attic and crawl spaces are separated from each other and public or common areas by at least one-hour fire-resistive occupancy separations and each individual dwelling unit or guest room has an exit directly to a public way, exit court, or yard.
b. A separate fire alarm system need not be provided in buildings which are protected throughout by an approved, supervised fire sprinkler system having a local alarm to notify all occupants. The alarm signal shall be a distinctive sound which is not used for any other purpose other than the fire alarm. The minimum sound pressure levels shall be 75 decibels and shall not exceed a maximum of 110 decibels.
c.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4946110; v22 updated 2026-07-28).
Full Breakdown
TMC § 2.01.060.W.2 requires carbon monoxide alarms in existing apartments, condominiums, hotels, motels, and single-family residences citywide, installed per the Fire Code's technical requirements. It sits alongside the smoke-alarm mandate in the same subsection, and the Building Official enforces both through the Chapter 2.01 inspection and point-table system: Table A groups a missing or inoperative carbon monoxide alarm with smoke detectors and fire extinguishers as one heavily weighted violation. A property already flagged for another serious defect can tip into 'substandard' status fast once a missing CO alarm is added to the tally.
Violations & Fines
Missing or inoperative carbon monoxide alarms are scored with smoke detectors and fire extinguishers as one 50-point Table A violation, item 77, toward a substandard-property finding.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Tacoma require carbon monoxide alarms in single-family homes?
What if my Tacoma rental doesn't have a working CO alarm?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Tacoma
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