Taylor, TX Building Safety: Carbon Monoxide Detectors (2026)

Sec. 1 for Taylor. After stating that sprinklers are merely permitted, not required, in Group R-3 occupancies generally, the amendment adds a specific exception stating that an automatic sprinkler system is not required in a lodging house, but that lodging houses shall require smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms in all sleeping rooms and fire extinguishers located in areas the fire code official determines. A lodging house is defined at Sec. 1(g) (Fire Code Section 202) as an owner-occupied one-family dwelling where rent is paid for guest rooms, limited to five or fewer guest rooms and 10 or fewer guests, commonly marketed as a bed and breakfast.

So the carbon monoxide alarm mandate in Taylor's code is not a general residential requirement; it is the trade-off the city built for exempting small owner-occupied rental operations from installing a full sprinkler system. Placement of fire extinguishers within the lodging house is left to the fire code official's determination rather than fixed by the code text, and the sleeping-room alarm requirement applies to every guest sleeping room, not just common areas. This exception functions as the fire code article's only explicit carbon monoxide alarm mandate; no other provision in Chapter 9 imposes CO alarms in other occupancy types such as standard rental homes or apartments, so the obligation currently runs only to lodging houses within city limits.