Whitfield County, GA Building Safety: Carbon Monoxide Detectors (2026)

Sec. 5-129 of Chapter 5, Article IX lets the owner or occupant of a single-family dwelling under construction or active remodeling live temporarily in a camper, recreational vehicle, or travel trailer, but only if every condition in the section is met. Among them, Sec. 5-129(9) requires the unit to contain at least one fully charged five-pound class ABC fire extinguisher and an operable smoke and carbon monoxide detector. Other conditions in the same section include a current building permit for the home under construction, a limit of five occupants or the unit's rated capacity, a minimum two-acre lot in specific zoning districts (GA, SA, R-2, or R-5) outside any platted subdivision, compliance with setbacks, electrical service meeting NEC Article 551, and a connection either to public sanitary sewer, an environmental-health-approved on-site system, or a twice-weekly tank-pumping agreement.

Before occupancy, the resident must obtain an RV permit from the Whitfield County Building Inspector's office under Sec. 00 application fee; the permit is granted only after the county inspects the site, setup, and unit for compliance, including the carbon monoxide detector requirement, and it is valid for no more than 12 months or until a certificate of occupancy issues for the permanent home, whichever comes first. The county does not extend a standalone carbon-monoxide-detector mandate to permanent single-family dwellings in this article; the CO detector requirement is specific to temporary camper, RV, and travel-trailer living quarters.